Plasma process apparatus

Claim 1

An apparatus for processing a target surface of a substrate, while using plasma, comprising: a vacuum chamber for defining a process space in which said substrate is contained and processed; a supply for introducing into said vacuum chamber a gas to be made into plasma; an exhaustion system for exhausting said vacuum chamber; a first electrode located within said vacuum chamber and having a support surface for supporting said substrate such that said target surface is exposed to said process space; a second electrode having an opposing surface that opposes the support surface of said first electrode; a power supply for applying a voltage between said first and second electrodes, thereby to make said gas into plasma and to form an electric field E which extends substantially at right angles to the target surface of said substrate supported on said support surface between said substrate and said plasma; a magnet assembly for generating a magnetic field B having a reference plane that intersects with the electric field substantially at a right angle between said first and second electrode, wherein said magnet assembly has a plurality of magnet elements which have different magnetization axes and are arranged along an outer side surfaces of said vacuum chamber, electrons drift due to a force resulting from an outer product (E×B) of the electric field E and the magnetic field B, said magnetic field has a direction in said reference plane parallel to the target surface of said substrate supported on said support surface, and the reference plane of the magnetic field is deviated toward said opposing surface of the second electrode, from the target surface of said substrate supported on said support surface, such that the magnetic force lines of the magnetic field intersect with the target surface of said substrate; and further wherein a relation of 3°<θ z (±100,0)<8° holds, where θ z (±100,0) is an angle at which the magnetic force lines of the magnetic field intersect with the target surface of the substrate at a distance of 100 mm from a center of the substrate, measured along an N-S axis of the magnetic field, and a relation of 1.1<B.sub.(±100, 0) /Bc<1.3 holds, where Bc and B.sub.(±100, 0) are intensities that the magnetic field has at coordinates (0,0) and (±100, 0), respectively, in coordinate systems (x, y) on the target surface of the substrate, the coordinate systems (x, y) being defined with distances (mm) measured from the center of the target surface of the substrate in directions parallel to the N-S and E-W axes, respectively, of the magnetic field.

Claim 2

An apparatus for processing a target surface of a substrate, while using plasma, comprising: a vacuum chamber for defining a process space in which said substrate is contained and processed; a supply for introducing into said vacuum chamber a gas to be made into plasma; an exhaustion system for exhausting said vacuum chamber; a first electrode located within said vacuum chamber and having a support surface for supporting said substrate such that said target surface is exposed to said process space; a second electrode having an opposing surface that opposes the support surface of said first electrode; a power supply for applying a voltage between said first and second electrodes, thereby to make said gas into plasma and to form an electric field E which extends substantially at right angles to the target surface of said substrate supported on said support surface between said substrate and said plasma; a magnet assembly for generating a magnetic field B having a reference plane that intersects with the electric field substantially at a right angle between said first and second electrode, wherein said magnet assembly has a plurality of magnet elements which have different magnetization axes and are arranged along an outer side surfaces of said vacuum chamber, electrons drift due to a force resulting from an outer product (E×B) of the electric field E and the magnetic field B, said magnetic field has a direction in said reference plane parallel to the target surface of said substrate supported on said support surface, and the reference plane of the magnetic field is deviated toward said opposing surface of the second electrode, from the target surface of said substrate supported on said support surface, such that the magnetic force lines of the magnetic field intersect with the target surface of said substrate; and further wherein a relation of 3°<θ z (±100,0)<8° holds, where θ z (±100,0) is an angle at which the magnetic force lines of the magnetic field intersect with the target surface of the substrate at a distance of 100 mm from a center of the substrate, measured along an N-S axis of the magnetic field, and a relation of 1.1<B.sub.(±100, 0) /Bc<1.3 holds, where Bc and B.sub.(±100, 0) are intensities that the magnetic field has at coordinates (0,0) and (±100, 0), respectively, in coordinate systems (x, y) on the target surface of the substrate, the coordinate systems (x, y) being defined with distances (mm) measured from the center of the target surface of the substrate in directions parallel to the N-S and E-W axes, respectively, of the magnetic field.

Claim 11

An apparatus for processing a target surface of a substrate, while using plasma, comprising: a vacuum chamber for defining a process space in which said substrate is contained and processed; a supply system for introducing into said vacuum chamber a gas to be made into plasma; an exhaustion system for exhausting said vacuum chamber; a first electrode located within said vacuum chamber and having a support surface for supporting said substrate such that said target surface is exposed to said process space; a second electrode having an opposing surface that opposes the support surface of said first electrode; a power supply for applying a voltage between said first and second electrodes, thereby to make said gas into plasma and to form an electric field E which extends substantially at right angles to the target surface of said substrate supported on said support surface between said substrate and said plasma; a magnet assembly for generating a magnetic field B having a reference plane that intersects with the electric field substantially at a right angle between said first and second electrode, wherein said magnet assembly has a plurality of magnet elements which have different magnetization axes and are arranged along an outer side surfaces of said vacuum chamber, electrons drift due to a force resulting from an outer product (E×B) of the electric field E and the magnetic field B, said magnetic field has a direction in said reference plane parallel to the target surface of said substrate supported on said support surface, and the reference plane of the magnetic field is deviated toward said opposing surface of the second electrode, from the target surface of said substrate supported on said support surface, such that the magnetic force lines of the magnetic field intersect with the target surface of said substrate; and further wherein a relation of 3°<θ z (±100,0)<8° holds, where θ z (±100,0) is an angle at which the magnetic force lines of the magnetic field intersect with the target surface of the substrate at a distance of 100 mm from a center of the substrate, measured along an N-S axis of the magnetic field, and a relation of 1.0≦B.sub.(±100 y) /B.sub.(0, y) ≦1.5 holds, where B.sub.(0, y) and B.sub.(±100, y) are intensities which the magnetic field has at coordinates (0,y) and (±100, y), respectively, in coordinate systems (x, y) on the target surface of the substrate, the coordinate systems (x, y) being defined with distances (mm) measured from the center of the target surface of the substrate in directions parallel to the N-S and E-W axes, respectively, of the magnetic field.

Claim 12

An apparatus for processing a target surface of a substrate, while using plasma, comprising: a vacuum chamber for defining a process space in which said substrate is contained and processed; a supply system for introducing into said vacuum chamber a gas to be made into plasma; an exhaustion system for exhausting said vacuum chamber; a first electrode located within said vacuum chamber and having a support surface for supporting said substrate such that said target surface is exposed to said process space; a second electrode having an opposing surface that opposes the support surface of said first electrode; a power supply for applying a voltage between said first and second electrodes, thereby to make said gas into plasma and to form an electric field E which extends substantially at right angles to the target surface of said substrate supported on said support surface between said substrate and said plasma; a magnet assembly for generating a magnetic field B having a reference plane that intersects with the electric field substantially at a right angle between said first and second electrode, wherein said magnet assembly has a plurality of magnet elements which have different magnetization axes and are arranged along an outer side surfaces of said vacuum chamber, electrons drift due to a force resulting from an outer product (E×B) of the electric field E and the magnetic field B, said magnetic field has a direction in said reference plane parallel to the target surface of said substrate supported on said support surface, and the reference plane of the magnetic field is deviated toward said opposing surface of the second electrode, from the target surface of said substrate supported on said support surface, such that the magnetic force lines of the magnetic field intersect with the target surface of said substrate; and further wherein a relation of 3°<θ z (±100,0)<8° holds, where θ z (±100,0) is an angle at which the magnetic force lines of the magnetic field intersect with the target surface of the substrate at a distance of 100 mm from a center of the substrate, measured along an N-S axis of the magnetic field, and a relation of 1.0≦B.sub.(±100 y) /B.sub.(0, y) ≦1.5 holds, where B.sub.(0, y) and B.sub.(±100, y) are intensities which the magnetic field has at coordinates (0,y) and (±100, y), respectively, in coordinate systems (x, y) on the target surface of the substrate, the coordinate systems (x, y) being defined with distances (mm) measured from the center of the target surface of the substrate in directions parallel to the N-S and E-W axes, respectively, of the magnetic field.