Plasma polishing method
First Claim
1. A plasma polishing method of polishing a surface of a target object, comprising the steps of:
- holding the target object by a table so as to expose the surface of the target object;
converting a process gas into a plasma and supplying the plasma onto the surface of the target object from an outlet port substantially smaller than the surface of the target object; and
rotating said table together with the target object at a high speed, such that the plasma is drawn and diffused in laminar flow state on the surface of the target object by a centrifugal force generated upon rotation of the surface, and polishes the surface during diffusion in the surface.
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Abstract
A plasma polishing apparatus has a table which holds a wafer and is rotated at a high speed by a drive base. The drive base is supported on a horizontal drive stage, so that the table is linearly and reciprocally movable. A plasma generator for converting a process gas into a plasma by high-frequency inductive coupling is arranged above the table. The plasma generator has an outlet port from which the plasma flows out toward the target surface of the wafer. The plasma from the outlet port is drawn upon high-speed rotation of the wafer, diffused as a laminar flow on the target surface of the wafer, and uniformly polishes the entire target surface.
28 Citations
22 Claims
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1. A plasma polishing method of polishing a surface of a target object, comprising the steps of:
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holding the target object by a table so as to expose the surface of the target object;
converting a process gas into a plasma and supplying the plasma onto the surface of the target object from an outlet port substantially smaller than the surface of the target object; and
rotating said table together with the target object at a high speed, such that the plasma is drawn and diffused in laminar flow state on the surface of the target object by a centrifugal force generated upon rotation of the surface, and polishes the surface during diffusion in the surface. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22)
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Specification