Applied Materials Launches New Nitride Deposition System for Advanced Transistor Production
SANTA CLARA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 6, 1999--
SiNergy(TM) Centura(R) Provides Single-Wafer Silicon Nitride
LPCVD Technology for 0.18 Micron and Below Chip Generations
Applied Materials, Inc. announces the SiNergy(TM) Centura(R), a new single-wafer LPCVD (low pressure chemical vapor deposition) system for depositing critical silicon nitride (SiN) film layers in transistor structures of 0.18 micron and below devices. SiNergy meets the demanding requirements of the most advanced, cost-sensitive, volume production environments, offering significant advantages in technology, productivity and cost of ownership (COO) over furnaces for a wide variety of process applications.
"For years, silicon nitrides used in the transistor area were
non-critical films deposited by batch furnaces. But with feature
dimensions moving below 0.18 micron, these films can now have a
significant impact on device performance," said Dr. Paul Meissner,
general manager of Applied Materials' Thermal Processing Division.
"The SiNergy Centura system is an advanced technology solution for
chipmakers that need high-quality transistor-level nitride films.
Applied Materials' production-proven, single-wafer xZ chamber
technology and Centura platform should enable customers to rapidly
move this technology into production."
The SiNergy system allows chipmakers to decrease a wafer's
thermal exposure by more than an order of magnitude compared to
furnaces to enable sensitive sidewall spacer, etch stop, shallow
trench isolation layers and other applications. Providing
significantly better control over dopant diffusion, which is critical
for maintaining electrical performance, SiNergy's single-wafer LPCVD
process is performed in minutes, compared to the hours required for
batch furnaces.
The system's advanced SiH4 chemistry eliminates the formation of
NH4Cl and enables a 4x improvement in particle performance over
furnaces -- along with improved maintenance schedules and competitive
cost of ownership. SiNergy uses Applied Materials' proprietary Remote
Plasma Clean technology, which further reduces particles, boosts
throughput, extends hardware and consumables lifetime, and emits
virtually no global warming gases.
The system's xZ chamber uses a dual-zone ceramic resistive heater
that provides exceptional temperature uniformity and productivity over
a wide range of temperatures and pressures. High system throughputs
are achieved by varying the deposition rate and holding total process
time constant. The SiNergy Centura platform can be configured to hold
up to four process chambers.
Applied Materials expects to begin shipping systems to customers
starting in the third calendar quarter of 1999. Dataquest, a market
research firm, estimates the market for LPCVD nitride deposition
equipment was $74 million in 1998, with projected growth to $453
million by 2003, for a five year compound annual growth rate of 44
percent.
Applied Materials, Inc. is a Fortune 500 global growth company
and the world's largest supplier of wafer fabrication systems and
services to the global semiconductor industry. Applied Materials is
traded on the Nasdaq National Market System under the symbol "AMAT."
Applied Materials' web site is http://www.appliedmaterials.com.
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CONTACT: Applied Materials, Inc.
Betty Newboe, 408/563-0647 (editorial/media)
Carolyn Schwartz, 408/748-5227 (financial community)
KEYWORD: CALIFORNIA
INDUSTRY KEYWORD: COMPUTERS/ELECTRONICS COMED PRODUCT