EXHIBIT C.14
`U.S. Patent No. 7,811,421
`
`References cited herein:
`(cid:120) U.S. Pat. No. 7,811,421 (“’421 Patent”)
`
`(cid:120) U.S. Pat. No. 6,413,382 (“Wang”)
`
`(cid:120) U.S. Pat. No. 6,190,512 (“Lantsman”)
`
`(cid:120) U.S. Pat. No. 5,958,155 (“Kawamata”)
`
`‘421 Claims 7 and 32
`
`Wang in view of Lantsman and Kawamata
`
`[1pre]. A sputtering source comprising: Wang discloses a sputtering source.
`
`Wang at Title (“pulsed sputtering with a small
`rotating magnetron”)
`
`[1a] a) a cathode assembly comprising a
`sputtering target that is positioned
`adjacent to an anode; and
`
`Wang discloses a cathode assembly comprising a
`sputtering target that is positioned adjacent to an
`anode.
`
`‘421 Patent at 3:39-4:2 (“FIG. 1 illustrates a cross-
`sectional view of a known magnetron sputtering
`apparatus 100 having a pulsed power source 102.
`… The magnetron sputtering apparatus 100 also
`includes a cathode assembly 114 having a target
`116. … An anode 130 is positioned in the vacuum
`chamber 104 proximate to the cathode assembly
`114.”)
`
`Wang at 3:66-4:1 (“A grounded shield 24 … acts as
`a grounded anode for the cathode of the negatively
`biased target 14.”)
`
`Wang discloses a power supply that generates a
`voltage pulse between the anode and the cathode
`assembly that creates a weakly-ionized plasma and
`then a strongly-ionized plasma from the weakly-
`ionized plasma without an occurrence of arcing
`between the anode and the cathode assembly, an
`amplitude, a duration and a rise time of the voltage
`pulse being chosen to increase a density of ions in
`the strongly-ionized plasma
`
`Wang at Figs. 1, 6 and 7
`
`Wang at 7:58-61 (“… DC power supply 100 is
`connected to the target 14 … and supplies an
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`[1b] b) a power supply that generates a
`voltage pulse between the anode and the
`cathode assembly that creates a weakly-
`ionized plasma and then a strongly-
`ionized plasma from the weakly-ionized
`plasma without an occurrence of arcing
`between the anode and the cathode
`assembly, an amplitude, a duration and a
`rise time of the voltage pulse being
`chosen to increase a density of ions in
`the strongly-ionized plasma.
`
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`‘421 Claims 7 and 32
`
`EXHIBIT C.14
`U.S. Patent No. 7,811,421
`Wang in view of Lantsman and Kawamata
`
`essentially constant negative voltage to the target
`14 corresponding to the background power PB.”)
`
`Wang at 7:61-62 (“The pulsed DC power supply 80
`produces a train of negative voltage pulses.”)
`
`Wang at 3:66-4:1 (“A grounded shield 24 … acts as
`a grounded anode for the cathode of the negatively
`biased target 14.”)
`
`Wang at 7:17-31 (“The background power level PB
`is chosen to exceed the minimum power necessary
`to support a plasma... [T]he application of the high
`peak power PP quickly causes the already existing
`plasma to spread and increases the density of the
`plasma.”)
`
`Wang at 7:19-25 (“Preferably, the peak power PP is
`at least 10 times the background power PB … and
`most preferably 1000 times to achieve the greatest
`effect of the invention. A background power PB of
`1 kW [causes] little if any actual sputter
`deposition.”)
`
`Wang at 7:31-39 (“In one mode of operating the
`reactor, during the background period, little or no
`target sputtering is expected. The SIP reactor is
`advantageous for a low-power, low-pressure
`background period since the small rotating SIP
`magnetron can maintain a plasma at lower power
`and lower pressure than can a larger stationary
`magnetron. However, it is possible to combine
`highly ionized sputtering during the pulses with
`significant neutral sputtering during the background
`period.”)
`
`Wang at 7:3-6 (“Plasma ignition, particularly in
`plasma sputter reactors, has a tendency to generate
`particles during the initial arcing, which may
`dislodge large particles from the target or
`chamber.”)
`
`Wang at 7:13-28 (“Accordingly, it is advantageous
`to use a target power waveform illustrated in FIG.
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`‘421 Claims 7 and 32
`
`EXHIBIT C.14
`U.S. Patent No. 7,811,421
`Wang in view of Lantsman and Kawamata
`
`6. The sputtering source of claim 1
`further comprising a gas flow controller
`that controls a flow of the feed gas so
`that the feed gas diffuses the strongly-
`ionized plasma.
`
`6… As a result, once the plasma has been ignited
`at the beginning of sputtering prior to the illustrated
`waveform…”)
`
`Wang at 7:47-49 (“The initial plasma ignition
`needs be performed only once and at much lower
`power levels so that particulates produced by arcing
`are much reduced.”)
`
`Wang at 7:28-30 (“…the application of the high
`peak power PP instead quickly causes the already
`existing plasma to spread and increases the density
`of the plasma”)
`
`Wang at 5:23-26 (“The illustrated pulse form is
`idealized. Its exact shape depends on the design of
`the pulsed DC power supply 80, and significant rise
`times and fall times are expected.”)
`
`The combination of Wang and Lantsman discloses
`a gas flow controller that controls a flow of the feed
`gas so that the feed gas diffuses the strongly-
`ionized plasma.
`
`See evidence cited at claim 1
`
`Wang at Fig. 1
`
`Wang at 4:51-55 (“A computerized controller 58
`controls the … mass flow controller 34, as
`illustrated….”)
`
`Wang at 4:11-12 (“A vacuum system 38 pumps the
`chamber….”)
`
`Lantsman at 3:9-13 (“… at the beginning of
`processing, this switch is closed and gas is
`introduced into the chamber. When the plasma
`process is completed, the gas flow is stopped…”)
`
`Lantsman at 4:36-38 (“To end processing, primary
`supply 10 is disabled, reducing the plasma current
`and deposition on the wafer. Then, gas flow is
`terminated…”)
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`‘421 Claims 7 and 32
`
`EXHIBIT C.14
`U.S. Patent No. 7,811,421
`Wang in view of Lantsman and Kawamata
`
`Lantsman at Fig. 6
`
`Lantsman at 5:39-42 (“Sometime thereafter, gas
`flow is initiated and the gas flow and pressure
`(trace 48) begin to ramp upwards toward normal
`processing levels.”)
`
`Lantsman at 5:42-45 (“After a delay time (54), a
`normal pressure and flow rate are achieved, and
`primary supply 10 is enabled, causing a ramp
`increase in the power produced by the primary
`supply (trace 52).)
`
`Lantsman at 2:48-51 (“This secondary power
`supply ‘pre-ignites’ the plasma so that when the
`primary power supply is applied, the system
`smoothly transitions to final plasma development
`and deposition.”)
`
`One of ordinary skill would have been motivated to
`combine Wang and Lantsman. Both Wang and
`Lantsman are directed to sputtering using plasma.
`See Wang at Title (“Pulsed sputtering with a small
`rotating magnetron”); see also, Wang at 3:20-21
`(“[A] high plasma density is achieved adjacent to
`the magnetron during the pulse.”); see also,
`Lantsman at 1:6-8 (“This invention relates to
`reduction of device damage in plasma processes,
`including DC (magnetron or non-magnetron)
`sputtering, and RF sputtering.”). Also, both
`references relate to sputtering systems that use two
`power supplies, one for pre-ionization and one for
`deposition. See Wang at Fig. 7 [showing pulsed
`supply 80 and constant supply 100]; see also
`Lantsman at 4:45-47 (“…the secondary [power]
`supply 32 is used to pre-ignite the plasma, whereas
`the primary [power] supply 10 is used to generate
`deposition.”).
`
`Moreover, both Wang and Lantsman are concerned
`with generating plasma while avoiding arcing. See
`Wang at 7:3-49 (“Plasma ignition, particularly in
`plasma sputter reactors, has a tendency to generate
`particles during the initial arcing, which may
`dislodge large particles from the target or
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`‘421 Claims 7 and 32
`
`EXHIBIT C.14
`U.S. Patent No. 7,811,421
`Wang in view of Lantsman and Kawamata
`
`chamber…. The initial plasma ignition needs be
`performed only once and at much lower power
`levels so that particulates produced by arcing are
`much reduced.”); see also Lantsman
`(“Furthermore, arcing which can be produced by
`overvoltages can cause local overheating of the
`target, leading to evaporation or flaking of target
`material into the processing chamber and causing
`substrate particle contamination and device
`damage…. Thus, it is advantageous to avoid
`voltage spikes during processing whenever
`possible.”)
`
`Summarizing, Wang and Lantsman relate to the
`same application. Further, one of ordinary skill
`would have been motivated to use Lantsman’s
`continuous gas flow in Wang so as to maintain a
`desired pressure in the chamber. Also, use of
`Lantsman’s continuous gas flow in Wang would
`have been a combination of old elements in which
`each element behaved as expected. Finally, such a
`continuous flow of gas in Wang would diffuse the
`strongly-ionized plasma and allow additional power
`to be absorbed by the plasma.
`
`The combination of Wang, Lantsman, and
`Kawamata discloses the gas flow controller
`controls the flow of the feed gas to allow additional
`power to be absorbed by the strongly ionized
`plasma, thereby generating additional thermal
`energy in the sputtering target.
`
`See evidence cited in claim 1
`
`See evidence cited in claim 6
`
`‘421 Patent at 2:9-10 (“In general, the deposition
`rate is proportional to the sputtering yield.”)
`
`Kawamata at 3:18-20 (“[G]enerat[ing] plasma over
`the film source material to thereby cause the
`surface of the film source material to have its
`temperature raised by the plasma.”)
`
`Kawamata at 7:53 (“When the input power is 400
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`7. The sputtering source of claim 6
`wherein the gas flow controller controls
`the flow of the feed gas to allow
`additional power to be absorbed by the
`strongly ionized plasma, thereby
`generating additional thermal energy in
`the sputtering target.
`
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`‘421 Claims 7 and 32
`
`EXHIBIT C.14
`U.S. Patent No. 7,811,421
`Wang in view of Lantsman and Kawamata
`
`W or higher, it is seen that the surface temperature
`of granules 3 rises to about 650ºC or higher…
`When the input power is 800 W, the surface
`temperature of the granules 3 rises to about 1100
`ºC.”)
`
`Kawamata at 7:51-53 (“FIG. 2 shows what changes
`of the surface temperature of granules 3 and the
`rate of film formation on the substrate 2 are brought
`about by changes of the input power”)
`
`Kawamata at Fig. 2
`
`One of ordinary skill would have been motivated to
`incorporate the teachings of Kawamata in Wang,
`e.g., using input power to control the density of the
`plasma and thereby control the temperature of the
`sputtering material so as to control the sputtering
`yield.
`
`Also, one of ordinary skill reading Wang would
`have looked to Kawamata. Wang teaches
`increasing the sputtering rate by generating a high-
`density plasma. Wang at 4:27-29. (“[C]reating a
`region 42 of a high-density plasma (HDP), which
`… increases the sputtering rate.”) Kawamata
`similarly notes that “[o]bjects of the present
`invention are to provide a process for producing a
`thin film…by sputtering at a high speed and a thin
`film produced thereby…” Kawamata at 2:6-9.
`Both Wang and Kawamata provide ways to
`enhance the sputtering rate and one of ordinary skill
`in the art would have been motivated to combine
`the teachings of Wang with Kawamata.
`
`Also, using Kawamata’s teachings of temperature
`control in Wang would have been a combination of
`old elements in which each element behaved as
`expected.
`
`One of ordinary skill would have been motivated to
`combine Wang, Lantsman and Kawamata. The
`reasons for using Lantsman’s gas flow in Wang
`were explained with respect to claim 6. One of
`ordinary skill would have further been motivated to
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`‘421 Claims 7 and 32
`
`EXHIBIT C.14
`U.S. Patent No. 7,811,421
`Wang in view of Lantsman and Kawamata
`
`use Kawamata’s teachings of temperature control
`of the target and the relationship between target
`temperature and sputtering rate in Wang as
`explained with respect to claim 3. Moreover, use
`of Lantsman’s gas flow and Kawamata’s
`temperature control in Wang would have been a
`combination of old elements to yield predictable
`results.
`
`[17pre]. A sputtering source comprising: Wang discloses a sputtering source.
`
`See evidence cited in claim 1 preamble
`
`[17a] a) a cathode assembly comprising
`a sputtering target that is positioned
`adjacent to an anode;
`
`Wang discloses a cathode assembly comprising a
`sputtering target that is positioned adjacent to an
`anode.
`
`[17b] b) a power supply that generates a
`voltage pulse between the anode and the
`cathode assembly that creates a weakly-
`ionized plasma and then a strongly-
`ionized plasma from the weakly-ionized
`plasma without an occurrence of arcing
`between the anode and the cathode
`assembly, an amplitude and a rise time
`of the voltage pulse being chosen to
`increase a density of ions in the
`strongly-ionized plasma; and
`
`[17c] c) a substrate support that is
`positioned adjacent to the sputtering
`target; and
`
`See evidence cited in claim [1a]
`
`Wang discloses a power supply that generates a
`voltage pulse between the anode and the cathode
`assembly that creates a weakly-ionized plasma and
`then a strongly-ionized plasma from the weakly-
`ionized plasma without an occurrence of arcing
`between the anode and the cathode assembly, an
`amplitude and a rise time of the voltage pulse being
`chosen to increase a density of ions in the strongly-
`ionized plasma.
`
`See evidence cited in claim [1b]
`
`Wang discloses a substrate support that is
`positioned adjacent to the sputtering target.
`
`Wang at 3:63-66 (“A pedestal electrode 18 supports
`a wafer 20 to be sputter coated in planar opposition
`to the target 14 across a processing region 22.”)
`
`[17d] d) a bias voltage source having an
`output that is electrically plasma.
`coupled to the substrate support.
`
`Wang discloses a bias voltage source having an
`output that is electrically plasma. coupled to the
`substrate support.
`
`Wang at Fig. 1
`
`Wang at 4:32-34 (“[A]n RF bias power supply is
`connected to the pedestal electrode 18 to create a
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`‘421 Claims 7 and 32
`
`EXHIBIT C.14
`U.S. Patent No. 7,811,421
`Wang in view of Lantsman and Kawamata
`
`31. The sputtering source of claim 17
`further comprising a gas flow controller
`that controls a flow of the feed gas so
`that the feed gas diffuses the strongly-
`ionized plasma.
`
`32. The sputtering source of claim 31
`wherein the gas flow controller controls
`the flow of the feed gas to allow
`additional power to be absorbed by the
`strongly ionized plasma, thereby
`generating additional thermal energy in
`the sputtering target.
`
`negative DC self-bias on the wafer 20”)
`
`The combination of Wang and Lantsman discloses
`a gas flow controller that controls a flow of the feed
`gas so that the feed gas diffuses the strongly-
`ionized plasma.
`
`See evidence cited in claim 17
`
`See evidence cited in claim 6
`
`The combination of Wang, Lantsman, and
`Kawamata discloses the gas flow controller
`controls the flow of the feed gas to allow additional
`power to be absorbed by the strongly ionized
`plasma, thereby generating additional thermal
`energy in the sputtering target.
`
`See evidence cited in claim 31
`
`See evidence cited in claim 7
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