摘要 |
An annealing method and apparatus for semiconductor manufacturing is described. The method and apparatus allows an anneal that can span a thermal budget and be tailored to a specific process and its corresponding activation energy. In some cases, the annealing method spans a timeframe from about 1 millisecond to about 1 second. An example for this annealing method includes a sub-second anneal method where a reduction in the formation of nickel pipes is achieved during salicide processing. In some cases, the method and apparatus combine the rapid heating rate of a sub-second anneal with a thermally conductive substrate to provide quick cooling for a silicon wafer. Thus, the thermal budget of the sub-second anneal methods may span the range from conventional RTP anneals to flash annealing processes (including duration of the anneal, as well as peak temperature). Other embodiments are described.
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