AVS 47th International Symposium
    Plasma Science and Technology Tuesday Sessions
       Session PS-TuP

Paper PS-TuP7
Ion Compositions and Energies in Inductively Coupled Discharges Containing SF@sub 6@

Tuesday, October 3, 2000, 5:30 pm, Room Exhibit Hall C & D

Session: Poster Session
Presenter: A.N. Goyette, National Institute of Standards and Technology
Authors: A.N. Goyette, National Institute of Standards and Technology
Y. Wang, National Institute of Standards and Technology
J.K. Olthoff, National Institute of Standards and Technology
Correspondent: Click to Email
High density plasmas generated in mixtures of SF@sub 6@ with rare or simple diatomic gases are involved in many dry etching processes. Plasma etching relies heavily upon surface bombardment by positive ions from the discharge, and experimental determination of the identities and energies of ions striking surfaces exposed to these plasmas contributes to understanding and accurate modeling of these plasmas. We have measured absolute total ion current densities, relative ion intensities, and ion energy distributions (IEDs) at the grounded electrode of an inductively-coupled Gaseous Electronics Conference (GEC) rf reference cell for discharges generated in pure SF@sub 6@, and in Ar/SF@sub 6@ and O@sub 2@/SF@sub 6@ gas mixtures. Several ions of significant intensity were detected from these plasmas, and the effects of chamber pressure, coil power, and mixture ratio on the fluxes and energies of ions extracted from these discharges were investigated. For pure SF@sub 6@ discharges, SF@sub x@@sup +@ (x = 0-5) ions exhibited the highest fluxes, with S@sup +@ being the dominant ion detected. Mean ion energies were between 15 eV and 20 eV, and were most sensitive to changes in gas mixture ratio. Results of measurements from the mixtures will also be presented.