An ion implanter comprises a dissociation chamber in the ion implanter. The dissociation chamber has an input port for receiving a gas and an output port for outputting ions. A vacuum chamber surrounds the dissociation chamber. A plurality of rods or plates of magnetic material are located adjacent to the dissociation chamber on at least two sides of the dissociation chamber. A magnet is magnetically coupled to the plurality of rods or plates of magnetic material. A microwave source is provided for supplying microwaves to the dissociation chamber, so as to cause electron cyclotron resonance in the dissociation chamber to ionize the gas.

Provided herein are approaches for dynamically modifying plasma volume in an ion source chamber by positioning an end plate and radio frequency (RF) antenna at a selected axial location. In one approach, an ion source includes a plasma chamber having a longitudinal axis extending between a first end wall and a second end wall, and an RF antenna adjacent a plasma within the plasma chamber, wherein the RF antenna is configured to provide RF energy to the plasma. The ion source may further include an end plate disposed within the plasma chamber, adjacent the first end wall, the end plate actuated along the longitudinal axis between a first position and a second position to adjust a volume of the plasma. By providing an actuable end plate and RF antenna, plasma characteristics may be dynamically controlled to affect ion source characteristics, such as composition of ion species, including metastable neutrals.

A method of processing a workpiece is disclosed, where the interior surfaces of the plasma chamber are first coated using a conditioning gas that contains the desired dopant species. A working gas, which does not contain the desired dopant species, is then introduced and energized to form a plasma. This plasma is used to sputter the desired dopant species from the interior surfaces. This dopant species is deposited on the workpiece. A subsequent implant process may then be performed to implant the dopant into the workpiece. The implant process may include a thermal treatment, a knock in mechanism, or both.

An ion source is disclosed, in which the compression force applied to the faceplate on the two sides of the extraction aperture may be varied independently. Modifying the compression force between the faceplate and arc chamber can enable temperature control of the ion source by modifying the thermal contact resistance between the two components. This may allow more control of the temperature of the faceplate, and more specifically, the temperature profile across the entire faceplate due to precise control of the thermal contact gradient along the length of the faceplate. The ion implantation system includes two adjustable tension systems, each of which includes an actuator. A controller is used to provide a command signal to each adjustable tension system. In some embodiments, a feedback signal is generated by each adjustable tension system, which is representative of the torque or force experienced by the actuator.

An RF antenna system for a plasma chamber comprises an RF input coupling a trunk to an RO power supply; two main branches electrically connected to the main trunk, each of the two main branches coupled to a plurality of rod antennas; a plurality of tuning devices, each provided between one of the rod antennas and the corresponding main branch.

A workpiece processing apparatus allowing independent control of the voltage applied to the shield ring and the workpiece is disclosed. The workpiece processing apparatus includes a platen. The platen includes a dielectric material on which a workpiece is disposed. A bias electrode is disposed beneath the dielectric material. A shield ring, which is constructed from a metal, ceramic, semiconductor or dielectric material, is arranged around the perimeter of the workpiece. A ring electrode is disposed beneath the shield ring. The ring electrode and the bias electrode may be separately powered. This allows the surface voltage of the shield ring to match that of the workpiece, which causes the plasma sheath to be flat. Additionally, the voltage applied to the shield ring may be made different from that of the workpiece to compensate for mismatches in geometries. This improves uniformity of incident angles along the outer edge of the workpiece.

Provided herein are approaches for dynamically modifying plasma volume in an ion source chamber by positioning an end plate and radio frequency (RF) antenna at a selected axial location. In one approach, an ion source includes a plasma chamber having a longitudinal axis extending between a first end wall and a second end wall, and an RF antenna adjacent a plasma within the plasma chamber, wherein the RF antenna is configured to provide RF energy to the plasma. The ion source may further include an end plate disposed within the plasma chamber, adjacent the first end wall, the end plate actuated along the longitudinal axis between a first position and a second position to adjust a volume of the plasma. By providing an actuable end plate and RF antenna, plasma characteristics may be dynamically controlled to affect ion source characteristics, such as composition of ion species, including metastable neutrals.

A system for mounting the shield ring to the pedestal in a plasma chamber is disclosed. The mounting system includes compliant hardware. A fastener with a compliant component, such as an O-ring, is first secured to the pedestal. The shield ring has a top surface, a bottom surface and walls extending downward from the inner and outer diameter of the shield ring. Bores are located on the bottom surface of the shield ring. The bores of the shield ring are aligned with the fasteners and the shield ring is then pressed down onto the fasteners. As the shield ring is being pressed down, the walls of the bores force the compliant hardware to yield. When in place, the compliant hardware supplies the requisite compression force to hold the shield ring in place. The compliant hardware may be implemented in various manners.

An ion implantation system having a grid assembly. The system includes a plasma source configured to provide plasma in a plasma region; a first grid plate having a plurality of apertures configured to allow ions from the plasma region to pass therethrough, wherein the first grid plate is configured to be biased by a power supply; a second grid plate having a plurality of apertures configured to allow the ions to pass therethrough subsequent to the ions passing through the first grid plate, wherein the second grid plate is configured to be biased by a power supply; and a substrate holder configured to support a substrate in a position where the substrate is implanted with the ions subsequent to the ions passing through the second grid plate.

A plasma processing apparatus may include: a plasma chamber; a power source to generate a plasma in the plasma chamber; an extraction voltage supply coupled to the plasma chamber to apply a pulsed extraction voltage between the plasma chamber and a substrate; an extraction assembly disposed along a side of the plasma chamber between the plasma chamber and the substrate, the extraction assembly having at least one aperture, the at least one aperture defining a first ion beam when the plasma is present in the plasma chamber and the pulsed extraction voltage is applied; a deflection electrode adjacent the extraction assembly; and a controller to synchronize application of the pulsed extraction voltage with application of a pulsed deflection voltage to the deflection electrode.