The present book contains the proceedings of the workshop "Plasma Technology and Applications" which was held at 11 Ciocco (Lucca-Italy) during 5-6 July 1991. The workshop was organized just before ICPIG XX to emphasize the role of plasma physics and plasma chemistry in different fields of technology. Topics cover different applications such as lamps, plasma treatment of materials (etching, deposition, nitriding), plasma sources (microwave excitation, negative ion sources) and plasma destruction of pollutants. Several chapters deal with basic concepts in plasma physics, non equilibrium plasma modeling and plasma diagnostics as well as with laser interaction with solid targets. The authors gratefully acknowledge the financial support provided by university of Bari (Italy) and by CNR (Centro di Studio per la Chimica dei Plasmi, Istituto di Fisica Atomica e Molecolare (IFAM) and Progetto Finalizzato Materiali Speciali per Tecnologie Avanzate) as well as the sponsorship of ENEA. M. Capitelli C. Gorse v CONTENTS Plasmas in nature, laboratory and technology 1 A.M. Ignatov and A.A. Rukhadze Laser diagnostics of plasmas 11 L. Pyatnitsky Probe diagnostics of plasmas 27 G. Dilecce Theory, properties and applications of non equilibrium plasmas created by external energy sources 45 E. Son Non-Equilibrium plasma modeling 59 M. Capitel1i, R. Celiberto, G. Capriati, C. Gorse and S. Longo Gas discharge lamps 81 M. Koedam Plasma etching processes and diagnostics 93 R. d'Agostino and F. Fracassi Plasma deposition: processes and diagnostics 109 A

This is a comprehensive overview of the technology of plasma-based processing, written by an outstanding group of 29 contributors.

The focus of this book is the remarkable advances in understanding of low pressure RF (radio frequency) glow discharges. A basic analytical theory and plasma physics are explained. Plasma diagnostics are also covered before the practicalities of etcher use are explored.

Plasma processing of materials is a critical technology to several of the largest manufacturing industries in the worldâ€"electronics, aerospace, automotive, steel, biomedical, and toxic waste management. This book describes the relationship between plasma processes and the many industrial applications, examines in detail plasma processing in the electronics industry, highlights the scientific foundation underlying this technology, and discusses education issues in this multidisciplinary field. The committee recommends a coordinated, focused, and well-funded research program in this area that involves the university, federal laboratory, and industrial sectors of the community. It also points out that because plasma processing is an integral part of the infrastructure of so many American industries, it is important for both the economy and the national security that America maintain a strong leadership role in this technology.

Pattern transfer by dry etching and plasma-enhanced chemical vapor de position are two of the cornerstone techniques for modern integrated cir cuit fabrication. The success of these methods has also sparked interest in their application to other techniques, such as surface-micromachined sen sors, read/write heads for data storage and magnetic random access memory (MRAM). The extremely complex chemistry and physics of plasmas and their interactions with the exposed surfaces of semiconductors and other materi als is often overlooked at the manufacturing stage. In this case, the process is optimized by an informed "trial-and-error" approach which relies heavily on design-of-experiment techniques and the intuition of the process engineer. The need for regular cleaning of plasma reactors to remove built-up reaction or precursor gas products adds an extra degree of complexity because the interaction of the reactive species in the plasma with the reactor walls can also have a strong effect on the number of these species available for etching or deposition. Since the microelectronics industry depends on having high process yields at each step of the fabrication process, it is imperative that a full understanding of plasma etching and deposition techniques be achieved.