Arc recovery with over-voltage protection for plasma-chamber power supplies
AssigneeAdvanced Energy Industries, Inc.
InventorMilan Ilic
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A system and method for managing power delivered to a processing chamber is described. In one embodiment current is drawn away from the plasma processing chamber while initiating an application of power to the plasma processing chamber during an initial period of time, the amount of current being drawn away decreasing during the initial period of time so as to increase the amount of power applied to the plasma processing chamber during the initial period of time.
Claims20
A system for supplying energy to a plasma processing chamber, the system comprising:
- a power supply;
- a plasma processing chamber coupled to the power supply;
- an arc management component configured to extinguish an arc in the plasma processing chamber;
- and
- an arc recovery component configured to apply power to the plasma processing chamber after the arc has been extinguished, the arc recovery component including:
- an energy diversion component configured to draw current away from the plasma processing chamber while power is applied to the plasma processing chamber during an initial period of time after the arc is extinguished, the amount of current being drawn away decreasing during the initial period of time so as to gradually increase an amount of power applied to the plasma processing chamber during the initial period of time.
A method for supplying energy to a plasma processing chamber, comprising:
- drawing current away from the plasma processing chamber while initiating an application of power to the plasma processing chamber during an initial period of time, the amount of current being drawn away decreasing during the initial period of time so as to increase the amount of power applied to the plasma processing chamber during the initial period of time;
- converting the current that is drawn away from the plasma processing chamber to stored energy;
- and
- discharging the stored energy.
An apparatus for supplying energy to a plasma processing chamber, comprising:
- an input terminal adapted to receive power that is generated by a power supply;
- an output terminal configured to apply the power generated by a power supply so that the power may be utilized by a plasma processing chamber;
- an energy diversion component configured to draw a decreasing amount of energy away from the output terminal so that the output terminal is capable of gradually increasing a level of energy from a low level of energy that is insufficient to ignite the plasma in the plasma processing chamber to a level sufficient to ignite plasma in the plasma processing chamber;
- and
- an energy discharge component configured to draw energy away from the energy diversion component so as enable the energy diversion component to draw more energy away from the output terminal.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.