E-H transitions in Ar/O2 and Ar/Cl2 inductively coupled plasmas: Antenna geometry and operating conditions

Electronegative inductively coupled plasmas (ICPs) are used for conductor etching in the microelectronics industry for semiconductor fabrication. Pulsing of the antenna power and bias voltages provides additional control for optimizing plasma-surface interactions. However, pulsed ICPs are susceptible to capacitive-to-inductive mode transitions at the onset of the power pulse due to there being low electron densities at the end of the prior afterglow. The capacitive (E) to inductive (H) mode transition is sensitive to the spatial configuration of the plasma at the end of the prior afterglow, circuit (matchbox) settings, operating conditions, and reactor configurations, including antenna geometry. In this paper, we discuss results from a computational investigation of E-H transitions in pulsed ICPs sustained in Ar/Cl-2 and Ar/O-2 gas mixtures while varying operating conditions, including gas mixture, pulse repetition frequency, duty cycle of the power pulse, and antenna geometry. Pulsed ICPs sustained in Ar/Cl-2 mixtures are prone to significant E-H transitions due to thermal dissociative attachment reactions with Cl-2 during the afterglow which reduce pre-pulse electron densities. These abrupt E-H transitions launch electrostatic waves from the formation of a sheath at the boundaries of the plasma and under the antenna in particular. The smoother E-H transitions observed for Ar/O-2 mixture results from the higher electron density at the start of the power pulse due to the lack of thermal electron attaching reactions to O-2. Ion energy and angular distributions (IEADs) incident onto the wafer and the dielectric window under the antenna are discussed. The shape of the antenna influences the severity of the E-H transition and the IEADs, with antennas having larger surface areas facing the plasma producing larger capacitive coupling. Validation of the model is performed by comparison of computed electron densities with experimental measurements.