Substrate processing apparatus and fabrication process of a semiconductor device

A method for fabricating a semiconductor device including a step of pattering a film formed on a substrate, comprising the steps of:

• holding said substrate on a stage inside a processing vessel as a substrate to be processed, said processing vessel defining a processing space and evacuated by an evacuation system;
• etching said film by introducing an etching gas into said processing vessel and by forming plasma in said processing space;
• and
• capturing particles sputtered from said substrate to be processed during said step of etching by a shielding plate provided in said processing vessel so as to divide said processing space into a first processing space part including a surface of said substrate to be processed and a second processing space part including a remaining part of said processing space, said shielding plate being formed with an opening having a size larger than a size of said substrate to be processed.