Fluid simulation of the pulsed bias effect on inductively coupled nitrogen discharges for low-voltage plasma immersion ion implantation

Planar radio frequency inductively coupled plasmas(ICP) are employed for low-voltage ion implantation processes,with capacitive pulse biasing of the substrate for modulation of the ion energy. In this work, a two-dimensional(2D) selfconsistent fluid model has been employed to investigate the influence of the pulsed bias power on the nitrogen plasmas for various bias voltages and pulse frequencies. The results indicate that the plasma density as well as the inductive power density increase significantly when the bias voltage varies from 0 V to-4000 V, due to the heating of the capacitive field caused by the bias power. The N+fraction increases rapidly to a maximum at the beginning of the power-on time, and then it decreases and reaches the steady state at the end of the glow period. Moreover, it increases with the bias voltage during the power-on time, whereas the N_2~+ fraction exhibits a reverse behavior. When the pulse frequency increases to 25 kHz and40 kHz, the plasma steady state cannot be obtained, and a rapid decrease of the ion density at the substrate surface at the beginning of the glow period is observed.     

Electronic dynamic behavior in inductively coupled plasmas with radio-frequency bias

The inflexion point of electron density and effective electron temperature curves versus radio-frequency （RF） bias voltage is observed in the H mode of inductively coupled plasmas （ICPs）. The electron energy probability function （EEPF） evolves first from a Maxwellian to a Druyvesteyn-like distribution, and then to a Maxwellian distribution again as the RF bias voltage increases. This can be explained by the interaction of two distinct bias-induced mechanisms, that is： bias- induced electron heating and bias-induced ion acceleration loss and the decrease of the effective discharge volume due to the sheath expansion. Furthermore, the trend of electron density is verified by a fluid model combined with a sheath module.     

带有射频偏压源的感性耦合Ar/O2/Cl2等离子体放电的混合模拟研究

在刻蚀工艺中,通常会在感性耦合等离子体源的下极板上施加偏压源,以实现对离子能量和离子通量的独立调控.本文采用整体模型双向耦合一维流体鞘层模型,在Ar/O₂/Cl₂放电中,研究了偏压幅值和频率对等离子体特性及离子能量角度分布的影响.研究结果表明:当偏压频率为2.26 MHz时,随着偏压的增加,除了Cl^-离子和ClO⁺离子的密度先增加后降低最后再增加外,其余带电粒子、O原子和Cl原子的密度都是先增加后基本保持不变最后再增加.当偏压频率为13.56和27.12 MHz时,除了Cl^-离子和Cl₂⁺离子外,其余粒子密度随偏压的演化趋势与低频结果相似.随着偏压频率的提高,在低偏压范围内(<200 V),由于偏压源对等离子体加热显著增加,导致了带电粒子、O原子和Cl原子的密度增加;而在高偏压范围内(>300 V),由于偏压源对等离子体加热先减弱后增强,导致除了Cl₂⁺离子和Cl^-     

Fundamental study towards a better understanding of low pressure radio-frequency plasmas for industrial applications

Two classic radio-frequency (RF) plasmas, i.e., the capacitively and the inductively coupled plasmas (CCP and ICP), are widely employed in material processing, e.g., etching and thin film deposition, etc. Since RF plasmas are usually operated in particular circumstances, e.g., low pressures (mTorr-Torr), high-frequency electric field (13.56 MHz-200 MHz), reactive feedstock gases, diverse reactor configurations, etc., a variety of physical phenomena, e.g., electron resonance heating, discharge mode transitions, striated structures, standing wave effects, etc., arise. These physical effects could significantly influence plasma-based material processing. Therefore, understanding the fundamental processes of RF plasma is not only of fundamental interest, but also of practical significance for the improvement of the performance of the plasma sources. In this article, we review the major progresses that have been achieved in the fundamental study on the RF plasmas, and the topics include 1) electron heating mechanism, 2) plasma operation mode, 3) pulse modulated plasma, and 4) electromagnetic effects. These topics cover the typical issues in RF plasma field, ranging from fundamental to application.     

Changes of the electron dynamics in hydrogen inductively coupled plasma

Changes of the electron dynamics in hydrogen （H2） radio-frequency （RF） inductively coupled plasmas are investigated using a hairpin probe and an intensified charged coupled device （ICCD）. The electron density, plasma emission intensity, and input current （voltage） are measured during the E to H mode transitions at different pressures. It is found that the electron density, plasma emission intensity, and input current jump up discontinuously, and the input voltage jumps down at the E to H mode transition points. And the threshold power of the E to H mode transition decreases with the increase of the pressure. Moreover, space and phase resolved optical emission spectroscopic measurements reveal that, in the E mode, the RF dynamics is characterized by one dominant excitation per RF cycle, while in the H mode, there are two excitation maxima within one cycle.     

Influence of dielectric materials on uniformity of large-area capacitively coupled plasmas for N_2/Ar discharges

The effect of the dielectric ring on the plasma radial uniformity is numerically investigated in the practical 450-mm capacitively coupled plasma reactor by a two-dimensional self-consistent fluid model. The simulations were performed for N2/Ar discharges at the pressure of 300 Pa, and the frequency of 13.56 MHz. In the practical plasma treatment process,the wafer is always surrounded by a dielectric ring, which is less studied. In this paper, the plasma characteristics are systematically investigated by changing the properties of the dielectric ring, i.e., the relative permittivity, the thickness and the length. The results indicate that the plasma parameters strongly depend on the properties of the dielectric ring. As the ratio of the thickness to the relative permittivity of the dielectric ring increases, the electric field at the wafer edge becomes weaker due to the stronger surface charging effect. This gives rise to the lower N_2~+ ion density, flux and N atom density at the wafer edge. Thus the homogeneous plasma density is obtained by selecting optimal dielectric ring relative permittivity and thickness. In addition, we also find that the length of the dielectric ring should be as short as possible to avoid the discontinuity of the dielectric materials, and thus obtain the large area uniform plasma.     

相位角对容性耦合电非对称放电特性的影响

电非对称效应作为一种新兴技术,被广泛用于对离子能量和离子通量的独立调控.此外,在改善等离子体的径向均匀性方面,电非对称效应也发挥了重要作用.本文采用二维流体力学模型,并耦合麦克斯韦方程组,系统地研究了容性耦合氢等离子体中当放电由多谐波叠加驱动时,不同谐波阶数k下的电非对称效应,重点观察了相位角θ_n对自偏压以及等离子体径向均匀性的影响.模拟结果表明：在同一谐波阶数下,自偏压随相位角θ_n的变化趋势不尽相同,且当k增大（k>3）时,自偏压随最高频相位角θ_k的变化范围逐渐减小.此外,通过调节相位角θ_n,可以改变轴向功率密度和径向功率密度的相对关系,进而实现对等离子体径向均匀性的调节.研究结果对于利用电非对称效应优化等离子体工艺过程具有一定的指导意义.     

大面积矩形感性耦合等离子体源的三维流体力学模拟

利用自主开发的三维流体力学模型程序,对面向平板显示工艺和光伏工艺的大面积矩形感性耦合氩等离子体源进行了数值模拟.该模型自洽地求解了带电粒子以及中性粒子的流体方程和感应电场的波动方程.利用此模型,研究了气压、功率以及线圈形状对各种等离子体参数的三维空间分布和均匀性的影响.研究结果表明,当放电气压较低时(4 mTorr),电子密度的空间分布比较均匀,且电子密度的最大值出现在腔室的中心区域.感性沉积功率密度、激发态氩原子密度以及电子温度的最大值出现在线圈的下方.随着放电功率的增加,即从1000 W增加到4000 W,电子密度显著提高,但电子密度的空间分布变化不大.随着放电气压的升高,电子密度的均匀性明显下降,即电子密度的最大值主要局域在线圈下方.这是因为在较高的气压下,带电粒子与背景气体的碰撞增加,因此使得带电粒子的密度分布变得局域.此外,文章还研究了不同的线圈结构对于等离子体均匀性的影响.结果表明当气压较高(20 mTorr)时,使用圈,即通过改变线圈结构可以实现对等离子体均匀性的调控.文章的研究成果有助于加深对大面积矩形感性耦合等离子体放电特性的认知,这对于优化平板显示工艺以及光伏工艺至...     

常压等离子体对柔性多孔材料表面处理均匀性的研究进展

柔性多孔材料在当今众多前沿科学与技术领域发挥着重要作用,其表面改性将进一步赋予其多样和优异的表面性能,拓展其在功能和智能可穿戴等领域的应用.常压等离子体技术由于低温、低能耗、高效、环保、低成本、不改变材料本体特性、易于实现卷对卷制备等优势,在应用环境、样品材料选择上展现出良好的适应性,在低熔点柔性材料大面积低成本表面处理方面具有很好的应用前景和研究价值.本文综述了近年来常压等离子体柔性多孔材料表面改性的几个实例及在新材料、新能源、环保、生物医学中的应用.探讨了柔性多孔材料常压等离子体均匀处理所遇到的稳定性及渗透性的问题与挑战.综述了本课题组在常压等离子体稳定放电、卷对卷常压等离子体多孔介质处理及内部渗透性和均匀性方面的研究工作,介绍了本课题组在常压等离子体纳米颗粒膜沉积动力学及膜结构调控方面的突破和思路.常压等离子体柔性多孔介质表面处理技术走向应用仍然存在诸多挑战,需要结合常压等离子体的放电方式及特性、处理材料的结构及加工特性、等离子体和材料的相互作用等来进行综合考虑,才能提供合理可行的解决方案.