US5571366A — Plasma processing apparatus

Claim 1

Independent Claim 240 words

A plasma processing apparatus comprising: a processing chamber for plasma processing, having an external wall, said chamber containing within said wall an object having a surface to be processed in a plasma; induction means for providing a radio frequency induction field within said chamber for generating a plasma within said chamber; voltage applying means for applying a radio frequency voltage to said induction means; measuring means for measuring a pressure variation and/or a light intensity variation from the plasma in said chamber during generation of the plasma, and outputting a signal corresponding to the variation; control means for controlling said radio frequency voltage applying means based on the signal from said measuring means, and controlling said voltage for controlling said plasma within said chamber; wherein said induction means has a radio frequency antenna arranged outside said chamber, and an insulating member positioned between said radio frequency antenna and said processing chamber; and wherein said antenna has an inner terminal formed at an inner end of said antenna, an outer terminal formed at an outer end of said antenna, and at least one intermediate terminal formed between said terminals, the terminals being respectively connected to said radio frequency voltage applying means such that currents flow between said inner terminal and said intermediate terminal, between said intermediate terminal and said outer terminal, and between said intermediate terminal and said radio frequency voltage applying means, and said control means independently controls the currents.

Claim 2

Dependent Claim 240 words

A plasma processing apparatus comprising: a processing chamber for plasma processing, having an external wall, said chamber containing within said wall an object having a surface to be processed in a plasma; induction means for providing a radio frequency induction field within said chamber for generating a plasma within said chamber; voltage applying means for applying a radio frequency voltage to said induction means; measuring means for measuring a pressure variation and/or a light intensity variation from the plasma in said chamber during generation of the plasma, and outputting a signal corresponding to the variation; control means for controlling said radio frequency voltage applying means based on the signal from said measuring means, and controlling said voltage for controlling said plasma within said chamber; wherein said induction means has a radio frequency antenna arranged outside said chamber, and an insulating member positioned between said radio frequency antenna and said processing chamber; and wherein said antenna has an inner terminal formed at an inner end of said antenna, an outer terminal formed at an outer end of said antenna, and at least one intermediate terminal formed between said terminals, the terminals being respectively connected to said radio frequency voltage applying means such that currents flow between said inner terminal and said intermediate terminal, between said intermediate terminal and said outer terminal, and between said intermediate terminal and said radio frequency voltage applying means, and said control means independently controls the currents.

Claim 3

Dependent Claim 37 words

An apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising electrostatic shield means, arranged between said radio frequency antenna and said insulating member, for preventing an electrostatic field from applying from said radio frequency antenna to said processing chamber.

Claim 4

Dependent Claim 39 words

An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said chamber has a wall portion consisting of said insulating member and opposing the object to be processed, and said radio frequency antenna has a spiral antenna placed on said wall portion.

Claim 5

Dependent Claim 96 words

An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said measurement means measures an emission intensity of a first gas component whose amount present in said processing chamber relatively and greatly varies in an etching process with respect to the object to be processed, and an emission intensity of a second gas component whose amount existent in said processing chamber does not relatively vary in the etching process, and outputting a signal corresponding to an emission intensity ratio, and said control means controls said radio frequency voltage applying means in accordance with a variation in emission intensity ratio.

Claim 6

Dependent Claim 97 words

An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said measurement means measures a pressure in said processing chamber, and comprises pressure measurement means for outputting a signal corresponding to the pressure, and said control means controls said radio frequency voltage applying means such that the pressure represented by the signal falls within a pressure range wherein an etching rate obtained from a correlation between the pressure in said processing chamber and an etching rate obtained when the etching process is performed with respect to the object to be processed placed in an etching atmosphere falls within a range.

Claim 7

Dependent Claim 34 words

An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said measuring means comprises at least two spectroscopes each measuring an intensity of different wavelength from the plasma, and outputting a signal based on the two intensities.

Claim 8

Dependent Claim 209 words

A plasma processing apparatus comprising: a processing chamber for plasma processing, having an external wall, said chamber containing within said wall an object having a surface to be processed in a plasma; induction means for providing a radio frequency induction field within said chamber for generating a plasma within said chamber; voltage applying means for applying a radio frequency voltage to said induction means; measuring means for measuring a pressure variation and/or a light intensity variation from the plasma in said chamber during generation of the plasma, and outputting a signal corresponding to the variation; control means for controlling said radio frequency voltage applying means based on the signal from said measuring means, and controlling said voltage for controlling said plasma within said chamber; and wherein said measuring means has light detecting means for measuring an emission spectrum of a gas present in said processing chamber, and a shortwave component of light emitted from said processing chamber, and outputting a first signal corresponding to the measured emission spectrum and a second signal corresponding to the shortwave component, and said control means detects a state of the plasma based on the first signal, and corrects a detection result using the second signal to control said radio frequency voltage applying means.

Claim 9

Dependent Claim 209 words

A plasma processing apparatus comprising: a processing chamber for plasma processing, having an external wall, said chamber containing within said wall an object having a surface to be processed in a plasma; induction means for providing a radio frequency induction field within said chamber for generating a plasma within said chamber; voltage applying means for applying a radio frequency voltage to said induction means; measuring means for measuring a pressure variation and/or a light intensity variation from the plasma in said chamber during generation of the plasma, and outputting a signal corresponding to the variation; control means for controlling said radio frequency voltage applying means based on the signal from said measuring means, and controlling said voltage for controlling said plasma within said chamber; and wherein said measuring means has light detecting means for measuring an emission spectrum of a gas present in said processing chamber, and a shortwave component of light emitted from said processing chamber, and outputting a first signal corresponding to the measured emission spectrum and a second signal corresponding to the shortwave component, and said control means detects a state of the plasma based on the first signal, and corrects a detection result using the second signal to control said radio frequency voltage applying means.

Claim 10

Dependent Claim 52 words

An apparatus according to claim 7, wherein said control means for controlling said radio frequency voltage applying means controls said radio frequency voltage applying means such that the voltage to be applied is intermittently applied during a process with respect to the object to be processed, and the plasma is intermittently formed.

Claim 11

Dependent Claim 90 words

An apparatus according to claim 8, wherein said measuring means has light detecting means for measuring an emission spectrum of a gas present in said processing chamber, and a shortwave component of light emitted from said processing chamber, and outputting a first signal corresponding to the measured emission spectrum and a second signal corresponding to the shortwave component, and said control means detects a state of the plasma based on the first signal, and corrects a detection result using the second signal to control said radio frequency voltage applying means.

Claim 12

Dependent Claim 33 words

An apparatus according to claim 7, wherein said induction means has a radio frequency antenna arranged outside said chamber, and an insulating member positioned between said radio frequency antenna and said processing chamber.

Claim 13

Dependent Claim 44 words

An apparatus according to claim 7, wherein said voltage applying means comprises a first voltage applying means for applying a first frequency voltage to said induction means and a second voltage applying means for intermittently applying a second frequency voltage to said induction means.

Claim 14

Dependent Claim 190 words

A plasma processing apparatus comprising: a chamber for plasma processing having an external wall, said chamber containing within said wall an object having a surface to be processed in a plasma; induction means for providing a radio frequency induction field within said chamber for generating a plasma within said chamber, said induction means being coaxially arranged on an imaginary plane being parallel to the surface to be processed and having at least a first inner coil and a second outer coil which are insulated with each other; supplying means for respectively supplying radio frequency currents to said first inner coil and second outer coil for controlling said plasma within said chamber; phase control means for controlling phases of the radio frequency currents supplied to said first inner coil and second outer coil; and pressure detecting means for detecting a pressure in said processing chamber and outputting a signal corresponding to the detected pressure, and means for controlling a power supplied to said first radio frequency coil and a power supplied to said second radio frequency coil to have a division ratio based on the signal from said pressure detecting means.

Claim 15

Dependent Claim 190 words

A plasma processing apparatus comprising: a chamber for plasma processing having an external wall, said chamber containing within said wall an object having a surface to be processed in a plasma; induction means for providing a radio frequency induction field within said chamber for generating a plasma within said chamber, said induction means being coaxially arranged on an imaginary plane being parallel to the surface to be processed and having at least a first inner coil and a second outer coil which are insulated with each other; supplying means for respectively supplying radio frequency currents to said first inner coil and second outer coil for controlling said plasma within said chamber; phase control means for controlling phases of the radio frequency currents supplied to said first inner coil and second outer coil; and pressure detecting means for detecting a pressure in said processing chamber and outputting a signal corresponding to the detected pressure, and means for controlling a power supplied to said first radio frequency coil and a power supplied to said second radio frequency coil to have a division ratio based on the signal from said pressure detecting means.

Claim 16

Dependent Claim 94 words

An apparatus according to claim 12, wherein said first radio frequency coil has a partially notched one-turn flat annular coil having a pair of end portions which are separated from each other by an interval, and electrodes provided to said end portions, and said second radio frequency coil surrounds said first coil by an interval while being electrically insulated from said first coil, and has a partially notched one-turn flat annular coil having a pair of end portions which are separated from each other by an interval, and electrodes provided to said end portions.

Claim 17

Dependent Claim 28 words

An apparatus according to claim 13, further comprising a cylindrical electromagnetic shield mesh coaxially arranged between said first coil and said second coil and having two open ends.

Claim 18

Dependent Claim 42 words

An apparatus according to claim 12, further comprising an electromagnetic shield cylindrical portion coaxially arranged between said first coil and said second coil and having two open ends, said cylindrical portion having a slit extending from one end to the other end.

Claim 19

Dependent Claim 95 words

A plasma processing apparatus comprising: a processing chamber for plasma processing an object received in the chamber; a plurality of radio frequency antennas disposed outside of the chamber and arranged side by side and spaced from each other, the antennas providing a radio frequency induction field within the chamber for generating a plasma therein; a plurality of radio frequency power supplies each of which is connected to the corresponding radio frequency antenna for supplying a radio frequency voltage thereto; and control means for controlling the radio frequency voltage from the radio frequency voltage power supplies.

Claim 20

Dependent Claim 95 words

A plasma processing apparatus comprising: a processing chamber for plasma processing an object received in the chamber; a plurality of radio frequency antennas disposed outside of the chamber and arranged side by side and spaced from each other, the antennas providing a radio frequency induction field within the chamber for generating a plasma therein; a plurality of radio frequency power supplies each of which is connected to the corresponding radio frequency antenna for supplying a radio frequency voltage thereto; and control means for controlling the radio frequency voltage from the radio frequency voltage power supplies.

Claim 21

Dependent Claim 34 words

An apparatus according to claim 16, further including means for maintaining said processing chamber at a gas pressure of 10 to 100 mTorr during the process with respect to the object to be processed.

Claim 22

Dependent Claim 25 words

An apparatus according to claim 16, further including means for processing the object to be processed at an electron temperature of 2 to 5 eV.

Claim 23

Dependent Claim 105 words

An apparatus according to claim 16, wherein each of said antennas has an inner terminal formed at an inner end of each antenna, an outer terminal formed at an outer end of each antenna, and at least one intermediate terminal formed between the inner terminal and the outer terminal; the inner terminal, outer terminal and intermediate terminal being respectively connected to the radio frequency power supply such that currents flow between the inner terminal and the intermediate terminal, between the intermediate terminal and the outer terminal, and between said intermediate terminal and the radio frequency power supply, and said control means independently controls the currents.

Claim 24

Dependent Claim 15 words

An apparatus according to claim 16, wherein said antennas are arranged in a matrix form.

Claim 25

Dependent Claim 243 words

A plasma processing apparatus comprising: a chamber for plasma processing having an external wall, said chamber containing within said wall an object having a surface to be processed in a plasma; induction means for providing a radio frequency induction field within said chamber for generating a plasma within said chamber, said induction means being coaxially arranged on an imaginary plane being parallel to the surface to be processed and having at least a first inner coil and a second outer coil which are insulated with each other; supplying means for respectively supplying radio frequency currents to said first inner coil and second outer coil for controlling said plasma within said chamber; phase control means for controlling phases of the radio frequency currents supplied to said first inner coil and second outer coil; wherein said phase control means controls the phase of the radio frequency current supplied to said first radio frequency coil and the phase of the radio frequency current supplied to said second radio frequency coil to be the substantially same phases or phases shifted by about 180° from each other; and reflected power detecting means for detecting reflected powers from said respective radio frequency coils, and wherein said phase control means has a phase shifter for adjusting the phases of the respective radio frequency currents supplied to said respective radio frequency coils to have a phase difference so as to minimize the reflected powers detected by said reflected power detecting means.

Claim 26

Dependent Claim 243 words

A plasma processing apparatus comprising: a chamber for plasma processing having an external wall, said chamber containing within said wall an object having a surface to be processed in a plasma; induction means for providing a radio frequency induction field within said chamber for generating a plasma within said chamber, said induction means being coaxially arranged on an imaginary plane being parallel to the surface to be processed and having at least a first inner coil and a second outer coil which are insulated with each other; supplying means for respectively supplying radio frequency currents to said first inner coil and second outer coil for controlling said plasma within said chamber; phase control means for controlling phases of the radio frequency currents supplied to said first inner coil and second outer coil; wherein said phase control means controls the phase of the radio frequency current supplied to said first radio frequency coil and the phase of the radio frequency current supplied to said second radio frequency coil to be the substantially same phases or phases shifted by about 180° from each other; and reflected power detecting means for detecting reflected powers from said respective radio frequency coils, and wherein said phase control means has a phase shifter for adjusting the phases of the respective radio frequency currents supplied to said respective radio frequency coils to have a phase difference so as to minimize the reflected powers detected by said reflected power detecting means.

Annuity Stage	Window Opens	Payment Deadline	Surcharge Period Until	Estimated Fee	Status
3.5 Years (Year 4)	1999-11-05	2000-05-06	2000-11-05	$2000.00	Window Closed / Lapsed
7.5 Years (Year 8)	2003-11-05	2004-05-06	2004-11-05	$3760.00	Window Closed / Lapsed
11.5 Years (Year 12)	2007-11-05	2008-05-06	2008-11-05	$7700.00	Window Closed / Lapsed

Plasma processing apparatus

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