| abstract |
Provided herein are methods of treating a substrate surface in preparation for subsequent nucleation-sensitive deposition (eg, polysilicon or polySiGe) and adsorption-driven deposition (eg, atomic layer deposition or ALD). Prior to deposition, the surface is treated with an undeposited plasma product (110, 125). The treated surface allows for easier nucleation of polysilicon and poly-SiGe (eg, for gate electrode 220) or easier adsorption of ALD reactants (eg, for gate dielectric 260). The surface treatment results in a surface portion that is more easily affected by subsequent deposition reactions, or more readily affected by further surface treatment prior to deposition. Altering the surface termination of the substrate with a low-temperature radical treatment advantageously facilitates subsequent deposition without the deposition of any layer of apparent thickness and without significantly affecting the bulk properties of the underlying material. You. Excited species, which may include fluorine, chlorine, especially nitrogen excited species, are incorporated into the bulk material, preferably less than 10 °. |