AVS 56th International Symposium & Exhibition
    Plasma Science and Technology Thursday Sessions
       Session PS-ThP

Paper PS-ThP13
Measurement of Electron Energy Probability Function in Dual-Frequency Capacitive Discharges

Thursday, November 12, 2009, 6:00 pm, Room Hall 3

Session: Plasma Science Poster Session
Presenter: S.K. Ahn, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology
Authors: S.K. Ahn, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology
H.Y. Chang, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology
Correspondent: Click to Email
Changes in plasma characteristics depending on low-frequency power in dual-frequency capacitive discharges were found from the measurement of electrical characteristics and electron energy probability functions (EEPFs). It is shown that as the low-frequency (2 MHz) power increases for the fixed high-frequency (27.12 MHz) current, the ion bombardment energy and the ion flux onto the electrode increase simultaneously, and hence independent control of the ion energy and the ion flux is hardly achievable in dual-frequency capacitive discharges. It is also shown that the coupling between the low-frequency power and the ion flux originates from change in electron heating mechanisms when varying the low-frequency power. Depending on the discharge pressure, changes in the collisional electron heating in the bulk plasma and participation of the secondary electron emission in the ionization process are observed.