Silicon carbide focus ring for plasma etching system

Abstract

A high resistivity silicon carbide focus ring for use in a plasma etching system is described. The focus ring comprises an upper surface, a lower surface, an inner radial edge, and an outer radial edge, and is configured to surround a substrate on a substrate holder in a plasma processing system. The focus ring comprises high resistivity silicon carbide having a resistivity greater than or equal to about 100 ohm-cm.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0001]1. Field of Invention[0002]The invention relates to a focus ring for use in a plasma processing system and, more particularly, to a high resistivity silicon carbide focus ring for use in a plasma etching system.[0003]2. Description of Related Art[0004]The fabrication of integrated circuits (IC) in the semiconductor industry typically employs plasma to create and assist surface chemistry within a vacuum processing system necessary to remove material from and deposit material to a substrate. In general, plasma is formed within the processing system under vacuum conditions by heating electrons to energies sufficient to sustain ionizing collisions with a supplied process gas. Moreover, the heated electrons can have energy sufficient to sustain dissociative collisions and, therefore, a specific set of gases under predetermined conditions (e.g., chamber pressure, gas flow rate, etc.) are chosen to produce a population of charged species and chemically reac...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0002]The invention relates to a focus ring for use in a plasma processing system and, more particularly, to a high resistivity silicon carbide focus ring for use in a plasma etching system.

Problems solved by technology

The erosion of exposed components in the processing system can lead to a gradual degradation of the plasma processing performance and ultimately to complete failure of the system.

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