Esc assembly including an electrically conductive gasket for uniform rf power delivery therethrough

A semiconductor substrate processing apparatus for processing semiconductor substrates, comprising:

• a processing chamber in which a semiconductor substrate is processed;
• a process gas source in fluid communication with the processing chamber adapted to supply process gas into the processing chamber;
• a RF energy source adapted to energize the process gas into a plasma state in the processing chamber;
• a vacuum source adapted to exhaust process gas and byproducts of the processing from the processing chamber;
• and
• an electrostatic chuck assembly comprising a layer of ceramic material including an electrostatic clamping (ESC) electrode and at least one RF electrode below the ESC electrode, a temperature controlled RF powered baseplate, and at least one annular electrically conductive gasket extending along an upper surface of the temperature controlled RF powered baseplate, the at least one annular electrically conductive gasket extending through or around a bond layer, which bonds the temperature controlled RF powered baseplate to the layer of ceramic material, and electrically coupling the upper surface of the temperature controlled RF powered baseplate to the RF electrode wherein the layer of ceramic material includes a support surface adapted to electrostatically clamp a semiconductor substrate during semiconductor substrate processing.