A film-forming apparatus for forming a predetermined film on a substrate by plasma ALD includes a chamber, a stage, a shower head having an upper electrode and a shower plate insulated from the upper electrode, a first high-frequency power supply connected to the upper electrode, and a second high-frequency power supply connected to an electrode contained in the stage. A high-frequency power is supplied from the first high-frequency power supply to the upper electrode, thereby forming a high-frequency electric field between the upper electrode and the shower plate and generating a first capacitively coupled plasma. A high-frequency power is supplied from the second high-frequency power supply to the electrode, thereby forming a high-frequency electric field between the shower plate and the electrode in the stage and generating a second capacitively coupled plasma that is independent from the first capacitively coupled plasma.

A process for depositing a coating on short fibres of carbon or silicon carbide from a coating precursor, the short fibres having a length of between 50 μm and 5 mm, the process including at least heating the short fibres by placing a mixture including the fibres and a liquid phase of the coating precursor in a microwave field so as to bring the surface of the fibres to a temperature allowing the coating on the fibres from the coating precursor to be formed by calefaction.

A carbon nanotube (CNT) growth apparatus includes: a body; an inlet cap; an outlet cap; insulation extending through a portion of an interior of the body, the insulation including a first stage and a second stage, a flow tube extending through the inlet cap and passing coaxially through the first stage of the insulation, the flow tube configured to receive and flow a fluid to the interior of the body; a gas heater including a plurality of heat pipes configured to be inserted in the first stage of the insulation, the plurality of heat pipes being disposed adjacent to the flow tube; a substrate heater incorporated in the second stage of the insulation; and a temperature controller configured to adjust a temperature of the gas heater and substrate heater, wherein a removed portion of the second stage is configured to provide an unobstructed view of the substrate.

The invention relates to a device 10 for holding workpieces 30 in a process chamber. The invention additionally relates to a coating system 20 and to a method for coating a workpiece 30. In order to allow for precise adjustment of the height of the position of workpieces 30 while supporting same in a secure and stable manner, the holding device 10 comprises a tray 72 for the workpieces 30, a height-adjustable first support element 22 and a height-adjustable second support element 48 for the tray 72, wherein each of the support elements 22, 48 comprises at least one first and one second limb element 26, 56, wherein the respective first and the respective second limb element 26, 56 are coupled so as to be pivotable relative to one another about a pivot axis X, Y, and wherein the pivot axis X of the first support element 22 is arranged at an angle to the pivot axis Y of the second support element 48.

Me-N—C catalysts, wherein Me can include a transition metal, Mn, Fe, Co, or a combination of metals with Me-INU moieties located at the exterior surface of the Me-N—C catalysts are produced by a chemical vapor deposition synthesis. The synthesis methods can utilize non-solid-contact pyrolysis wherein a metal salt can be vaporized. Gaseous metal from the vaporized metal salt can displace a metal M from the N—C zeolitic imidazolate framework. The non-solid-contact pyrolysis does not mix solid iron precursors (e.g., Me=Mn, Fe, or Co) with the solid N—C zeolitic imidazolate framework precursors during or before the synthesis, which improves the process compared to conventional methods.

A film forming method of forming a carbon film includes: cleaning an interior of a processing container by using oxygen-containing plasma in a state in which no substrate is present inside the processing container; subsequently, extracting and removing oxygen inside the processing container by using plasma in the state in which no substrate is present inside the processing container; and subsequently, loading a substrate into the processing container and forming the carbon film on the substrate through plasma CVD using a processing gas including a carbon-containing gas, wherein the cleaning, the extracting and removing the oxygen, and the forming the carbon film are repeatedly performed.

A method of producing an epitaxial silicon wafer, including: loading a wafer into a chamber; performing epitaxial growth; unloading the epitaxial silicon wafer from the chamber; and then cleaning the inside of the chamber using hydrochloric gas. After the cleaning is performed, whether components provided in the chamber are to be replaced or not is determined based on the cumulative amount of the hydrochloric gas supplied. The components have a base material that includes graphite and is coated with a silicon carbide film.

Processing methods and apparatus for depositing a protective layer on internal surfaces of a reaction chamber are provided. One method may include depositing, while no wafers are present in the reaction chamber having interior surfaces, a first layer of protective material onto the interior surfaces, the interior surfaces comprising a first material, processing, after the depositing the first layer, a portion of a batch of wafers within a reaction chamber, measuring an amount of the first material in the reaction chamber during processing the portion of the batch of wafers, or on one of the wafers in the portion of the batch of wafers, determining that the first amount exceeds a threshold, and depositing, in response to determining that the first amount exceeds the threshold and while no wafers are present in the reaction chamber, a second layer of protective material onto the interior surfaces of the reaction chamber.

Disclosed is a plasma surface treatment apparatus for conductive powder. The plasma surface treatment apparatus for conductive powder comprises: a reaction chamber including a linear gas inlet at the lower end thereof and a gas outlet at the upper end thereof, and having a vertical cross section that is funnel-shaped; and a plasma jet generation device that is located below the linear gas inlet and is configured to discharge a plasma jet into the reaction chamber from below in an upward direction through the linear gas inlet, wherein powder is accommodated in the reaction chamber and is treated by plasma while buoyed by the plasma jet.

A semiconductor processing tool performs passivation layer deposition and removal in situ. A transport mechanism included in the semiconductor processing tool transfers a semiconductor structure through different deposition chambers (e.g., without breaking or removing a vacuum environment). Accordingly, the semiconductor processing tool deposits a target layer that is thinner on, or even absent from, a metal layer, such that contact resistance is reduced between a conductive structure formed over the target layer and the metal layer. As a result, electrical performance of a device including the conductive structure is improved. Moreover, because the process is performed in situ (e.g., without breaking or removing the vacuum) in the semiconductor processing tool, production time and risk of impurities in the conductive structure are reduced. As a result, throughput is increased, and chances of spoiled wafers are decreased.