Effect of coil and chamber structure on plasma radial uniformity in radio frequency inductively coupled plasma

Enhancing plasma uniformity can be achieved by modifying coil and chamber structures in radio frequency inductively coupled plasma(ICP)to meet the demand for large-area and uniformly distributed plasma in industrial manufacturing.This study utilized a two-dimensional self-consistent fluid model to investigate how different coil configurations and chamber aspect ratios affect the radial uniformity of plasma in radio frequency ICP.The findings indicate that optimizing the radial spacing of the coil enhances plasma uniformity but with a reduction in electron density.Furthermore,optimizing the coil within the ICP reactor,using the interior point method in the Interior Point Optimizer significantly enhances plasma uniformity,elevating it from 56%to 96%within the range of the model sizes.Additionally,when the chamber aspect ratio k changes from 2.8 to 4.7,the plasma distribution changes from a center-high to a saddleshaped distribution.Moreover,the plasma uniformity becomes worse.Finally,adjusting process parameters,such as increasing source power and gas pressure,can enhance plasma uniformity.These findings contribute to optimizing the etching process by improving plasma radial uniformity.

Fluid simulation of the effect of a dielectric window with high temperature on plasma parameters in inductively coupled plasma

To maintain the high-density plasma source in inductively coupled plasma(ICP),very high radiofrequency power is often delivered to the antenna,which can heat the dielectric windows near the antenna to high temperature.This high temperature can modulate the plasma characteristics to a large degree.We thus study the effect of dielectric window temperature on plasma parameters in two different ICP structures based on COMSOL software.The distributions of various plasma species are examined at different dielectric window temperatures.The concentration of neutral gas is found to be largely modulated at high dielectric window temperature,which further affects the electron collision probability with neutrals and the electron temperature.However,the electron density profiles are barely affected by the dielectric window temperature,which is mainly concentrated at the center of the reactor due to the fixed power input and pressure.

A fast hybrid simulation approach of ion energy and angular distributions in biased inductively coupled Ar plasmas

In this work,a two-dimensional hybrid model,which consists of a bulk fluid module,a sheath module and an ion Monte-Carlo module,is developed to investigate the modulation of ion energy and angular distributions at different radial positions in a biased argon inductively coupled plasma.The results indicate that when the bias voltage amplitude increases or the bias frequency decreases,the ion energy peak separation width becomes wider.Besides,the widths of the ion energy peaks at the edge of the substrate are smaller than those at the center due to the lower plasma density there,indicating the nonuniformity of the ion energy distribution function(IEDF)along the radial direction.As the pressure increases from 1 to 10 Pa,the discrepancy of the IEDFs at different radial positions becomes more obvious,i.e.the IEDF at the radial edge is characterized by multiple low energy peaks.When a dual frequency bias source is applied,the IEDF exhibits three or four peaks,and it could be modulated efficiently by the relative phase between the two bias frequencies.The results obtained in this work could help to improve the radial uniformity of the IEDF and thus the etching process.

Experimental studies of H_(2)/Ar plasma in a cylindrical inductive discharge with an expansion region

The electrical parameters of H_(2)/Ar plasma in a cylindrical inductive discharge with an expansion region are investigated by a Langmuir probe,where Ar fractions range from 0%to 100%.The influence of gas composition and pressure on electron density,the effective electron temperature and the electron energy probability functions(EEPFs)at different spatial positions are present.In driver region,with the introduction of a small amount of Ar at 0.3 Pa,there is a rapid increase in electron density accompanied by a decrease in the effective electron temperature.Additionally,the shape of the EEPF transitions from a three-temperature distribution to a bi-Maxwellian distribution due to an increase in electron-electron collision.However,this phenomenon resulting from the changes in gas composition vanishes at 5 Pa due to the prior depletion of energetic electrons caused by the increase in pressure during hydrogen discharge.The EEPFs for the total energy in expansion region is coincident to these in the driver region at 0.3 Pa,as do the patterns of electron density variation between these two regions for differing Ar fractions.At 5 Pa,as the discharge transitions from H_(2)to Ar,the EEPFs evolved from a bi-Maxwellian distribution with pronounced low energy electrons to a Maxwellian distribution in expansion region.This evolve may be attributed to a reduction in molecular vibrational excitation reactions of electrons during transport and the transition from localized electron dynamics in hydrogen discharge to non-localized electron dynamics in argon discharge.In order to validate the experimental results,we use the COMSOL simulation software to calculate electrical parameters under the same conditions.The evolution and spatial distribution of the electrical parameters of the simulation results agree well with the trend of the experimental results.

Determination of trace elements in high purity nickel by high resolution inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry

The contents ofMg, Al, Si, Ti, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Cu, Ga, As, Se, Cd, Sb, Pb and Bi in high purity nickel were determined by high resolution inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry （HR-ICP-MS）. The sample was dissolved in HNO3 and HCI by microwave digestion. Most of the spectral interferences could be avoided by measuring in the high resolution mode. The matrix effects because of the presence of excess HC1 and nickel were evaluated. Correction for matrix effects was made using Sc, Rh and T1 as internal standards. The optimum conditions for the determination were tested and discussed. The detection limits range from 0.012 to 1.76 ~tg/g depending on the type of elements. The applicability of the proposed method is also validated by the analysis of high purity nickel reference material （NIST SRM 671）. The relative standard deviation （RSD） is less than 3.3%. Results for determination of trace elements in high purity nickel were presented.

Quantification of trace amounts of impurities in high purity cobalt by high resolution inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry

A An analytical method using high resolution inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry （HR-ICP-MS） for rapid simultaneous determination of 24 elements （Be, Mg, A1, Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Ni, Cu, Zn, Ga, Ge, As, Se, Mo, Ag, Cd, Sn Sb, Ba, Pt, Au, and Pb） in high purity cobalt was described. Sample digestions were performed in closed microwave vessels using HNO3 and HCI. The matrix effects because of the presence of excess HCI and Co were evaluated. The usefulness of high mass resolution for overcoming some spectral interference was demonstrated. The optimum conditions for the determination were tested and discussed. The standard addition method was employed for quantitative analysis. The detection limits were 0.016-1.50 ].tg·g^-1, the recovery ratios were 92.2%-111.2%, and the RSD was less than 3.6%. The method was accurate, quick, and convenient. It was applied to the determination of trace impurities in high purity cobalt with satisfactory results.

Experimental Study of the Influence of Process Pressure and Gas Composition on GaAs Etching Characteristics in Cl_2/BCl_3-Based Inductively Coupled Plasma

A study of Cl2/BCl3-based inductively coupled plasma （ICP） was conducted using thick photoresist mask for anisotropic etching of 50μm diameter holes in a GaAs wafer at a relatively high average etching rate for etching depths of more than 150μm. Plasma etch characteristics with ICP process pressure and the percentage of BCI3 were studied in greater detail at a constant ICP coil/bias power. The measured peak-to-peak voltage as a function of pressure was used to estimate the minimum energy of the ions bombarding the substrate. The process pressure was found to have a substantial influence on the energy of heavy ions. Various ion species in plasma showed minimum energy variation from 1.85 eV to 7.5 eV in the pressure range of 20 mTorr to 50 mTorr. The effect of pressure and the percentage of BCl3 on the etching rate and surface smoothness of the bottom surface of the etched hole were studied for a fixed total flow rate. The etching rate was found to decrease with the percentage of BCl3, whereas the addition of BCl3 resulted in anisotropic holes with a smooth veil free bottom surface at a pressure of 30 mTorr and 42% BC13. In addition, variation of the etching yield with pressure and etching depth were also investigated.

Microstructure, Hardness and Corrosion Resistance of ZrN Films Prepared by Inductively Coupled Plasma Enhanced RF Magnetron Sputtering

ZrN fihns were deposited on Si（111） and M2 steel by inductively coupled plasma （ICP）-enhanced RF magnetron sputtering. The effect of ICP power on the microstructure, mechanical properties and corrosion resistance of ZrN films was investigated. When the ICP power is below 300 W, the ZrN films show a columnar structure. With the increase of ICP power, the texture coefficient （To） of the （111） plane, the nanohardness and elastic modulus of the films increase and reach the maximum at a power of 300 W. As the ICP Power exceeds 300 W, the films exhibit a ZrN and ZrNx mixed crystal structure without columnar grain while the nanohardness and elastic modulus of the films decrease. All the ZrN coated samples show a higher corrosion resistance than that of the bare M2 steel substrate in 3.5% NaCl electrolyte. The nanohardness and elastic modulus mostly depend on the crystalline structure and Tc of ZrN（111）.

Determination of trace multi-elements in coal fly ash by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry

The contents of Cr, Cu, Ni, As, Cd and Pb in coal fly ash were determined by a high resolution inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry method. The sample digestions were performed in closed microwave vessels with HNO3, HClO4 and FIE The optimum conditions for the determination were obtained. The applicability of the proposed method was validated by the analysis of coal fly ash reference material （NIST SRM 1633a）. The results show that most of the spectral interferences can be avoided by measuring in the high resolution mode （maximum mass resolution R=9 000）. The detection limit is from 0.05 to 0.21 μg/g, and the precision is fine with relative standard deviation less than 4.3%.

Modeling Approach and Analysis of the Structural Parameters of an Inductively Coupled Plasma Etcher Based on a Regression Orthogonal Design

The geometry of an inductively coupled plasma （ICP） etcher is usually considered to be an important factor for determining both plasma and process uniformity over a large wafer. During the past few decades, these parameters were determined by the ＂trial and error＂ method, resulting in wastes of time and funds. In this paper, a new approach of regression orthogonal design with plasma simulation experiments is proposed to investigate the sensitivity of the structural parameters on the uniformity of plasma characteristics. The tool for simulating plasma is CFD-ACE＋, which is commercial multi-physical modeling software that has been proven to be accurate for plasma simulation. The simulated experimental results are analyzed to get a regression equation on three structural parameters. Through this equation, engineers can compute the uniformity of the electron number density rapidly without modeling by CFD-ACE＋. An optimization performed at the end produces good results.

Spheroidization of silica powders by radio frequency inductively coupled plasma with Ar–H2 and Ar–N2 as the sheath gases at atmospheric pressure

Amorphous spherical silica powders were prepared by inductively coupled thermal plasma treatment at a radio frequency of 36.2 MHz. The effects of the added content of hydrogen and nitrogen into argon(serving as the sheath gas), as well as the carrier gas flow rate, on the spheroidization rate of silica powders, were investigated. The prepared silica powders before and after plasma treatment were examined by scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and laser granulometric analysis. Results indicated that the average size of the silica particles increased, and the transformation of crystals into the amorphous state occurred after plasma treatment. Discharge image processing was employed to analyze the effect of the plasma temperature field on the spheroidization rate. The spheroidization rate of the silica powder increased with the increase of the hydrogen content in the sheath gas. On the other hand, the spheroidization rate of the silica power first increased and then decreased with the increase of the nitrogen content in the sheath gas. Moreover, the amorphous content increased with the increase of the spheroidization rate of the silica powder.

Quantification of Trace Amounts of Impurities in High Purity Cobalt by High Resolution Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry

An analytical method using high resolution inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry （HR-ICP-MS） for rapid simultaneous determination of Be, Mg, Al, Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Ni, Cu, Zn, Ga, Ge, As, Se, Mo, Ag, Cd, Sn, Sb, Ba, Pt, Au and Pb in high purity cobalt was described. Sample digestions were performed in closed microwave vessels using HNO3 and HCl. The matrix effects due to the presence of excess HCl and Co were evaluated. The usefulness of high mass resolution for overcoming some spectral interference was demonstrated. The optimum conditions for the determination was tested and discussed. Correction for matrix effects, Sc, Rh and Bi were used as internal standards. The detection limits is 0.003-0.57 μg/g, the recovery ratio is 92.2%-111.2%, and the RSD is less than 3.6%. The method is accurate, quick and convenient. It has been applied to the determination of trace impurities in high purity cobalt with satisfactory results.

Ion Density Distribution in an Inductively Coupled Plasma Chamber

The ion density distribution in the reaction chamber was diagnosed by a Langmuir probe. The rules of the ion density distribution were obtained under the pressures of 9 Pa, 13 Pa, 27 Pa and 53 Pa in the reaction chamber, different radio-frequency powers and different positions. The result indicates that the ion density decreases as the pressure increases, and increases as the power decreases. The ion density of axial position z =0 achieves 5.8×1010 on the center of coil under the power of 200 w and pressure of 9 Pa in the reaction chamber.

The determination of 52 elements in marine geological samples by an inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry and an inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry with a high-pressure closed digestion method

An improved analytical method to determine the content of 52 major, minor and trace elements in marine geological samples, using a HF-HCl-HNO_3 acid system with a high-pressure closed digestion method（HPCD）, is studied by an inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry（ICP-OES） and an inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry（ICP-MS）. The operating parameters of the instruments are optimized, and the optimal analytical parameters are determined. The influences of optical spectrum and mass spectrum interferences, digestion methods and acid systems on the analytical results are investigated. The optimal spectral lines and isotopes are chosen, and internal standard element of rhodium is selected to compensate for matrix effects and analytical signals drifting. Compared with the methods of an electric heating plate digestion and a microwave digestion, a high-pressure closed digestion method is optimized with less acid, complete digestion,less damage for digestion process. The marine geological samples are dissolved completely by a HF-HCl-HNO_3 system, the relative error（RE） for the analytical results are all less than 6.0%. The method detection limits are 2–40μg/g by the ICP-OES, and 6–80 ng/g by ICP-MS. The methods are used to determine the marine sediment reference materials（GBW07309, GBW07311, GBW07313）, rock reference materials（GBW07103, GBW07104,GBW07105）, and cobalt-rich crust reference materials（GBW07337, GBW07338, GBW07339）, the obtained analytical results are in agreement with the certified values, and both of the relative standard deviation（RSD） and the relative error（RE） are less than 6.0%. The analytical method meets the requirements for determining 52 elements contents of bulk marine geological samples.

Determination of micro yttrium in an ytterbium matrix by inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry and wavelet transform

In the determination of trace yttrium (Y) in an ytterbium (Yb) matrix byinductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry (ICP-AES), the most prominent line ofyttrium, Y 371.030 nm line, suffers from strong interference due to an emission line of ytterbium.In mis work, a method based on wavelet transform was proposed for the spectral interferencecorrection. Haar wavelet was selected as the mother wavelet. The discrete detail after the thirddecomposition, D3, was chosen for quantitative analysis based on the consideration of bothseparation degree and peak height. The linear correlation coefficient between the height of the leftpositive peak in D3 and the concentration of Y was calculated to be 0.9926. Six synthetic sampleswere analyzed, and the recovery for yttrium varied from 96.3 percent to 110.0 percent. The amountsof yttrium in three ytterbium metal samples were determined by the proposed approach with an averagerelative standard deviation (RSD) of 2.5 percent, and the detection limit for yttrium was 0.016percent. This novel correction technique is fast and convenient, since neither complicated modelassumption nor time-consuming iteration is required. Furthermore, it is not affected by thewavelength drift inherent in monochromators that will severely reduce the accuracy of resultsobtained by some chemometric methods.

Surface Modification of Nanometre Silicon Carbide Powder with Polystyrene by Inductively Coupled Plasma

An investigation was made into polystyrene （PS） grafted onto nanometre silicon carbide （SIC） particles. In our experiment, the grafting polymerization reaction was induced by a radio frequency （RF） inductively coupled plasma （ICP） treatment of the nanometre powder. FTIR （Fourier transform infrared spectrum） and XPS （X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy） results reveal that PS is grafted onto the surface of silicon carbide powder. An analysis is presented on the effectiveness of this approach as a function of plasma operating variables including the plasma treating power, treating time, and grafting reaction temperature and time.

Trace amounts of impurities in electrolytic manganese metal by sector field inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry

An analytical method, using sector field inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry （SF-ICP-MS） for rapid simultaneous determination of Be, Na, Mg, Si, Ca, Ti, V, Cr, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, As, Sn, Sb, Pb and Bi in electrolytic manganese metal, was described. At the beginning, the samples were decomposed by HNO3 and H2504, and then analyzed by SF-ICP-MS. Most of the spectral interferences could be avoided by measuring in different mass resolution modes. The matrix effects due to the excess of sulfuric acid and Mn were evaluated. Correction of matrix effects was conducted by using the internal standard elements. The optimum condition for the determination was investigated and discussed. The detection limit is in the range of 0.001-0.169 gg/L. The current method is applied to the determination of trace impurities in electrolytic manganese metal. And experiments show that good results can be obtained much faster, more accurately and conveniently by current method.

Direct Determination of Trace Impurities in High Purity Zinc Oxide by High Resolution Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry

The determination of trace impurities in high purity zinc oxide by high resolution inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry （ HR-ICP-MS ） was investigated. To overcome some poteutially problematic spectral iuterference, measurements were acquired in both middle and high resolution modes. The matrix effects due to the presence of excess HCl and zinc were evaluated. The optimum conditions for the determination were tested and discussed. The standard addition method was employed for quantitative analysis. The detection limits ranged from 0.02μg/ g to 6 μg/ g depending on the elements. The experimental resalts for the determination of Na, Mg, Ca, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Mo, Cd, Sb and Pb in several high purity zinc oxide powders were presented.

Thermochemical Nonequilibrium 2D Modeling of Nitrogen Inductively Coupled Plasma Flow

Two-dimensional（2D） numerical simulations of thermochemical nonequilibrium inductively coupled plasma（ICP） flows inside a 10-kW inductively coupled plasma wind tunnel（ICPWT） were carried out with nitrogen as the working gas.Compressible axisymmetric NavierStokes（N-S） equations coupled with magnetic vector potential equations were solved.A fourtemperature model including an improved electron-vibration relaxation time was used to model the internal energy exchange between electron and heavy particles.The third-order accuracy electron transport properties（3rd AETP） were applied to the simulations.A hybrid chemical kinetic model was adopted to model the chemical nonequilibrium process.The flow characteristics such as thermal nonequilibrium,inductive discharge,effects of Lorentz force were made clear through the present study.It was clarified that the thermal nonequilibrium model played an important role in properly predicting the temperature field.The prediction accuracy can be improved by applying the 3rd AETP to the simulation for this ICPWT.

Conductivity effects during the transition from collisionless to collisional regimes in cylindrical inductively coupled plasmas

A numerical model is developed to study the conductivity effects during the transition from collisionless to collisional regimes in cylindrical inductively coupled argon plasmas at pressures of 0.1-20 Pa.The model consists of electron kinetics module,electromagnetics module,and global model module.It allows for self-consistent description of non-local electron kinetics and collisionless electron heating in terms of the conductivity of homogeneous hot plasma.Simulation results for non-local conductivity case are compared with predictions for the assumption of local conductivity case.Electron densities and effective electron temperatures under non-local and local conductivities show obvious differences at relatively low pressures.As increasing pressure,the results under the two cases of conductivities tend to converge,which indicates the transition from collisionless to collisional regimes.At relatively low pressures the local negative power absorption is predicted by non-local conductivity case but not captured by local conductivity case.The two-dimensional(2D)profiles of electron current density and electric field are coincident for local conductivity case in the pressure range of interest,but it roughly holds true for non-local conductivity case at very high pressure.In addition,an effective conductivity with consideration of non-collisional stochastic heating effect is introduced.The effective conductivity almost reproduces the electron density and effective electron temperature for the non-local conductivity case,but does not capture the non-local relation between electron current and electric field as well as the local negative power absorption that is observed for nonlocal conductivity case at low pressures.