Generation of obliquely incident ions using phase-shifted RF voltages applied on rod electrodes

Le résumé fourni par la source

Abstract A new method of generating obliquely incident ions has been investigated. A plasma system with a cathode consisting of a repetition of a group of four electrode rods connected to their respective RF power supplies is proposed. The ion angular distribution (IAD) is controlled by modulating the phase shift of the four RF powers. The IAD of an argon high-density plasma was analyzed on the basis of transient plasma simulation. When the RF voltages are controlled so that the phase shift is π/2, a convex-shaped plasma sheath corresponding to each group of four rods appears and propagates parallel to the wafer with time. By propagating this “wavy” sheath, a bimodal IAD consisting of ions obliquely incident mainly from two directions are obtained nearly uniformly across the wafer. This method is capable of generating obliquely incident ions, which is expected to be effective as an additional knob for precise profile control in fine-pattern reactive-ion etching (RIE).

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