Transport phenomena in a slim vertical atmospheric pressure chemical vapor deposition reactor utilizing natural convection

The gas flow, heat and species transport in a slim vertical silicon chemical vapor deposition reactor for Minimal Fab were evaluated by a numerical analysis. The influences of the inlet gas flow condition on the gas flow direction and the gas phase temperature in the reactor were studied. When the gas flow rate was minimized, natural convection transports the precursor of trichlorosilane gas to the wafer surface. Because the wafer rotation, even very slow at 4 rpm, adjusted the gas flow to shrink the hot region height above the wafer, the gas phase reaction was moderated for preparing the specular surface of the epitaxial film.