Coupled simulation of gas flow and heat transfer in an RTP-system with rotating wafer

In this study the concept of a lamp heated RTP-system with rotating wafer is considered. Using the fluid-flow-simulation software Phoenics-CVD, we investigated the cooling of the wafer by a process gas flow which is injected at room temperature into the hot process chamber through an inlet pipe in the side wall. In a full 3D-simulation of the gas flow and of the heat transfer in the gas and in the wafer the Navier-Stokes equations and the energy equation are solved. The radiative power consumption and the energy loss of the wafer have been modeled by the Stefan-Boltzmann law. Simulations without wafer rotation show a strong drop in the temperature distribution at the wafer near the inlet pipe. In contrast to this, simulations with rotation show an axisymmetric temperature distribution with a considerably smaller temperature gradient over the wafer. Comparisons with oxidation experiments showed good agreement with the simulation results. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.