Electron Cyclotron Resonance ECR CVD Reactor

One approach being pursued by Japanese investigators makes use of the electron cyclotron resonance phenomena discussed earlier.24 In this case, a 

Silicon nitride films deposited in para 11 el-pi ate, plasma-enhanced CVD reactors will be discussed in greater detail in a later chapter. However, they typically have a refractive index on the order of 2.0, partly because of hydrogen incorporated into the layer, and the ECR films appear similar. Also, as 

There are a number of interesting observations that can be made regarding these results. First, the deposition rate achieved in these experiments is comparable to those obtainable by conventional PECVD, in spite of the fact that the ECR unit operates at 0.1 mTorr and the conventional unit at 300 mTorr. This indicates a much higher degree of excitation of the ECR plasma. 

In spite of this, we are still comparing a single-wafer CVD machine to the batch parallel-plate units, both with the same deposition rates. Therefore, it is unlikely such a machine will be of much interest for production of films for integrated circuit passivation. 

In addition, due to the low plasma pressure and guiding magnetic field, such a reactor deposits in an anisotropic fashion. In other words, the film will either be thicker or denser on a horizontal surface exposed to the ECR plasma than it will be on vertical surfaces. This makes such films of limited value for coating integrated circuits with the usual topography. 

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