Plasma generating device and method of plasma processing
AssigneeSemiconductor Energy Laboratory Co., Ltd.
InventorsHideomi Koinuma, Shunpei Yamazaki, Shigenori Hayashi
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Abstract
A plasma generating device and a method for etching a minute region of a substrate under atmospheric pressure are disclosed. A gas containing helium as the main ingredient is glow discharged under atmospheric pressure, a halide is added to the discharge so as to activate the halogen element, and a solid material (substrate) such as silicon is chemically etched by using the radicals. At that time, a magnetic field acts on the discharge so as to draw out electrons and ions to the surface of the substrate, thereby increasing the radical density in the vicinity of the surface of the substrate and the etching rate.
Claims12
A method of plasma processing by the use of an apparatus comprising a pair of cylindrical electrodes and a cylindrical insulator arranged in a coaxial relation with said insulator between said electrodes wherein a plasma generating space is formed between said electrodes, said method comprising the steps of:
- introducing a reactive gas and a halogen containing gas into said space from one end of said electrodes, said reactive gas comprising helium;
- placing a substrate on the other end of said electrodes with a gap therebetween;
- generating plasma in said space by ionizing said reactive gas by applying an alternating electric field between said electrodes;
- and
- establishing a magnetic field in said space in a direction parallel to said electrodes;
- and
- etching said substrate by said halogen containing gas by virtue of an energy of said plasma.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.