Present status of thin oxide films creation in a microwave plasma

This paper summarizes present knowledge of the creation of thin films in isotropic and magnetoactive plasma. It analyses conditions under which films in the microwave plasma can be created and shows how the growth rate and properties of films depend on microparameters of plasma. On the basis of plasma floating potential measurements it is shown why the creation of thin films in microwave discharges takes place at high electron plasma densities (N 10¹² cm^–3) only. Besides this it describes properties of created films, underlies negative role of fast electrons in forming of good quality films and gives recommendation how to avoid their generation. Considerable attention is devoted also to a comparison of films creation in pulse and continuous plasma. At the end possibility of films creation at low temperatures by a deposition technique utilizing a microwave excitation of molecular gases is given.The authors gratefully acknowledge many stimulating and fruitful discussions with Dr. F. áek of Institute of Plasma Physics of Czechoslovak Academy of Sciences. We also thank Dr. V. Malina of Institute of Radioelectronics of Czechoslovak Academy of Sciences for measurements of C—V curves of SiO₂ films.