A method for reducing or removing organic and/or inorganic contamination from a vacuum system of imaging and analytical devices, wherein at least a portion of the area of the inner surface of the vacuum space of the vacuum system is provided with a photocatalytic layer, at least a portion of this photocatalytic layer being cooled to a temperature in the range of 0 K to 280 K, whereby the photocatalytic layer is afterwards at least partially irradiated by electromagnetic radiation, which activates a photocatalytic reaction of the photocatalytic layer with the adsorbed gases of the atmosphere of the inner vacuum space of the vacuum system, where this reaction decomposes the contaminants, reducing their concentration and/or the concentration of water in the inner vacuum space of the vacuum system.

Described herein are architectures, platforms and methods for acquiring optical emission spectra from an optical emission spectroscopy system by flowing a dry cleaning gas into a plasma processing chamber of the plasma processing system and igniting a plasma in the plasma processing chamber to initiate the waferless dry cleaning process.

A wafer-scale multiple carbon nanotube transfer process is provided. According to one embodiment of the invention, plasma exposure processes are performed at various stages of the fabrication process of a carbon nanotube device or article to improve feasibility and yield for successive transfers of nanotubes. In one such carbon nanotube transfer process, a carrier material is partially etched by a plasma process before removing the carrier material through, for example, a wet etch. By applying the subject plasma exposure processes, fabrication of ultra-high-density nanotubes and ultra-high-density nanotube grids or fabrics is facilitated. The ultra-high-density nanotubes and ultra-high-density nanotube grids or fabrics fabricated utilizing embodiments of the invention can be used, for example, to make high-performance carbon nanotube field effect transistors (CNFETs) and low cost, highly-transparent, and low-resistivity electrodes for solar cell and flat panel display applications. Further, three-dimensional CNFETs can be provided by utilizing the subject plasma exposure processes.

An apparatus for cleaning a mask includes a chamber in which material deposition is performable on a substrate using the mask, the chamber including a transmission window through which light used in cleaning the mask within the chamber is irradiated into the chamber from outside thereof; within the chamber: a stage on which the substrate is disposed, the stage disposed in a plane defined by first and second directions crossing each other; and a material deposition unit from which a deposition material is provided to the substrate; and a light irradiation unit from which is provided the light used in cleaning the mask within the chamber. The light irradiation unit is disposed outside the chamber and irradiates the light into the chamber through the transmission window. The material deposition unit disposed within the chamber and the light irradiation unit disposed outside the chamber are reciprocally movable in the first direction.

A substrate dry cleaning apparatus, a substrate dry cleaning system, and a method of cleaning a substrate are disclosed. The substrate dry cleaning system includes a substrate support and a reactive species generator. The reactive species generator includes a first conduit defining a first flow channel that extends to an outlet of the first conduit, the outlet of the first conduit facing the substrate support, a first electrode, a second electrode facing the first electrode, the first flow channel disposed between the first electrode and the second electrode, a first inert wall disposed between the first electrode and the first flow channel, and a second inert wall disposed between the second electrode and the first flow channel.

In a method of manufacturing a semiconductor device a semiconductor wafer is retrieved from a load port. The semiconductor wafer is transferred to a treatment device. In the treatment device, the surface of the semiconductor wafer is exposed to a directional stream of plasma wind to clean a particle from the surface of the semiconductor wafer. The stream of plasma wind is generated by an ambient plasma generator and is directed at an oblique angle with respect to a perpendicular plane to the surface of the semiconductor wafer for a predetermined plasma exposure time. After the cleaning, a photo resist layer is disposed on the semiconductor wafer.

The present disclosure discloses a microwave flash evaporation process and apparatus and uses thereof. A microwave flash evaporation process, wherein the process makes integration of those technologies for liquid spraying, liquid droplet flash evaporation, microwave enhancement, vacuum steam discharge, and simulation and optimization of multi-mode resonant cavity, wherein through the coupling effect of the microwave, by means of one stage microwave flash evaporation, the effect normally achieved by multi-effect evaporation and flash evaporation is obtained and a liquid droplet micro-system with microwave energy transfer in situ is formed so as to prevent a circulation pump and a steam heat exchange system from being corroded under high temperature and high pressure, and prevent scaling on a heat exchanger, and improve evaporation efficiency. The present disclosure makes integration of those technologies for liquid spraying, liquid droplet flash evaporation, microwave enhancement, vacuum steam discharge, and simulation and optimization of multi-mode resonant cavity, and can be used for performing the processes of effluent disposal, seawater desalination, evaporation concentration of spent liquor of Bayer process, concentration crystallization of chemical production, sterilization of solution, unoil of solution, the rectification separation for various organic mixed solutions, sterilization, unoil and dehydration of solid powder. There is a prospect for this new process of the present disclosure with short technological process to upgrade the evaporation process.

Exemplary methods of semiconductor processing may include forming a plasma of a fluorine-containing precursor. The methods may include performing a chamber clean in a processing region of a semiconductor processing chamber. The processing region may be at least partially defined between a faceplate and a substrate support. The methods may include generating aluminum fluoride during the chamber clean. The methods may include contacting surfaces within the processing region with a carbon-containing precursor. The methods may include volatilizing aluminum fluoride from the surfaces of the processing region.

A method of cleaning a collector of an extreme ultraviolet light source system includes introducing the collector separated from the extreme ultraviolet light source system into a chamber; capturing an optical image of a reflective surface of the collector; measuring a contamination level of the reflective surface by comparing the optical image with a prestored standard image; performing a first cleaning operation if the contamination level exceeds a preset first reference value, the first cleaning operation including cleaning the reflective surface by spraying dry ice particles onto the reflective surface; and performing a second cleaning operation if the contamination level is less than or equal to the preset first reference value. The second cleaning operation includes cleaning the reflective surface by radiating atmospheric plasma onto the reflective surface and measuring a microcontamination level and a damage level of the reflective surface.

A plasma system and a filter device are provided. In the system, an area surrounded by a dielectric window is configured as a first chamber for accommodating plasma. A first adapter is arranged under the dielectric window. An area surrounded by the first adapter is configured as a second chamber. A lower electrode platform is placed in the second chamber to carry a workpiece. A filter member of the filter device is placed at an intersection of the first chamber and the second chamber. The filter member includes through-holes configured to filter ions from the plasma. A first extension member extends from the filter member in a first direction and is placed over the first adapter. A second extension member extends from a position of the filter member adjacent to the first extension member to an inner side of the first adapter.