US Patent 7507660 Deposition processes for tungsten-containing barrier layers

In one embodiment, a method for forming a barrier material on a substrate is provided which includes exposing a dielectric layer on the substrate to a plasma during a preclean process, wherein the dielectric layer contains a feature having sidewalls and a bottom surface, and depositing a tungsten-containing barrier material containing tungsten nitride on the sidewalls and the bottom surface of the feature during a cyclic layer deposition process. The method further provides depositing a metal-containing seed layer on the tungsten-containing barrier material and depositing a metal-containing layer over the metal-containing seed layer to fill the feature. In another embodiment, the method provides conducting the cyclic layer deposition process within a process chamber having an expanding channel centralized above a substrate support and having a bottom surface sized and shaped to substantially cover the substrate, and sequentially exposing the substrate to precursor gases flowing from the expanding channel during the cyclic layer deposition process.