Plasma processing apparatus and method

• US 6,747,239 B2
• Filed: 05/14/2003
• Issued: 06/08/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 09/22/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Kanno, Seiichiro, Kitsunai, Hiroyuki, Tanaka, Junichi, Nishio, Ryoji, Yamamoto, Hideyuki
• Primary Examiner(s): Paschall, Mark
• Application Number:
  US10/437,030
• Publication Number:
  US 20030192864A1
• Time in Patent Office: 391 Days
• Field of Search: 219/121.43, 219/121.41, 219/121.4, 219/121.42, 219/121.54, 219/121.57, 219/121.59, 700/121, 156/345.24, 156/623.1, 156/626.1, 156/345.25, 438/9, 216/60-67
• US Class Current: 219/121.43
• CPC Class Codes: H01J 37/32935 Monitoring and controlling tubes by information coming from the object and/or discharge
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/67253 Process monitoring, e.g. flow or thickness monitoring

Abstract

A plasma processing apparatus having a process chamber to process specimens; a status detecting unit for detecting the internal processing status of the process chamber and outputting a plurality of signals; and a signal converting unit for extracting an arbitrary number of signal processing filters from a signal filter database using a signal filter selector and creating an arbitrary number of device status signals. The signal converting unit creates fewer effective device status signals of a time series from the output signals.

Claims

1. A plasma processing apparatus having a process chamber to process one or more specimens, comprising:

a first status detecting unit which detects the processing status, inside of the process chamber;

a database containing signal processing filters created using first output signals from the first status detecting unit and second output signals from a second status detecting unit which is different from the first status detecting unit; and

a signal conversion unit arranged to create first device status signals from the first output signals,

wherein the first device status signals have time series which are less than the first output signals.

2. The plasma processing apparatus in accordance with claim 1, comprising:

a mechanism which creates second device status signals from the first output signals, wherein the second device status signals are related to the second status detecting unit that is equipped on the plasma processing apparatus.

3. The plasma processing apparatus in accordance with claim 1, wherein the first status detecting unit is a spectroscope, and the second status detecting unit is a mass spectrograph.

4. The plasma processing apparatus in accordance with claim 2, the first status detecting unit is a spectroscope, and the second status detecting unit is a mass spectrograph.

5. The plasma processing apparatus in accordance with claim 1, wherein the first status detecting unit is an electric status detector installed in plasma generating means, and the second status detecting unit is a spectrometer installed in the process chamber to detect light emitted from plasma in the process chamber.

6. The plasma processing apparatus in accordance with claim 1, wherein the first status detecting unit is an electric status detector installed in plasma generating means, and the second status detecting unit is a laser induced fluorescent means or an infrared absorption means to detect light passing through or reflected by plasma in the process chamber.

7. The plasma processing apparatus in accordance with claim 1, further comprising a display unit arranged to display the transition of the first device status signals over a designated time period.

8. The plasma processing apparatus in accordance with claim 1, further comprising means for adding electrical signals to plasma generated in the process chamber, wherein said first status detecting unit is adapted to detect changes when the electrical signals pass through the plasma or are reflected by the plasma.

9. A plasma processing apparatus comprising:

a process chamber to process a specimen;

a first status detecting unit to detect the processing status of each device on the specimen inside of the process chamber and generate first output signals;

a database containing signal processing filters created using the first output signals and second output signals from a second status detecting unit different from the first status detecting unit; and

a signal conversion unit to convert first device status signals from the first output signals, wherein said first device status signals have time series which are less than said first output signals.

10. The plasma processing apparatus in accordance with claim 9, comprising:

a mechanism which creates second device status signals from the first output signals, wherein the second device status signals are related to the second status detecting unit that is equipped on the plasma processing apparatus.

11. The plasma processing apparatus in accordance with claim 9, wherein the first status detecting unit is a spectroscope, and the second status detecting unit is a mass spectrograph.

12. The plasma processing apparatus in accordance with claim 9, wherein the first status detecting unit is an electric status detector installed in plasma generating means, and the second status detecting unit is a spectrometer installed in the process chamber to detect light emitted from plasma in the process chamber.

13. The plasma processing apparatus in accordance with claim 9, wherein the first status detecting unit is an electric status detector installed in plasma generating means, and the second status detecting unit is a laser induced fluorescent means or an infrared absorption means to detect light passing through or reflected by plasma in the process chamber.

14. The plasma processing apparatus in accordance with claim 9, further comprising a display unit arranged to display the transition of the first device status signals over a designated time period.

15. The plasma processing apparatus in accordance with claim 9, further comprising means for adding electrical signals to plasma generated in the process chamber, wherein said first status detecting unit is adapted to detect changes when the electrical signals pass through the plasma or are reflected by the plasma.