US20050223986A1 - Gas diffusion shower head design for large area plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition - Google Patents

Abstract

Embodiments of a gas distribution plate for distributing gas in a processing chamber are provided. In one embodiment, a gas distribution plate includes a diffuser plate having an upstream side and a downstream side, and a plurality of gas passages passing between the upstream and downstream sides of the diffuser plate. At least one of the gas passages has a right cylindrical shape for a portion of its length extending from the upstream side and a coaxial conical shape for the remainder length of the diffuser plate, the upstream end of the conical portion having substantially the same diameter as the right cylindrical portion and the downstream end of the conical portion having a larger diameter. The gas distribution plate is relatively easy to manufacture and provides good chamber cleaning rate, good thin film deposition uniformity and good thin film deposition rate. The gas distribution plate also has the advantage of reduced chamber cleaning residues on the diffuser surface and reduced incorporation of the cleaning residues in the thin film being deposited.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSURE
• 1. Field of the Invention
• Embodiments of the invention generally relate to a gas distribution plate assembly and method for distributing gas in a processing chamber.
• 2. Description of the Background Art
• Liquid crystal displays or flat panels are commonly used for active matrix displays such as computer and television monitors. Plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) is generally employed to deposit thin films on a substrate such as a transparent glass substrate (for flat panel) or semiconductor wafer. PECVD is generally accomplished by introducing a precursor gas or gas mixture into a vacuum chamber that contains a flat panel. The precursor gas or gas mixture is typically directed downwardly through a distribution plate situated near the top of the chamber. The precursor gas or gas mixture in the chamber is energized (e.g., excited) into a plasma by applying radio frequency (RF) power to the chamber from one or more RF sources coupled to the chamber. The excited gas or gas mixture reacts to form a layer of material on a surface of the flat panel that is positioned on a temperature controlled substrate support. Volatile by-products produced during the reaction are pumped from the chamber through an exhaust system.
• Flat panels processed by PECVD techniques are typically large, often exceeding 370 mm×470 mm and ranging over 1 square meter in size. Large area substrates approaching and exceeding 4 square meters are envisioned in the near future. Gas distribution plates utilized to provide uniform process gas flow over flat panels are relatively large in size, particularly as compared to gas distribution plates utilized for 200 mm and 300 mm semiconductor wafer processing.
• Large gas distribution plates utilized for flat panel processing have a number of fabricating issues that result in high manufacturing costs. For example, gas flow holes formed through the gas distribution plate are small in diameter relative to thickness of the gas distribution plate, for example a 0.016 inch diameter hole through a 1.2 inch thick plate, resulting in a high frequency of drill bit breakage during hole formation. Removal of broken drill bits is time consuming and may result in the entire gas distribution plate being scrapped. Additionally, as the number of gas flow holes formed through the gas distribution plate is proportional to the size of the flat panel, the great number of holes formed in each plate disadvantageously contributes to a high probability of trouble during plate fabrication. Moreover, the high number of holes coupled with the care required to minimize drill bit breakage results in long fabrication times, thereby elevating fabrication costs.
• As the cost of materials for manufacturing the gas distribution plate is great, it would be advantageous to develop a gas distribution plate in a configuration that can be efficiently and cost effectively fabricated. Moreover, as the size of the next generation gas distribution plates is increased to accommodate processing flat panels in excess of 1.2 square meters, resolution of the aforementioned problems becomes increasingly important. While addressing the cost implications of the design of large gas distribution plates is important, performance attributes must not be overlooked. For example, the configuration, location and density of gas flow holes directly impact deposition performance, such as deposition rate and uniformity, and cleaning attributes, such as cleaning efficiency and residual cleaning chemical(s) in the process chamber.
• Therefore, there is a need for an improved gas distribution plate assembly that reduces the manufacturing cost, and has good deposition and cleaning performance.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
• Embodiments of a gas distribution plate for distributing gas in a processing chamber are provided. In one embodiment, a gas distribution plate assembly for a plasma processing chamber comprises a diffuser plate having an upstream side and a downstream side, and a plurality of gas passages passing between the upstream and downstream sides, wherein at least one of the gas passages has a right cylindrical shape for a portion of its length extending from the upstream side and a coaxial conical shape for the remaining length of the diffuser plate, the upstream end of the conical portion having substantially the same diameter as the right cylindrical portion and the downstream end of the conical portion having a larger diameter.
• In another embodiment, a gas distribution plate assembly for a plasma processing chamber comprises a diffuser plate having an upstream side and a downstream side in the plasma process chamber that is coupled to a remote plasma source and the remote plasma source is coupled to a fluorine source, and a plurality of gas passages passing between the upstream and downstream sides, wherein at least one of the gas passages has a right cylindrical shape for a portion of its length extending from the upstream side and a coaxial conical shape for the remaining length of the diffuser plate, the upstream end of the conical portion having substantially the same diameter as the right cylindrical portion and the downstream end of the conical portion having a larger diameter.
• In another embodiment, a gas distribution plate assembly for a plasma processing chamber comprises a diffuser plate having an upstream side and a downstream side, and a plurality of gas passages passing between the upstream and downstream sides, wherein at least one of the gas passages has a first right cylindrical shape for a portion of its length extending from the upstream side, a second coaxial right cylindrical shape with a smaller diameter connected to the first cylindrical shape, a coaxial conical shape connected to the second cylindrical shape for the remaining length of the diffuser plate, with the upstream end of the conical portion having substantially the same diameter as the second right cylindrical shape and the downstream end of the conical portion having a larger diameter.
• In another embodiment, a gas distribution plate assembly for a plasma processing chamber comprises a diffuser plate having an upstream side and a downstream side in the plasma process chamber that is coupled to a remote plasma source and the remote plasma source is coupled to a fluorine source, and a plurality of gas passages passing between the upstream and downstream sides, wherein at least one of the gas passages has a first right cylindrical shape for a portion of its length extending from the upstream side, a second coaxial right cylindrical shape with a smaller diameter connected to the first cylindrical shape, a coaxial conical shape connected to the second cylindrical shape for the remaining length of the diffuser plate, with the upstream end of the conical portion having substantially the same diameter as the second right cylindrical shape and the downstream end of the conical portion having a larger diameter.
• In another embodiment, a method of depositing a thin film on a substrate comprises placing a substrate in a process chamber with a diffuser plate having an upstream side and a downstream side, and a plurality of gas passages passing between the upstream and downstream sides, wherein at least one of the gas passages has a right cylindrical shape for a portion of its length extending from the upstream side and a coaxial conical shape for the remaining length of the diffuser plate, the upstream end of the conical portion having substantially the same diameter as the right cylindrical portion and the downstream end of the conical portion having a larger diameter, and depositing a thin film on the substrate in the process chamber.
• In another embodiment, a method of depositing a thin film on a substrate comprises placing a substrate in a process chamber with a diffuser plate having an upstream side and a downstream side, and a plurality of gas passages passing between the upstream and downstream sides, wherein at least one of the gas passages has a first right cylindrical shape for a portion of its length extending from the upstream side, a second coaxial right cylindrical shape with a smaller diameter connected to the first cylindrical shape, a coaxial conical shape connected to the second cylindrical shape for the remaining length of the diffuser plate, with the upstream end of the conical portion having substantially the same diameter as the second right cylindrical shape and the downstream end of the conical portion having a larger diameter, and depositing a thin film on the substrate in the process chamber.
• In another embodiment, a method of cleaning a process chamber comprises placing a substrate in a process chamber, which is coupled to a remote plasma source and the remote plasma source is coupled to a fluorine source, with a diffuser plate having an upstream side and a downstream side, and a plurality of gas passages passing between the upstream and downstream sides, wherein at least one of the gas passages has a right cylindrical shape for a portion of its length extending from the upstream side and a coaxial conical shape for the remaining length of the diffuser plate, the upstream end of the conical portion having substantially the same diameter as the right cylindrical portion and the downstream end of the conical portion having a larger diameter, depositing a thin film on the substrate in the process chamber, determining if the number of processed substrates having reached a pre-determined cleaning limit, repeating the steps of placing a substrate in the process chamber, depositing a thin film on the substrate and determining if the number of processed substrates has reached the pre-determined cleaning limit until the number of process substrates has reached the pre-determined cleaning limit, if the number of processed substrates has not reached the pre-determined cleaning limit, and cleaning the process chamber if the number of processed substrates has reached the pre-determined cleaning limit.
• In yet another embodiment, a method of cleaning a process chamber comprises placing a substrate in a process chamber, which is coupled to a remote plasma source and the remote plasma source is coupled to a fluorine source, with a diffuser plate having an upstream side and a downstream side, and a plurality of gas passages passing between the upstream and downstream sides, wherein at least one of the gas passages has a first right cylindrical shape for a portion of its length extending from the upstream side, a second coaxial right cylindrical shape with a smaller diameter connected to the first cylindrical shape, a coaxial conical shape connected to the second cylindrical shape for the remaining length of the diffuser plate, with the upstream end of the conical portion having substantially the same diameter as the second right cylindrical shape and the downstream end of the conical portion having a larger diameter, depositing a thin film on the substrate in the process chamber, determining if the number of processed substrates has reached a pre-determined cleaning limit, repeating the steps of placing a substrate in the process chamber, depositing a thin film on the substrate and determining if the number of processed substrates has reached the pre-determined cleaning limit until the number of process substrates has reached the pre-determined cleaning limit, if the number of processed substrates has not reached the pre-determined cleaning limit, and cleaning the process chamber if the number of processed substrates has reached the pre-determined cleaning limit.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
• The teachings of the present invention can be readily understood by considering the following detailed description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:
• FIG. 1 depicts a cross-sectional schematic view of a bottom gate thin film transistor.
• FIG. 2A is a schematic cross-sectional view of an illustrative processing chamber having one embodiment of a gas distribution plate assembly of the present invention.
• FIG. 2B depicts the bottom view of an embodiment of a gas diffuser plate of the current invention.
• FIG. 3 depicts a cross-sectional schematic view of a gas diffuser plate.
• FIG. 4A depicts a cross-sectional schematic view of an embodiment of a gas diffuser plate of the current invention.
• FIG. 4B depicts the top view of a section of an exemplary embodiment of a gas diffuser plate of the current invention
• FIG. 4C depicts a cross-sectional schematic view of a variation of the gas diffuser plate design ofFIG. 4A.
• FIG. 5 shows the diffuser surface exposed to the process volume.
• FIG. 6 shows the process flow of depositing a thin film on a substrate in a process chamber with a gas diffuser plate and cleaning the process chamber.
• FIG. 7 shows the secondary ion mass spectrometer (SIMS) analysis of the fluorine content of SiN film of theFIG. 3 andFIG. 4A designs.
• FIG. 8A depicts a cross-sectional schematic view of a variation of the gas diffuser plate design ofFIG. 4A for thicker diffuser plate.
• FIG. 8B depicts a cross-sectional schematic view of another variation of the gas diffuser plate design ofFIG. 8A.
• To facilitate understanding, identical reference numerals have been used, where possible, to designate identical elements that are common to the figures.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
• The invention generally provides a gas distribution plate assembly for providing gas delivery within a processing chamber. The invention is illustratively described below in reference to a plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition system configured to process large area substrates, such as a plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) system, available from AKT, a division of Applied Materials, Inc., Santa Clara, Calif. However, it should be understood that the invention has utility in other system configurations such as etch systems, other chemical vapor deposition systems and any other system in which distributing gas within a process chamber is desired, including those systems configured to process round substrates.
• FIG. 1 illustrates cross-sectional schematic views of a thin film transistor structure. A common TFT structure is the back channel etch (BCE) inverted staggered (or bottom gate) TFT structure shown inFIG. 1. The BCE process is preferred, because the gate dielectric (SiN), and the intrinsic as well as n+ doped amorphous silicon films can be deposited in the same PECVD pump-down run. The BCE process shown here involves only 4 patterning masks. Thesubstrate101 may comprise a material that is essentially optically transparent in the visible spectrum, such as, for example, glass or clear plastic. The substrate may be of varying shapes or dimensions. Typically, for TFT applications, the substrate is a glass substrate with a surface area greater than about 500 mm². Agate electrode layer102 is formed on thesubstrate101. Thegate electrode layer102 comprises an electrically conductive layer that controls the movement of charge carriers within the TFT. Thegate electrode layer102 may comprise a metal such as, for example, aluminum (Al), tungsten (W), chromium (Cr), tantalum (Ta), or combinations thereof, among others. Thegate electrode layer102 may be formed using conventional deposition, lithography and etching techniques. Between thesubstrate101 and thegate electrode layer102, there may be an optional insulating material, for example, such as silicon dioxide (SiO₂) or silicon nitride (SiN), which may also be formed using an embodiment of a PECVD system described in this invention. Thegate electrode layer102 is then lithographically patterned and etched using conventional techniques to define the gate electrode.
• Agate dielectric layer103 is formed on thegate electrode layer102. Thegate dielectric layer103 may be silicon dioxide (SiO₂), silicon oxynitride (SiON), or silicon nitride (SiN), deposited using an embodiment of a PECVD system described in this invention. Thegate dielectric layer103 may be formed to a thickness in the range of about 100 Å to about 6000 Å.
• Abulk semiconductor layer104 is formed on thegate dielectric layer103. Thebulk semiconductor layer104 may comprise polycrystalline silicon (polysilicon) or amorphous silicon (α-Si), which could be deposited using an embodiment of a PECVD system described in this invention or other conventional methods known to the art.Bulk semiconductor layer104 may be deposited to a thickness in the range of about 100 Å to about 3000 Å. A dopedsemiconductor layer105 is formed on top of thesemiconductor layer104. The dopedsemiconductor layer105 may comprise n-type (n+) or p-type (p+) doped polycrystalline (polysilicon) or amorphous silicon (α-Si), which could be deposited using an embodiment of a PECVD system described in this invention or other conventional methods known to the art.Doped semiconductor layer105 may be deposited to a thickness within a range of about 100 Å to about 3000 Å. An example of the dopedsemiconductor layer105 is n+ doped α-Si film. Thebulk semiconductor layer104 and the dopedsemiconductor layer105 are lithographically patterned and etched using conventional techniques to define a mesa of these two films over the gate dielectric insulator, which also serves as storage capacitor dielectric. The dopedsemiconductor layer105 directly contacts portions of thebulk semiconductor layer104, forming a semiconductor junction.
• Aconductive layer106 is then deposited on the exposed surface. Theconductive layer106 may comprise a metal such as, for example, aluminum (Al), tungsten (W), molybdenum (Mo), chromium (Cr), tantalum (Ta), and combinations thereof, among others. Theconductive layer106 may be formed using conventional deposition techniques. Both theconductive layer106 and the dopedsemiconductor layer105 may be lithographically patterned to define source and drain contacts of the TFT. Afterwards, apassivation layer107 may be deposited.Passivation layer107 conformably coats exposed surfaces. Thepassivation layer107 is generally an insulator and may comprise, for example, silicon dioxide (SiO₂) or silicon nitride (SiN). Thepassivation layer107 may be formed using, for example, PECVD or other conventional methods known to the art. Thepassivation layer107 may be deposited to a thickness in the range of about 1000 Å to about 5000 Å. Thepassivation layer107 is then lithographically patterned and etched using conventional techniques to open contact holes in the passivation layer.
• Atransparent conductor layer108 is then deposited and patterned to make contacts with theconductive layer106. Thetransparent conductor layer108 comprises a material that is essentially optically transparent in the visible spectrum and is electrically conductive.Transparent conductor layer108 may comprise, for example, indium tin oxide (ITO) or zinc oxide, among others. Patterning of the transparentconductive layer108 is accomplished by conventional lithographical and etching techniques.
• The doped or un-doped (intrinsic) amorphous silicon (α-Si), silicon dioxide (SiO2), silicon oxynitride (SiON) and silicon nitride (SiN) films used in liquid crystal displays (or flat panels) could all be deposited using an embodiment of a plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) system described in this invention.
• FIG. 2A is a schematic cross-sectional view of one embodiment of a plasma enhanced chemicalvapor deposition system200, available from AKT, a division of Applied Materials, Inc., Santa Clara, Calif. Thesystem200 generally includes aprocessing chamber202 coupled to agas source204. Theprocessing chamber202 haswalls206 and a bottom208 that partially define aprocess volume212. Theprocess volume212 is typically accessed through a port (not shown) in thewalls206 that facilitate movement of asubstrate240 into and out of theprocessing chamber202. Thewalls206 and bottom208 are typically fabricated from a unitary block of aluminum or other material compatible with processing. Thewalls206 support alid assembly210 that contains apumping plenum214 that couples theprocess volume212 to an exhaust port (that includes various pumping components, not shown).
• A temperature controlledsubstrate support assembly238 is centrally disposed within theprocessing chamber202. Thesupport assembly238 supports aglass substrate240 during processing. In one embodiment, thesubstrate support assembly238 comprises analuminum body224 that encapsulates at least one embeddedheater232. Theheater232, such as a resistive element, disposed in thesupport assembly238, is coupled to anoptional power source274 and controllably heats thesupport assembly238 and theglass substrate240 positioned thereon to a predetermined temperature. Typically, in a CVD process, theheater232 maintains theglass substrate240 at a uniform temperature between about 150 to at least about 460 degrees Celsius, depending on the deposition processing parameters for the material being deposited.
• Generally, thesupport assembly238 has alower side226 and anupper side234. Theupper side234 supports theglass substrate240. Thelower side226 has astem242 coupled thereto. Thestem242 couples thesupport assembly238 to a lift system (not shown) that moves thesupport assembly238 between an elevated processing position (as shown) and a lowered position that facilitates substrate transfer to and from theprocessing chamber202. Thestem242 additionally provides a conduit for electrical and thermocouple leads between thesupport assembly238 and other components of thesystem200.
• A bellows246 is coupled between support assembly238 (or the stem242) and thebottom208 of theprocessing chamber202. The bellows246 provides a vacuum seal between thechamber volume212 and the atmosphere outside theprocessing chamber202 while facilitating vertical movement of thesupport assembly238.
• Thesupport assembly238 generally is grounded such that RF power supplied by apower source222 to a gasdistribution plate assembly218 positioned between thelid assembly210 and substrate support assembly238 (or other electrode positioned within or near the lid assembly of the chamber) may excite gases present in theprocess volume212 between thesupport assembly238 and thedistribution plate assembly218. The RF power from thepower source222 is generally selected commensurate with the size of the substrate to drive the chemical vapor deposition process.
• Thesupport assembly238 additionally supports a circumscribingshadow frame248. Generally, theshadow frame248 prevents deposition at the edge of theglass substrate240 andsupport assembly238 so that the substrate does not stick to thesupport assembly238. Thesupport assembly238 has a plurality ofholes228 disposed therethrough that accept a plurality of lift pins250. The lift pins250 are typically comprised of ceramic or anodized aluminum. The lift pins250 may be actuated relative to thesupport assembly238 by anoptional lift plate254 to project from thesupport surface230, thereby placing the substrate in a spaced-apart relation to thesupport assembly238.
• Thelid assembly210 provides an upper boundary to theprocess volume212. Thelid assembly210 typically can be removed or opened to service theprocessing chamber202. In one embodiment, thelid assembly210 is fabricated from aluminum (Al). Thelid assembly210 includes apumping plenum214 formed therein coupled to an external pumping system (not shown). Thepumping plenum214 is utilized to channel gases and processing by-products uniformly from theprocess volume212 and out of theprocessing chamber202.
• Thelid assembly210 typically includes anentry port280 through which process gases provided by thegas source204 are introduced into theprocessing chamber202. Theentry port280 is also coupled to acleaning source282. Thecleaning source282 typically provides a cleaning agent, such as disassociated fluorine, that is introduced into theprocessing chamber202 to remove deposition by-products and films from processing chamber hardware, including the gasdistribution plate assembly218.
• The gasdistribution plate assembly218 is coupled to aninterior side220 of thelid assembly210. The gasdistribution plate assembly218 is typically configured to substantially follow the profile of theglass substrate240, for example, polygonal for large area flat panel substrates and circular for wafers. The gasdistribution plate assembly218 includes aperforated area216 through which process and other gases supplied from thegas source204 are delivered to theprocess volume212. Theperforated area216 of the gasdistribution plate assembly218 is configured to provide uniform distribution of gases passing through the gasdistribution plate assembly218 into theprocessing chamber202. Gas distribution plates that may be adapted to benefit from the invention are described in commonly assigned U.S. patent application Ser. Nos. 09/922,219, filed Aug. 8, 2001 by Keller et al.; Ser. No. 10/140,324, filed May 6, 2002; and Ser. No. 10/337,483, filed Jan. 7, 2003 by Blonigan et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 6,477,980, issued Nov. 12, 2002 to White et al.; and U.S. patent application Ser. Nos. 10/417,592, filed Apr. 16, 2003 by Choi et al., which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entireties.
• The gasdistribution plate assembly218 typically includes adiffuser plate258 suspended from ahanger plate260. Thediffuser plate258 andhanger plate260 may alternatively comprise a single unitary member. A plurality ofgas passages262 are formed through thediffuser plate258 to allow a predetermined distribution of gas passing through the gasdistribution plate assembly218 and into theprocess volume212. Thehanger plate260 maintains thediffuser plate258 and theinterior surface220 of thelid assembly210 in a spaced-apart relation, thus defining aplenum264 therebetween. Theplenum264 allows gases flowing through thelid assembly210 to uniformly distribute across the width of thediffuser plate258 so that gas is provided uniformly above the center perforatedarea216 and flows with a uniform distribution through thegas passages262.
• Thediffuser plate258 is typically fabricated from stainless steel, aluminum (Al), anodized aluminum, nickel (Ni) or other RF conductive material. Thediffuser plate258 is configured with a thickness that maintains sufficient flatness across theaperture266 as not to adversely affect substrate processing. In one embodiment thediffuser plate258 has a thickness between about 1.0 inch to about 2.0 inches. Thediffuser plate258 could be circular for semiconductor wafer manufacturing or polygonal, such as rectangular, for flat panel display manufacturing.FIG. 2B shows an example of adiffuser plate258 for flat panel display application being a rectangle withwidth290 of about 30 inch andlength292 of about 36 inch. The sizes of the diffuser holes, the spacing of diffuser holes, and diffuser plate are not drawn to scale inFIG. 2B.
• FIG. 3 is a partial sectional view of thediffuser plate258 that is described in commonly assigned U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/227,483, titled “Tunable Gas Distribution Plate Assembly”, filed on Jan. 7, 2003. For example, for a 1080 in²(e.g. 30 inches×36 inches) diffuser plate, thediffuser plate258 includes about 16,000gas passages262. For larger diffuser plates used to process larger flat panels, the number ofgas passages262 could be as high as 100,000. Thegas passages262 are generally patterned to promote uniform deposition of material on thesubstrate240 positioned below thediffuser plate258. Referring toFIG. 3, in one embodiment, thegas passage262 is comprised of arestrictive section302, a flaredconnector303, acenter passage304 and a flaredopening306. Therestrictive section302 passes from thefirst side318 of thediffuser plate258 and is coupled to thecenter passage304. Thecenter passage304 has a larger diameter than therestrictive section302. Therestrictive section302 has a diameter selected to allow adequate gas flow through thediffusion plate258 while providing enough flow resistance to ensure uniform gas distribution radially across theperforated center portion310. For example, the diameter of therestrictive section302 could be about 0.016 inch. The flaredconnector303 connects therestrictive section302 to thecenter passage304. The flaredopening306 is coupled to thecenter passage304 and has a diameter that tapers radially outwards from thecenter passage304 to thesecond side320 of thediffuser plate258. The flaredopenings306 promote plasma ionization of process gases flowing into theprocessing regions212 and214. Moreover, the flaredopenings306 provide larger surface area for hollow cathode effect to enhance plasma discharge.
• As mentioned earlier, large gas distribution plates utilized for flat panel processing have a number of fabricating issues that result in high manufacturing costs. The manufacturing cost of the quad-aperture diffuser plate design inFIG. 3 is relatively high since it requires four drilling steps to drillrestrictive section302, flaredconnector303,center passage304 and flaredopening306 to create eachgas passage262 and the large number ofgas passages262, for example about 16,000 for a 30 inches×36 inches (or 1080 inch²) diffuser plate.
• FIG. 4A is a partial sectional view of thediffuser plate258 of the current invention. Thediffuser plate258 includes about 12,000gas passages262 for a 30 inches×36 inches (or 1080 inch²) diffuser plate. Thegas passage262 is generally patterned to promote uniform deposition of material on thesubstrate240 positioned below thediffuser plate258. Referring toFIG. 4A, in one embodiment, thegas passage262 is comprised of arestrictive section402, and aconical opening406. Therestrictive section402 passes from thefirst side418 of thediffuser plate258 and is coupled to theconical opening406. Therestrictive section402 has a diameter between about 0.030 inch to about 0.070 inch, selected to allow adequate gas flow through thediffusion plate258 while providing enough flow resistance to ensure uniform gas distribution radially across theperforated center portion410. The edges of the restrictive section of the diffuser holes on thefirst side418 of thediffuser plate258 could be rounded. Theconical opening406 is coupled to therestrictive section402 and flares radially outwards from therestrictive section402 to thesecond side420 of thediffuser plate258. Theconical opening406 has a diameter between about 0.2 inch to about 0.4 inch on thesecond side420 of thediffuser plate258. Thesecond side420 faces the surface of the substrate. Theflaring angle416 of theconical opening406 is between about 20 to about 35 degrees.
• The spacing between flared edges ofadjacent gas passages262 should be kept as small as possible. The flared edges could be rounded. An example of the spacing is 0.05 inch. The maximum spacing between flared edges ofadjacent gas passages262 is about 0.5 inch. The total restriction provided by therestrictive section402 directly affects the back pressure upstream of thediffuser plate258, and accordingly should be configured to prevent re-combination of disassociated fluorine utilized during cleaning. The ratio of the length (411) of therestrictive section402 to the length (412) of theconical opening406 is between about 0.8 to about 2.0. The total thickness of diffuser plate, which equals the summation oflength411 andlength412, is between about 0.8 inch to about 1.6 inch. Theconical openings406 promote plasma ionization of process gases flowing into theprocessing regions212 and214. An example of the quad-aperture gas passage design has therestrictive section402 diameter at 0.042 inch, the length of therestrictive section402 at 0.0565 inch, theconical opening406 diameter on thesecond side420 of thediffuser plate258 at 0.302 inch, the length of the conical opening section at 0.0635 inch, and theflaring angle416 at 22°. The total thickness of the exemplary diffuser plate is 1.2 inches.
• FIG. 4B shows a section of an exemplary embodiment of a hexagonal close packgas diffuser plate258. The holes450 (orgas passages262 described earlier) are arranged in a pattern of face centeredhexagons460. The sized of diffuser holes, and the spacing of diffuser holes are not drawn to scale inFIG. 4B. However, other patterns ofgas passages262 arrangement (or holes450), such as concentric circles, can also be used.
• FIG. 4C shows an alternative design to the design shown inFIG. 4A. During the manufacturing process of machining therestrictive section402 and the flaredsection406, a flared connectingsection405 could be created by using a different drill to round up (or remove) the burrs left duringdrilling sections402 and406. Aside from the addition of this connectingsection405, the rest of design attributes ofFIG. 4C are the same as the design attributes ofFIG. 4A.
• Comparing the quad-aperture design inFIG. 3 and the funnel design inFIG. 4A, one can see that the funnel design is easier to manufacture than the quad-aperture design. Funnel design inFIG. 4A requires drilling of 2 sections which include therestrictive section402 and theconical section406; while the quad-aperture design inFIG. 3 requires drilling of 4 sections: therestrictive section302, flaredconnector303,center passage304 and flaredopening306. Drilling of 2 sections to meet the manufacturing specification is much easier than drilling of 4 sections to meet the manufacturing specification. The funnel design inFIG. 4A also would have higher manufacturing yield than the quad-aperture design inFIG. 3 due to lower total number of holes. For example, for a 1080 in²(e.g. 30 inches×36 inches) diffuser plate, the funnel design has about 12,000 holes, while the quad-aperture design has about 16,000 holes. The funnel design diffuser plate has about 30% less holes than the quad-aperture design diffuser plate. In addition, the funnel design in FIG.4A has fewer particle problems than the quad-aperture design inFIG. 3 due to its relative simplicity in removing broken drill bits from the larger restrictive section402 (e.g. 0.040 inch and 0.055 inch), compared to the smaller restrictive section302 (e.g. 0.016 inch).
• In addition to higher manufacturing yield and fewer particle problems, the total surface area of thediffuser plate258 exposed to theprocess volume212 of the funnel design is less than the quad-aperture design, which would reduce the amount of residual fluorine on the diffuser plate (or shower head) from the cleaning process. Reduced residual fluorine could greatly reduce the fluorine incorporation in the film during deposition process. Incorporation of fluorine in the gate dielectric (or insulating) film, such as SiO₂, SiON or SiN, generates defect centers that degrade thin film transistor (TFT) device performance, such as V_t(threshold voltage) shift and I_on(drive current) reduction. It has been found that if the incorporated contaminants of a gate dielectric film, such as SiO₂, SiON or SiN, exceed 1E20 atom/cm³, the TFT device performance could be severely affected. Besides, the quad-aperture design also creates higher back pressure when the cleaning gas is flowing through the gas distribution plate. The disassociated fluorine utilized to clean the plate has an increased propensity to recombine when the back pressure is higher, disadvantageously diminishing cleaning effectiveness.
• A film deposition chamber requires periodic cleaning to reduce the film build up, which might flake off to create particle problems, in the process chamber. An example of the cleaning process is the remote plasma source (RPS) clean, which utilizes fluorine containing plasma, generated from fluorine containing gases, such as NF₃, SF₆, F₂, C₂F₆, C₃F₆or C₄F₈O etc., to clean. After the cleaning step, a purge gas is used to purge out residual fluorine; however, some residual fluorine species might remain on the chamber and diffuser plate surface areas. The darkened lines (501) inFIG. 5 show the funnel design diffuser surface exposed to theprocess volume212. Table 1 compares the total exposed surface areas of two funnel designs (0.040 inch and 0.055 inch restrictive section diameters) and a quad-aperture design. The diameter of the flared end of both funnel designs is 0.302 inch and the flaring angle is 22°. Therestrictive section402 length for both funnel designs is 0.565 inch, while the length of the flaredopening406 for both designs is 0.635 inch. As for the quad-aperture design, the diameter of therestrictive section302 is 0.016 inch, the diameter of thecenter passage304 is 0.156 inch, the large diameter of the flaredopening306 is 0.25 inch and the flaring angle is 22°, the length of restrictive section is 0.046 inch, the length of the flaredconnector303 is 0.032 inch, the length of thecenter passage304 is 0.88 inch and the length of the flaredopening306 is 0.242 inch. The quad-aperture design has highest number of diffuser holes and highest total diffuser surface area. Both 0.040 inch and 0.055 inch funnel designs have relatively close total exposed diffuser surface areas, which are about half the total exposed diffuser surface area of the quad-aperture design.

  TABLE 1
  	Number of diffusers on a
  	30 × 36 inch2diffuser	Total exposed diffuser
  Diffuser Type	plate	surface area (inch2)

  Quad-aperture	16188	10594
  0.055 inch Funnel	11824	5352
  0.040 inch Funnel	11824	5666

  
  Table 1 compares the total exposed surface areas of two funnel designs (0.040 inch and 0.055 inch restrictive section diameters) and a quad-aperture design.
• FIG. 6 shows an example of aprocess flow600 of depositing a thin film on a substrate in a process chamber with a gas diffuser plate and cleaning the process chamber when cleaning is required. The process starts atstep601, followed bystep602 of placing a substrate in a process chamber with a diffuser plate. Step603 describes depositing a thin film on the substrate in the process chamber. Afterstep603, the system decides whether the number of processed substrates has reached a pre-determined cleaning limit atstep604. The pre-determined cleaning limit could be 1 substrate or more than 1 substrate. If the cleaning limit has not been reached, the process sequence goes back to step602 of placing another substrate in the process chamber. If the cleaning limit has reached the pre-determined cleaning limit, the process sequence goes to step605 of cleaning the process chamber. After chamber cleaning atstep605, the system decides whether the number of total processed substrates has reached a pre-determined limit. If the cleaning limit has not been reached, the process sequence goes back to step601 of starting the deposition process. If the cleaning limit has been reached the pre-determined limit, the deposition process stops atstep607.Process flow600 is only used as an example to demonstrate the concept. The invention can also apply to process flows that involves other process steps or sequences, but fit into the general concept of deposition and cleaning.
• FIG. 7 shows the secondary ion mass spectrometer (SIMS) analysis of the fluorine content of film stacks, which contain SiN film, deposited with diffuser plates of the two designs. The film stack analyzed includes about 500 Å phosphorus doped (n+) amorphous silicon film, about 2200 Å amorphous silicon film, followed by about 4500 Å silicon nitride film on a glass substrate. The amorphous silicon and the silicon nitride films have been sequentially deposited with the same diffuser plate (or shower head) in the same PECVD chamber.Curve701 shows the fluorine content of the 0.055 inch funnel design in the SiN film (less than 1E18 atom/cm³) is more than one order of magnitude lower than the films processed with the quad-aperture design diffuser plate (curve702, about 5E19 atom/cm³). The lower fluorine content resulting from the funnel design is possibly due to lower total surface area of thediffuser plate258 exposed to theprocess volume212 compared to the quad-aperture design.
• Chamber cleaning is accomplished by remote plasma source (RPS) clean which uses the fluorine radicals (F*) generated from fluorine-containing gases, such as NF₃, SF₆, F₂, C₂F₆, C₃F₆or C₄F₈O etc. The fluorine-containing gas (or gases) could be diluted by an inert gas, such as argon (AR), to help sustain the plasma. However, the inert gas is optional. Generally, the cleaning process is performed with inert gas flowing at between about 0 slm to about 6 slm, fluorine containing gas flowing at between 1 slm to about 6 slm and the pressure of the remote plasma source generator is maintained at between 0.5 Torr to 20 Torr. Equation (1) shows the example of using NF₃as the cleaning gas:
  NF₃→N*+3F*   (1)
• The fluorine radical (F*) can also recombine to form fluorine gas (F₂), which does not have the same cleaning effect as the fluorine radical (F*) for SiN film. The reduction of cleaning efficiency due to fluorine radical recombination is stronger on SiN film cleaning than on amorphous silicon filim cleaning, since amorphous silicon can also be cleaned by thermal F₂processing. Equation (2) shows the reaction of fluorine radical recombination.
  2F*→F₂  (2)
  The fluorine radicals can recombine before they reach the reaction chamber. Although not wishing to be bound by any theory, unless explicitly set forth in the claims, narrower passages in the diffusers and higher back pressure inplenum264 could enhance fluorine radical recombination prior to entering theprocess volume212 and could reduce the cleaning efficiency.
• Table 2 compares the remote plasma source cleaning rates for SiN film and α-Si film deposited in a PECVD chamber under identical conditions for the three designs mentioned in Tables 2 and 3. The remote plasma source cleaning species is generated by flowing 4 slm Ar and 4 slm NF₃into an ASTeX remote plasma source (RPS) generator that is maintained at 6 Torr. The ASTeX remote plasma source generator is made by MKS Instruments, Inc. of Wilmington, Mass.

  	TABLE 2
  	Cleaning rate (Å/min)

  Film	Quad-aperture	0.055 in. Funnel	0.040 in. Funnel

  SiN	7806	9067	7517
  α-Si	5893	6287	5595

  
  Table 2 compares the RPS clean rate of 3 types of diffuser designs for SiN and α-Si films.
• The results show that 0.055 inch funnel shaped diffuser has the best cleaning performance, followed by the quad-aperture design and with 0.040 inch funnel being the last. The result is likely due to the lower back pressure and less restrictive diffuser path of the 0.055 inch funnel diffuser compared to the quad-aperture and 0.040 inch funnel design; which results in less F* recombination and higher cleaning efficiency.
• Table 3 shows the back pressure (Pb) of the RPS cleaning process when Ar flow is at 4 slm and NF₃is between 0-4 slm, for both RPS plasma on and off conditions.

  TABLE 3
  compares the back pressure of 3 types of diffuser design under
  different NF3flow and when RPS plasma is on and off.

  	Pb (mTorr),	Pb (mTorr),	Pb (mTorr),
  	Quad-aperture	0.055 inch Funnel	0.040 inch Funnel

  Flow (slm) NF3	Pbplasma-off	Pbplasma-on	Pbplasma-off	Pbplasma-on	Pbplasma-off	Pbplasma-on

  0	1280	1280	930	930	1260	1260
  1	1530	1840	1070	1310	1450	1730
  2	1770	2370	1200	1650	1640	2150
  3	2000	2850	1330	1940	1810	2530
  4	2220	3300	1470	2210	1960	2880

• The 0.055 inch funnel diffuser has lowest back pressure and has least F* recombination and highest SiN film clean rate. However, the back pressure of the quad-aperture design is higher than the back pressure of 0.040 inch funnel design and yet the cleaning rate of the quad-aperture design is higher than 0.040 inch funnel design. This shows that recombination due to pressure difference alone does not explain the cleaning rate result. The recombination in the diffuser also plays an important role.
• Table 4 compares the narrowest diameters, lengths and volumes of the diffuser passages of quad-aperture and 0.040 inch funnel designs. The 0.040 inch funnel design has a larger passage volume compared to the quad-aperture design. The larger passage volume could allow additional fluorine radical recombination than in the narrow diffuser passage and affect the clean rate result.

  	TABLE 4
  	Quad-aperture	0.040 in. Funnel

  	Narrowest diameter in	0.016	0.040
  	the diffuser passage (in.)
  	Length of narrowest	0.046	0.565
  	diffuser passage (in.)
  	Volume of narrowest	0.00001	0.00071
  	diffuser passage (in3)

  
  Table 4 compares the diameter, the lenght and the volume of the narrowest section in the diffuser for the quad-aperture and0.040 inch funnel designs.
• Clean rate is also dependent upon cleaning gas (such as NF₃) dissociation efficiency. Table5 shows the chamber pressure (in the process volume212) data of the three designs under RPS cleaning process. The chamber pressure for all three diffuser designs are all in a similar range.

  TABLE 5
  compares the chamber pressure of 3 types of diffuser design under
  different NF3flow and when plasma is on and off.

  	Pc (mTorr),	Pc (mTorr),	Pc (mTorr),
  	Quad-aperture	0.055 inch Funnel	0.040 inch Funnel

  Flow (slm) NF3	Pcplasma-off	Pcplasma-on	Pcplasma-off	Pcplasma-on	Pcplasma-off	Pcplasma-on
  0	345	345	330	330	323	323
  1	391	460	374	451	365	430
  2	438	584	420	567	409	536
  3	483	692	464	676	452	635
  4	528	796	506	773	494	731

  
  Table 5 compares the chamber pressure of 3 types of diffuser design under different NF₃flow and when plasma is on and off.
• NF₃dissociation efficiency is directly proportional to the ratio of the net pressure increase when plasma is on to the net pressure increase when plasma is off. Table 6 shows the ratio of the net pressure increase when plasma is on to the net pressure increase when plasma is off for the quad-aperture, 0.055 inch funnel and 0.040 inch funnel designs. ΔPc_plasma-onrepresents the pressure difference between the chamber pressure under certain NF₃flow to the chamber pressure under 0 NF₃flow when the plasma is on. Similarly, ΔPC_plasma-offrepresents the pressure difference between the back pressure under certain NF₃flow to the chamber pressure under 0 NF₃flow when the plasma is off. The ratio of ΔPc_plasma-onover ΔPC_plasma-offquantifies the NF₃dissociation efficiency. The dissociation efficiency decreases with the increase of NF₃flow rate. The dissociation efficiency is highest for 0.055 inch funnel design, followed by the quad-aperture design and then 0.040 inch funnel design. The NF₃dissociation efficiency data correlate with the cleaning rate data.

  TABLE 6
  	ΔPcplasma-on/	ΔPcplasma-on/	ΔPcplasma-on/
  NF3flow rate	ΔPcplasma-off,	ΔPcplasma-off,	ΔPcplasma-off,
  (slm)	Quad-aperture	0.055 in. Funnel	0.040 in. Funnel

  1	2.50	2.75	2.55
  2	2.57	2.63	2.48
  3	2.51	2.58	2.42
  4	2.46	2.52	2.39

  
  Table 6 compares the ratio of the net pressure increase when plasma is on to the net pressure increase when plasma is off for the 3 designs.
• In addition to cleaning efficiency, the impact of the diffuser design on the deposition performance should also be examined to ensure deposition performance meet the requirements. Table 7 compares the SiN and α-Si deposition uniformities and rates using the different diffuser designs under the same process conditions for the 3 diffuser designs. The SiN film is deposited using 600 sccm SiH₄, 2660 sccm NH₃and 6660 sccm N₂, under 1.5 Torr and 3050 watts source power. The spacing between the diffuser plate and the support assembly is 1.09 inch. The process temperature is maintained at about 355° C. The α-Si film is deposited using 1170 sccm SiH₄and 4080 sccm H₂, under 3.0 Torr and 950 watts source power. The spacing between the diffuser plate and the support assembly is 1.09 inch. The process temperature is maintained at 355° C.

  TABLE 7
  compares the SiN and α-Si films deposition uniformities
  and rates for the 3 designs.

  Quad-aperture

  0.055 inch Funnel

  0.040 inch Funnel

  	Uni-	Dep		Dep		Dep
  	formity	rate	Uniformity	rate	Uniformity	rate
  Film	(%)	(Å/min)	(%)	(Å/min)	(%)	(Å/min)
  SiN	3.8	1746	4.3	1738	3.2	1740
  α-Si	3.9	1272	4.5	1261	4.4	1226

  
  Table 7 compares the SiN and α-Si films deposition uniformities and rates for the 3 designs.
• The results show that the deposition rates and uniformities of the three designs are relatively comparable. The deposition rates are about the same for the three designs. The uniformity of 0.055 inch funnel design is worse than the quad-aperture design. However, the uniformity can be improved by narrowing the diameter of the restrictive section402 (0.040 inch vs. 0.055 inch). The uniformity of 0.040 inch funnel design (3.2% and 4.4%) is better than 0.055 inch funnel design (4.3% and 4.5%). For SiN film, the 0.040 inch funnel design (3.2%) is even better than the quad-aperture design (3.8%). Other film properties, such as film stress, reflective index, wet etch rate, are equivalent for the three designs. The results show that the film uniformity is affected by the diffuser design and can be tuned by adjusting the diameter of the restrictive section. The results also show that the funnel design can achieve the same deposition properties, such as uniformity, deposition rate, film stress, reflective index and wet etch rate, as the quad-aperture design.
• In addition to the diffuser design, process pressure can also affect deposition rate and uniformity. Table8 shows the effect of process pressure (or chamber pressure) on uniformity and deposition rate for 0.055 inch funnel design diffuser. Lower chamber pressure gives better uniformity and lower deposition rate.

  TABLE 8
  Chamber pressure (Torr)	Uniformity (%)	Deposition rate (Å/min)

  1.2	3.9	1545
  1.5	5.5	1756
  1.8	5.1	1784

  
  Table 8 shows the deposition pressure, uniformity and deposition rate of SiN film using a 0.055 inch funnel design diffuser plate.
• The funnel design diffuser plate is easier to manufacture compared to the quad-aperture design. Therefore, the yield and cost of manufacturing the funnel design diffuser plate would be improved. In addition to ease of manufacturing, the funnel design diffuser plate also has the benefit of less residual fluorine on the diffuser plate after RPS clean. This results in less fluorine incorporation in the gate dielectric films and improved device performance. The funnel design could have better, or equivalent clean rate and efficiency compared to the quad-aperture design, depending on the diameter of therestrictive section402 selected. The funnel design also could have deposition rate and uniformity performance equivalent to the quad-aperture design.
• For flat panel display with larger surface area,diffuser plate258 with largertop surface area420 would be required. With the increase oftop surface area420, the thickness of thediffuser plate258 could increase to maintain the strength in supporting the diffuser plate.FIG. 8A shows a variation of the funnel design inFIG. 4A for thicker diffuser plate. All the corresponding design attributes ofFIG. 8A are same asFIG. 4A. The guidelines used to design therestrictive section802, the flaredsection806, and flaringangle816 are similar the guideline used to design therestrictive section402, theconical section406, and flaringangle816 ofFIG. 4A respectively. The presently preferred configuration of the flaredsection806 is the conical cross-section shown inFIG. 8A. However, other configurations including concave cross-sections, such as parabolic, and convex cross-sections, can be used as well. The difference betweenFIG. 8A andFIG. 4A is thatFIG. 8A is thicker by the801 layer. Alarger diameter section804 can be created between thefirst side818 of thediffuser plate258 and therestrictive section802. Thelarge diameter section804 is connected to therestrictive section802 by a flaredconnector803. During the manufacturing process of machining therestrictive section802 and thelarger diameter section804, the flared connectingsection803 is created by using a different drill to round up (or remove) the burrs left duringdrilling sections802 and804. Since thelarge diameter section804 has larger diameter thanrestrictive section804, it only slightly increase the manufacturing time and does not affect manufacturing yield. The diameter of thelarger diameter section804 should be at least 2 times the diameter of therestrictive section802 to ensure that the addition of the larger diameter section also does not change the backpressure and chamber pressure during processing as compared to the funnel design inFIG. 4A. Due to this, the deposition process and the qualities of the film deposited using the design inFIG. 8A are similar to the deposition process and the qualities of the film deposited by the funnel design ofFIG. 4A. Thelarger diameter section804 has a diameter between about 0.06 inch to about 0.3 inch. The edges of thelarger diameter section804 of the diffuser holes on thefirst side818 of thediffuser plate258 could be rounded. The ratio of thelength801 of the larger diameter section to thelength811 of therestrictive section802 should be between about 0.3 to about 1.5. The total thickness of the diffuser plate, which equals the summation oflength801,length811 andlength812, is between about 1.0 inch to about 2.2 inch.
• FIG. 8B shows an alternative design to the design shown inFIG. 8A. During the manufacturing process of machining therestrictive section802 and the flaredsection806, a flared connectingsection805 could be created by using a different drill to round up (or remove) the burrs left duringdrilling sections802 and806. Aside from the addition of this connectingsection805, the rest of design attributes ofFIG. 8B are the same as the design attributes ofFIG. 8A.
• Although several preferred embodiments which incorporate the teachings of the present invention have been shown and described in detail, those skilled in the art can readily devise many other varied embodiments that still incorporate these teachings.

Claims (80)

1. A gas distribution plate assembly for a plasma processing chamber, comprising:

a diffuser plate having an upstream side and a downstream side; and

a plurality of gas passages passing between the upstream and downstream sides, wherein at least one of the gas passages has a cylindrical shape for a portion of its length extending from the upstream side and a coaxial conical shape for the remaining length of the diffuser plate, the upstream end of the conical portion having substantially the same diameter as the cylindrical portion and the downstream end of the conical portion having a larger diameter.

2. The gas distribution plate ofclaim 1, wherein the diameter of the cylindrical shape is between about 0.030 inch to about 0.070 inch.

3. The gas distribution plate ofclaim 1, wherein the diameter of the downstream end of the conical portion is between about 0.2 inch to about 0.4 inch.

4. The gas distribution plate ofclaim 3, wherein the conical shape is flared at about 20 degrees to about 35 degrees.

5. The gas distribution plate ofclaim 1, wherein the ratio of length of the cylindrical shape to length of the conical shape is between about 0.8 to about 2.0.

6. The gas distribution plate ofclaim 1, wherein a spacing between the downstream end of the conical portion of adjacent gas passages is at most about 0.5 inch.

7. The gas distribution plate ofclaim 1, wherein the thickness of the diffuser plate is between about 0.8 inch to about 1.6 inch.

8. The gas distribution plate ofclaim 1, wherein the diffuser plate is polygonal.

9. The gas distribution plate ofclaim 1, wherein the cylindrical shape formed through the diffuser plate have a flow restricting attribute different than the coaxial flared shape.

10. The polygonal gas distribution plate ofclaim 8, wherein the diffuser plate is rectangular.

11. The rectangular distribution plate ofclaim 10, wherein the gas diffuser plate size is at least 1080 inch².

12. A gas distribution plate assembly for a plasma processing chamber, comprising:

a diffuser plate having an upstream side and a downstream side in the plasma process chamber that is coupled to a remote plasma source and the remote plasma source is coupled to a fluorine source; and

a plurality of gas passages passing between the upstream and downstream sides, wherein at least one of the gas passages has a cylindrical shape for a portion of its length extending from the upstream side and a coaxial conical shape for the remaining length of the diffuser plate, the upstream end of the conical portion having substantially the same diameter as the cylindrical portion and the downstream end of the conical portion having a larger diameter.

13. The gas distribution plate ofclaim 12, wherein the diameter of the cylindrical shape is between about 0.030 inch to about 0.070 inch.

14. The gas distribution plate ofclaim 12, wherein the diameter of the downstream end of the conical portion is between about 0.2 inch to about 0.4 inch.

15. The gas distribution plate ofclaim 14, wherein the conical shape is flared at about 20 degrees to about 35 degrees.

16. The gas distribution plate ofclaim 12, wherein the ratio of length of the cylindrical shape to length of the conical shape is between about 0.8 to about 2.0.

17. The gas distribution plate ofclaim 12, wherein a spacing between the downstream end of the conical portion of adjacent gas passages is at most about 0.5 inch.

18. The gas distribution plate ofclaim 12, wherein the thickness of the diffuser plate is between about 0.8 inch to about 1.6 inch.

19. The gas distribution plate ofclaim 12, wherein the diffuser plate is polygonal.

20. The gas distribution plate ofclaim 12, wherein the cylindrical shape formed through the diffuser plate have a flow restricting attribute different than the coaxial flared shape.

21. The polygonal gas distribution plate ofclaim 19, wherein the diffuser plate is rectangular.

22. The rectangular distribution plate ofclaim 21, wherein the gas diffuser plate size is at least 1080 inch².

23. A gas distribution plate assembly for a plasma processing chamber, comprising:

a diffuser plate having an upstream side and a downstream side; and

a plurality of gas passages passing between the upstream and downstream sides, wherein at least one of the gas passages has a first cylindrical shape for a portion of its length extending from the upstream side, a second coaxial cylindrical shape with a smaller diameter connected to the first cylindrical shape, a coaxial conical shape connected to the second cylindrical shape for the remaining length of the diffuser plate, with the upstream end of the conical portion having substantially the same diameter as the second cylindrical shape and the downstream end of the conical portion having a larger diameter.

24. The gas distribution plate ofclaim 23, wherein the diameter of the first cylindrical shape is between about 0.06 inch to about 0.3 inch.

25. The gas distribution plate ofclaim 23, wherein the diameter of the second cylindrical shape is between about 0.030 inch to about 0.070 inch.

26. The gas distribution plate ofclaim 23, wherein the ratio of the length of the first cylindrical shape to the length of the second cylindrical shape is between about 0.3 to about 1.5.

27. The gas distribution plate ofclaim 23, wherein the diameter of the downstream end of the conical portion is between about 0.2 inch to about 0.4 inch.

28. The gas distribution plate ofclaim 27, wherein the conical shape is flared at about 20 degrees to about 35 degrees.

29. The gas distribution plate ofclaim 23, wherein the ratio of length of the second cylindrical shape to length of the conical shape is between about 0.8 to about 2.0.

30. The gas distribution plate ofclaim 23, wherein a spacing between the downstream end of the conical portion of adjacent gas passages is at most about 0.5 inch.

31. The gas distribution plate ofclaim 23, wherein the thickness of the diffuser plate is between about 1.0 inch to about 2.2 inch.

32. The gas distribution plate ofclaim 23, wherein the diffuser plate is polygonal.

33. The gas distribution plate ofclaim 23, wherein the cylindrical shape formed through the diffuser plate have a flow restricting attribute different than the coaxial flared shape.

34. The polygonal gas distribution plate ofclaim 32, wherein the diffuser plate is rectangular.

35. The rectangular distribution plate ofclaim 34, wherein the gas diffuser plate size is at least 1080 inch².

36. A gas distribution plate assembly for a plasma processing chamber, comprising:

a diffuser plate having an upstream side and a downstream side in the plasma process chamber that is coupled to a remote plasma source and the remote plasma source is coupled to a fluorine source; and

a plurality of gas passages passing between the upstream and downstream sides, wherein at least one of the gas passages has a first cylindrical shape for a portion of its length extending from the upstream side, a second coaxial cylindrical shape with a smaller diameter connected to the first cylindrical shape, a coaxial conical shape connected to the second cylindrical shape for the remaining length of the diffuser plate, with the upstream end of the conical portion having substantially the same diameter as the second cylindrical shape and the downstream end of the conical portion having a larger diameter.

37. The gas distribution plate ofclaim 36, wherein the diameter of the first cylindrical shape is between about 0.06 inch to about 0.3 inch.

38. The gas distribution plate ofclaim 36, wherein the diameter of the second cylindrical shape is between about 0.030 inch to about 0.070 inch.

39. The gas distribution plate ofclaim 36, wherein the ratio of the length of the first right cylindrical shape to the length of the second cylindrical shape is between about 0.3 to about 1.5.

40. The gas distribution plate ofclaim 36, wherein the diameter of the downstream end of the conical portion is between about 0.2 inch to about 0.4 inch.

41. The gas distribution plate ofclaim 36, wherein the conical shape is flared at about 20 degrees to about 35 degrees.

42. The gas distribution plate ofclaim 36, wherein the ratio of length of the second cylindrical shape to length of the conical shape is between about 0.8 to about 2.0.

43. The gas distribution plate ofclaim 36, wherein a spacing between the downstream end of the conical portion of adjacent gas passages is at most about 0.5 inch.

44. The gas distribution plate ofclaim 36, wherein the thickness of the diffuser plate is between about 1.0 inch to about 2.2 inch.

45. The gas distribution plate ofclaim 36, wherein the diffuser plate is polygonal.

46. The gas distribution plate ofclaim 36, wherein the cylindrical shape formed through the diffuser plate have a flow restricting attribute different than the coaxial flared shape.

47. The polygonal gas distribution plate ofclaim 45, wherein the diffuser plate is rectangular.

48. The rectangular distribution plate ofclaim 47, wherein the gas diffuser plate size is at least 1080 inch².

49. A method of depositing a thin film on a substrate, comprising:

placing a substrate in a process chamber with a diffuser plate having an upstream side and a downstream side, and a plurality of gas passages passing between the upstream and downstream sides, wherein at least one of the gas passages has a cylindrical shape for a portion of its length extending from the upstream side and a coaxial conical shape for the remaining length of the diffuser plate, the upstream end of the conical portion having substantially the same diameter as the cylindrical portion and the downstream end of the conical portion having a larger diameter; and

depositing a thin film on the substrate in the process chamber.

50. The method ofclaim 49, wherein the process chamber is coupled to a remote plasma source and the remote plasma source is coupled to a fluorine source.

51. The method ofclaim 50, wherein the diffuser plate is rectangular.

52. The method ofclaim 51, wherein the process chamber is a plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition chamber.

53. The method ofclaim 51, wherein the thin film is deposited on the substrate to create flat panel displays.

54. The method ofclaim 51, wherein the thin film deposition rate and uniformity can be modified by adjusting the diameter of the cylindrical shape.

55. The method ofclaim 51, wherein the thin film can be silicon dioxide (SiO₂), silicon oxynitride (SiON), silicon nitride (SiN), amorphous silicon (α-Si) or doped amorphous silicon (doped α-Si).

56. The method ofclaim 51, wherein the thin film has cleaning-residue contaminant, such as fluorine, concentration less than 1*10²⁰atom/cc.

57. The method ofclaim 51, wherein the cleaning-residue contaminant, such as fluorine, concentration can be modified by adjusting the diameter of the right cylindrical shape and the flared angle of the conical shape to be less than 1*10²⁰atom/cc.

58. A method of depositing a thin film on a substrate, comprising:

placing a substrate in a process chamber with a diffuser plate having an upstream side and a downstream side, and a plurality of gas passages passing between the upstream and downstream sides, wherein at least one of the gas passages has a first cylindrical shape for a portion of its length extending from the upstream side, a second coaxial cylindrical shape with a smaller diameter connected to the first cylindrical shape, a coaxial conical shape connected to the second cylindrical shape for the remaining length of the diffuser plate, with the upstream end of the conical portion having substantially the same diameter as the second cylindrical shape and the downstream end of the conical portion having a larger diameter; and

depositing a thin film on the substrate in the process chamber.

59. The method ofclaim 58, wherein the process chamber is coupled to a silicon source, a remote plasma source and the remote plasma source is coupled to a fluorine source.

60. The method ofclaim 59, wherein the diffuser plate is rectangular.

61. The method ofclaim 60, wherein the process chamber is a plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition chamber.

62. The method ofclaim 60, wherein the thin film is deposited on the substrate to create flat panel displays.

63. The method ofclaim 60, wherein the thin film deposition rate and uniformity can be modified by adjusting the diameter of the cylindrical shape.

64. The method ofclaim 60, wherein the thin film can be silicon dioxide (SiO₂), silicon oxynitride (SiON), silicon nitride (SiN), amorphous silicon (α-Si) or doped amorphous silicon (doped α-Si).

65. The method ofclaim 60, wherein the thin film has cleaning-residue contaminant, such as fluorine, concentration less than 1*10²⁰atom/cc.

66. The method ofclaim 60, wherein the cleaning-residue contaminant, such as fluorine, concentration can be modified by adjusting the diameter of the cylindrical shape and the flared angle of the conical shape to be less than 1*10²⁰atom/cc.

67. A method of cleaning a process chamber, comprising:

placing a substrate in a process chamber, which is coupled to a remote plasma source and the remote plasma source is coupled to a fluorine source, with a diffuser plate having an upstream side and a downstream side, and a plurality of gas passages passing between the upstream and downstream sides, wherein at least one of the gas passages has a cylindrical shape for a portion of its length extending from the upstream side and a coaxial conical shape for the remaining length of the diffuser plate, the upstream end of the conical portion having substantially the same diameter as the cylindrical portion and the downstream end of the conical portion having a larger diameter;

depositing a thin film on the substrate in the process chamber;

determining if the number of processed substrates has reached a pre-determined cleaning limit;

repeating the steps of placing a substrate in the process chamber, depositing a thin film on the substrate and determining if the number of processed substrates has reached the pre-determined cleaning limit until the number of process substrates has reached the pre-determined cleaning limit, if the number of processed substrates has not reached the pre-determined cleaning limit; and

cleaning the process chamber if the number of processed substrates has reached the pre-determined cleaning limit.

68. The method ofclaim 67, wherein the diffuser plate is rectangular.

69. The method ofclaim 67, wherein the process chamber is a plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition chamber.

70. The method ofclaim 67, wherein the thin film deposited can be silicon dioxide (SiO₂), silicon oxynitride (SiON), silicon nitride (SiN), amorphous silicon (α-Si) or doped amorphous silicon (doped α-Si).

71. The method ofclaim 67, wherein the cleaning is performed by a remote plasma source cleaning process with inert gas flowing at between about 0 slm to about 6 slm, fluorine containing gas flowing at between 1 slm to about 6 slm and the pressure of the remote plasma source generator is maintained at between 0.5 Torr to 20 Torr.

72. The method ofclaim 71, wherein the inert gas is Argon and the fluorine containing gas is NF₃.

73. The method ofclaim 67, wherein the cleaning rate can be modified by adjusting the diameter of the cylindrical shape.

74. A method of cleaning a process chamber, comprising:

placing a substrate in a process chamber, which is coupled to a remote plasma source and the remote plasma source is coupled to a fluorine source, with a diffuser plate having an upstream side and a downstream side, and a plurality of gas passages passing between the upstream and downstream sides, wherein at least one of the gas passages has a first cylindrical shape for a portion of its length extending from the upstream side, a second coaxial cylindrical shape with a smaller diameter connected to the first cylindrical shape, a coaxial conical shape connected to the second cylindrical shape for the remaining length of the diffuser plate, with the upstream end of the conical portion having substantially the same diameter as the second right cylindrical shape and the downstream end of the conical portion having a larger diameter;

depositing a thin film on the substrate in the process chamber;

determining if the number of processed substrates has reached a pre-determined cleaning limit;

repeating the steps of placing a substrate in the process chamber, depositing a thin film on the substrate and determining if the number of processed substrates has reached the pre-determined cleaning limit until the number of process substrates has reached the pre-determined cleaning limit, if the number of processed substrates has not reached the pre-determined cleaning limit; and

cleaning the process chamber if the number of processed substrates has reached the pre-determined cleaning limit.

75. The method ofclaim 74, wherein the diffuser plate is rectangular.

76. The method ofclaim 74, wherein the process chamber is a plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition chamber.

77. The method ofclaim 74, wherein the thin film deposited can be silicon dioxide (SiO₂), silicon oxynitride (SiON), silicon nitride (SiN), amorphous silicon (α-Si) or doped amorphous silicon (doped α-Si).

78. The method ofclaim 74, wherein the cleaning is performed by a remote plasma source cleaning process with inert gas flowing at between about 0 slm to about 6 slm, fluorine containing gas flowing at between 1 slm to about 6 slm and the pressure of the remote plasma source generator is maintained at between 0.5 Torr to 20 Torr.

79. The method ofclaim 78, wherein the inert gas is Argon and the fluorine containing gas is NF₃.

80. The method ofclaim 74, wherein the cleaning rate can be modified by adjusting the diameter of the right cylindrical shape.

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