Investigation of the radial uniformity of planar inductively coupled RF discharges using a self-consistent two-dimensional kinetic model

Summary form only given. High-density inductively coupled RF plasmas in planar geometry have attracted rapidly growing interest for applications in the semiconductor manufacturing in the last years. One main advantage of these discharges is the possible independent control of the plasma density and the ion impact energies on a substrate to be processed. In this contribution we concentrate on the discussion of the radial uniformity of the plasma density, the potential profiles and the radial variation of particle fluxes and impact energies along the walls (substrate). The investigations presented are based on a fast self-consistent two-dimensional kinetic model for planar inductive discharges. Since these discharges are usually operated at low pressures (/spl les/10 mTorr), a spatially resolved description of the electron kinetics in the discharge can be achieved by the solution of the electron Boltzmann equation in the nonlocal approximation. The ion dynamics is treated by a two-dimensional fluid model, the electrodynamics by the two-dimensional solution of the complex wave equation.