Cindy Yi Chen

US Patent:

6955177, Oct 18, 2005

Filed:

Dec 7, 2001

Appl. No.:

10/011497

Inventors:

Eddie Chiu - Pleasanton CA, US
Cindy Wailam Chen - San Jose CA, US
Wesley Phillip Graff - Austin TX, US

Assignee:

Novellus Systems, Inc. - San Jose CA

International Classification:

B08B007/00
B08B007/04

US Classification:

134 12, 134 11, 134 26

Abstract:

The present invention pertains to methods for cleaning semiconductor wafers, more specifically, for removing polymeric and other residues from a wafer using dry plasmas generated with microwave (MW), electromagnetic field (inductively-coupled plasma (ICP)), and radio frequency (RF) energy. First, a wafer is treated by applying a microwave-generated plasma or an inductively-coupled plasma. Second, a radio frequency generated plasma is applied. Each of the microwave-generated plasma and the inductively-coupled plasma is produced from a gas mixture, which includes an oxygen source gas, a fluorine source gas, and a hydrogen source gas. Using such plasmas provides more controllable etch rates than conventional plasmas via control of fluorine concentration in the plasma. Application of a radio frequency generated (preferably oxygen-based) plasma is used for additional photoresist and polymer removal. The use of this two-step approach provides superior wafer cleaning compared to conventional wet and dry clean methods.

US Patent:

7160813, Jan 9, 2007

Filed:

Nov 12, 2002

Appl. No.:

10/293661

Inventors:

Cindy W. Chen - San Jose CA, US
Eddie Chiu - Pleasanton CA, US
Mavis J. Chaboya - San Jose CA, US

Assignee:

Novellus Systems, Inc. - San Jose CA

International Classification:

H01L 21/302

US Classification:

438710, 438706, 438712, 15634535

Abstract:

A method is disclosed for removing a polysilicon layer from a semiconductor wafer, in which a downstream plasma source is used first to planarize the wafer, removing contours in the polysilicon layer caused by deposition over lithographic features, such as via holes. The planarizing process is followed by exposure to a plasma made by a direct, radio frequency plasma source, which may be in combination with the downstream plasma source, to perform the bulk etching of the polysilicon. The invention can produce planar surface topography after the top layer of the film is removed, in which the residual recess height of the polysilicon plug filling a via hole is less than about about 10 nm.

US Patent:

20200104404, Apr 2, 2020

Filed:

Sep 29, 2018

Appl. No.:

16/147737

Inventors:

- Redmond WA, US
Lanhui Long - Sunnyvale CA, US
Haochen Wei - Sunnyvale CA, US
Yiheng Wang - Sunnyvale CA, US
Hao Liu - Mountain View CA, US
Sourav Maji - Sunnyvale CA, US
Cindy Chen - Sunnyvale CA, US

International Classification:

G06F 17/30
H04L 29/08
G06F 9/54

Abstract:

Techniques for migrating clients from one technology stack to another are provided. In one technique, while a legacy service is hosted that is actively serving requests from multiple clients, a new service is initiated and one or more clients send requests to the new service. The legacy service reads data from and writes data to a legacy database in response to the requests. The new service forwards, to the legacy service, a first set of client requests that were directed to the new service. A new database is synchronized with the legacy database. After synchronization, the legacy service forwards, to the new service, a second set of client requests, which the new service processes.