AVS 51st International Symposium
    Plasma Science and Technology Monday Sessions
       Session PS1-MoM

Paper PS1-MoM3
Fluorocarbon Surface Chemistry in Dual Frequency Capacitively Coupled Discharges for Dielectric Etching: A Comparison with Inductively Coupled Plasmas

Monday, November 15, 2004, 9:00 am, Room 213A

Session: Low-k Dielectric Etching
Presenter: L. Ling, University of Maryland at College Park
Authors: L. Ling, University of Maryland at College Park
X. Hua, University of Maryland at College Park
L. Zheng, University of Maryland at College Park
G. Oehrlein, University of Maryland at College Park
E.A. Hudson, Lam Research Corp.
P. Jiang, Texas Instruments Inc.
P. Lazzeri, ITC-irst, Italy
M. Anderle, ITC-irst, Italy
Y. Wang, National Institute of Standards and Technology
Correspondent: Click to Email
Mechanically confined dual-frequency capactively coupled plasma (DFCCP) reactors featuring a high frequency powered electrode for plasma production and low frequency RF biasing for ion bombardment control of the substrate are increasingly being used for fluorocarbon (FC) plasma-based pattern transfer into SiO@sub 2@ and low k dielectric materials. We describe a study of confined DFCCP properties fed with C@sub 4@F@sub 8@/Ar and C@sub 4@F@sub 6@/Ar. In particular, we compare the chemistry of FC films formed on various surfaces with data obtained for inductively coupled discharges. Precursor gas dissociation is determined using mass spectrometry. The composition of the incident ion flux is determined by ion-sampling. The deposition rates, composition and bonding of passively deposited fluorocarbon films (no etching of the substrate), and the composition, bonding and thickness of the surface reaction layers that form on SiO@sub 2@, resist and silicon surface during steady state etching are determined as a function of processing conditions using ellipsometry and X-ray photoemission spectroscopy. The influence of ion bombardment on the composition of deposited fluorocarbon films is studied by comparing FC films deposited underneath a small gap structure with those deposited on ion bombarded surfaces. The influence of pressure, RF bias and gas mixture of FC-based DFCCP on the characteristics of resist pattern transfer into organosilicate glass and nanoporous silica is also reported.