Modeling of electron kinetics in low-pressure inductively coupled plasmas
- Univ. of Wisconsin, Madison, WI (United States). Engineering Research Center for Plasma-Aided Manufacturing
- Lawrence Livermore National Lab., CA (United States)
Results are compared of two different methods of kinetic treatment of electrons in argon low-pressure Inductively-Coupled Plasma (ICP) sustained by an rf electric field from a planar coil. One approach involves a numerical propagator treatment of electron motion in five-dimensional phase space using the so-called Convected Scheme. Another assumes small anisotropy of the electron distribution function (EDF) and employs the two term approximation in the Boltzmann equation. Both calculations are performed for given distributions of rf and static fields and incorporate the principal physical effects of ICP: electron heating by the inductive electric field and the influence of the static ambipolar field on electron kinetics under non-local conditions when the electrons perform many bounces in the potential well or change the direction of their motion in elastic collisions many times before suffering a substantial energy loss in collisions. Collision processes include elastic and inelastic electron-neutral collisions and electron-electron interactions. Some of the main results of the comparison of the two approaches include: (a) with the sole exception of the coil vicinity where inductive field is strong, the two-term approximation is appropriate even in the case when the electron mean free path for momentum transfer exceeds the chamber dimensions; (b) total electron energy is an appropriate variable for the analysis of the electron kinetics.
- OSTI ID:
- 163088
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-950612-; ISBN 0-7803-2669-5; TRN: IM9604%%192
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: 22. international conference on plasma science, Madison, WI (United States), 5-8 Jun 1995; Other Information: PBD: 1995; Related Information: Is Part Of IEEE conference record -- abstracts: 1995 IEEE international conference on plasma science; PB: 312 p.
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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