Design of Single-Wafer Furnace and Its Rapid Thermal Processing Applications

A resistively heated, vacuum- and atmospheric-pressure-compatible, single-wafer furnace (SWF) system is designed to improve the operational flexibility of conventional furnaces and the productivity of single-wafer rapid thermal processing (RTP) systems. The heat source design and system operation concepts are described. The temperature measurement/control techniques and thermal characteristics of the heat source are described. The heat transfer mechanism between the heat source and Si wafer is discussed. Temperature and process uniformity in SWF were demonstrated in TiSi formation, implant annealing and thin-oxide formation. The defect-generation phenomenon in Si wafers during atmospheric pressure RTP in a SWF system is investigated as a function of temperature, process time, wafer handling method and speed. Highly repeatable slip-free RTP results were achieved in 200-mm-diameter Si wafers processed at 1100°C for 60 s (up to 5 times) through the optimization of the wafer handling method and speed.