Plasma processing apparatus and plasma processing method

Abstract

There is provided a means for uniformly controlling the in-plane temperature of a semiconductor wafer at high speed in a high heat input etching process. A refrigerant channel structure in a circular shape is formed in a sample stage. Due to a fact that a heat transfer coefficient of a refrigerant is largely changed from a refrigerant supply port to a refrigerant outlet port, the cross sections of the channel structure is structured so as to be increased from a first channel areas towards a second channel areas in order to make the heat transfer coefficient of the refrigerant constant in the refrigerant channel structure. Thereby, the heat transfer coefficient of the refrigerant is prevented from increasing by reducing the flow rate of the refrigerant at a dry degree area where the heat transfer coefficient of the refrigerant is increased. Further, the cross section of the channel structure is structured so as to be reduced from the second channel areas towards a third channel areas, and thereby the heat transfer coefficient of the refrigerant is prevented from decreasing. Accordingly, the heat transfer coefficient of the refrigerant can be uniformed in the channel structure.

Description

CLAIM OF PRIORITY[0001]The present invention application claims priority from Japanese application JP2007-16881 filed on Jan. 26, 2007, the content of which is hereby incorporated by reference into this application.FIELD OF THE INVENTION[0002]The present invention relates to a plasma processing apparatus and a plasma processing method in which a microfabrication process is performed on a sample such as a wafer in a semiconductor manufacturing process, and particularly to a temperature control apparatus and a temperature control method for an electrode portion by which a semiconductor wafer is held and fixed.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0003]Along with microfabrication of a semiconductor device, processing accuracy required for an etching process of a sample has been increasingly strict. In order to perform a high accuracy process on a micropattern of a wafer surface with a plasma processing apparatus, it is important to control the temperature of the wafer surface during an etching p...

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Benefits of technology

[0016]Furthermore, in the present invention, a plasma processing apparatus which converts a material gas that is introduced inside a vacuum vessel having a vacuum evacuation means by a gas introduction means, into plasma and which performs surface processing, by using the plasma, on a sample to be processed, further comprising a sample stage on which the sample is placed is a sample stage, a refrigeration cycle including a compressor, a condenser and an expansion valve is configured with the sample stage as an evaporator, a means which supplies and evacuates a refrigerant for cooling to/from the sample stage is provided, and the in-plane temperature distribution of the sample to be processed is arbitrarily controlled by adjusting the dry degree of the refrigerant that flows in the sample stage.

[0017]According to the present invention, the cross sections of refrigerant channel structure in a sample

Problems solved by technology

Further, due to a recent high-heat-input caused by applying a high wafer bias, a difference in in-p

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