Method for producing plasma flow, method for plasma processing, apparatus for producing plasma, and apparatus for plasma processing

A plasma generation apparatus for generating a plasma stream, comprising:

• a supply source of a plasma constituent material being set up as a cathode;
• an anode being arranged in front or circumference of said cathode;
• an arc plasma being generated between said cathode and said anode by generation of an arc discharge;
• said plasma stream being generated by letting said arc plasma pass through a plasma distribution pathway;
• said plasma stream being made rotating around a plasma traveling direction by a rotation magnetic field;
• a programmable logic controller;
• a setting input means for inputting and setting a rotation control parameter;
• said setting input means being connected to said programmable logic controller:
• said rotation control parameter including a frequency and amplitude data for each rotation angle region when a whole circular rotation angle region of plasma around said plasma traveling direction is partitioned into two or more;
• and
• said programmable logic controller executing a frequency variation control of rotating plasma generation with said rotation control parameter,
• where
• when an imbalance occurs in a plasma density distribution along a beam cross section of said plasma stream and said beam cross section is a deformed cross section having an extended-axis direction and a shortened-axis direction,
• an object to be treated in a plasma treatment is irradiated with said plasma stream being made rotating around said plasma travelling direction while varying its rotational velocity describing a rotational orbit,
• so that
• said plasma treatment is carried out while making a film formation thickness uniform along said rotational orbit,
• wherein
• said frequency variation control of rotating plasma generation is executed in such a manner that said frequency in respective rotation angle region is made to be different, and that an orbiting speed of said plasma stream is slow in a rotation angle region where said shortened-axis direction is along said rotational orbit, and an orbiting speed of said plasma stream is fast in a rotation angle region where said extended-axis direction is along said rotational orbit.