US 5,843,236 AGranted

Plasma processing apparatus for radiating microwave from rectangular waveguide through long slot to plasma chamber

AssigneeDAIHEN Corporation

InventorsHiroyuki Yoshiki, Kazuki Kondo, Akira Ishii, Shigeki Amadatsu, Tatsuya Saijo, Koji Itadani, Takahiro Aoyama

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Abstract

In a plasma processing apparatus including a plasma chamber having a narrow window, and a rectangular waveguide for coupling with the plasma chamber, the rectangular waveguide has a long slot disposed in an E-plane thereof so as to oppose the narrow window of the plasma chamber and to extend along a waveguide-axis direction of the rectangular waveguide. There is further provided at least two long slots disposed in at least one rectangular waveguide, and the longitudinal length of each long slot is set to 1/2 or more of a free-space wavelength of the microwave. Further, the long slots are disposed so as to be parallel to each other such that adjacent long slots are shifted from each other by (2n-1)/4 of the free-space wavelength of the microwave in the waveguide-axis direction of the rectangular waveguide, where n is a natural number.

Claims13

Dependent claims

A plasma processing apparatus comprising:

a plasma chamber having a narrow window formed in a side wall thereof, an object to be processed being provided inside said narrow window;
a rectangular waveguide for coupling with said plasma chamber, said rectangular waveguide having a long slot disposed in an E-plane thereof so as to oppose to said narrow window of said plasma chamber and to extend along a waveguide-axis direction of said rectangular waveguide, said rectangular waveguide being provided so that the waveguide-axis direction of said rectangular waveguide is parallel to a longitudinal direction of said narrow window of said plasma chamber;
and
microwave power supply means for supplying a microwave to said rectangular waveguide,
wherein the microwave is radiated from said rectangular waveguide to said plasma chamber through said long slot,
said plasma processing apparatus being characterized in further comprising:
at least two said long slots disposed in at least one said rectangular waveguide;
wherein the longitudinal length of said each long slot is set to 1/2 or more of a free-space wavelength of the microwave;
and
wherein said long slots are disposed so as to be parallel to each other such that adjacent said long slots are shifted from each other by (2n-1)/4 of the free-space wavelength of the microwave in the waveguide-axis direction of said rectangular waveguide, where n is a natural number.

7 more elements

A plasma processing apparatus comprising:

a plasma chamber having a narrow window disposed in a side wall thereof, an object to be processed being provided inside said narrow window;
a rectangular waveguide for coupling with said plasma chamber, said rectangular waveguide having a long slot disposed in an E-plane thereof so as to oppose to said narrow window of said plasma chamber and to extend along a waveguide-axis direction of said rectangular waveguide, said rectangular waveguide being provided so that the waveguide-axis direction of said rectangular waveguide is parallel to a longitudinal direction of said narrow window of said plasma chamber;
and
microwave power supply means for supplying a microwave to said rectangular waveguide,
wherein the microwave is radiated from the rectangular waveguide to said plasma chamber through said long slot,
said plasma processing apparatus being characterized in that:
a longitudinal length of said long slot is set to 1/2 or more of a free-space wavelength of the microwave, said plasma processing apparatus further comprising:
a microwave waveguide forming member provided between said long slot and said narrow window of said plasma chamber, said microwave waveguide forming member having a microwave waveguide having a cross section identical to an opening shape of said long slot;
and
a dielectric made of a material that does not absorb any microwave, said dielectric being inserted into said microwave waveguide at a position near a terminating end of said rectangular waveguide along the waveguide-axis direction of said rectangular waveguide, said dielectric reflecting a part of the microwave and transmitting another part of the microwave.

7 more elements

A plasma processing apparatus comprising:

a plasma chamber having a narrow window disposed in a side wall thereof, an object to be processed being provided inside said narrow window;
a rectangular waveguide for coupling with said plasma chamber, said rectangular waveguide having a long slot disposed in an E-plane thereof so as to oppose to said narrow window of said plasma chamber and to extend along a waveguide-axis direction of said rectangular waveguide, said rectangular waveguide being provided so that the waveguide-axis direction of said rectangular waveguide is parallel to a longitudinal direction of said narrow window of said plasma chamber;
and
microwave power supply means for supplying a microwave to said rectangular waveguide,
wherein the microwave is radiated from the rectangular waveguide to said plasma chamber through said long slot,
said plasma processing apparatus being characterized in that:
a longitudinal length of said long slot is set to 1/2 or more of a free-space wavelength of the microwave,
said plasma processing apparatus further comprising:
magnetic-field generating means for generating a magnetic field in a space between said object provided in said plasma chamber and said narrow window, and for changing a direction and an intensity of the generated magnetic field.

6 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.