Modeling of RF plasma discharges of CH{sub 4} for carbon film deposition
- Drexel Univ., Philadelphia, PA (United States)
Low pressure radio-frequency (RF) discharges are used for a wide variety of thin film fabrication processes. These discharges are inherently complex, hence there is considerable interest in understanding the discharge structure via numerical simulation. Weakly ionized gas discharges are widely used in sputtering, etching and plasma-assisted chemical vapor deposition (PACVD). PACVD processes have been used for diamond-like-carbon (DLC) film deposition in CH{sub 4} plasmas at room temperature. Particle-in-cell/Monte Carlo simulations of one dimensional capacitively coupled RF (radio-frequency) glow discharges were carried out for low pressure CH{sub 4} plasmas. The present scheme includes the motions and collisions of both neutrals and charged particles. DCH{sub 4} plasma is modeled combining PIC/MC method with a polyatomic gas collision scheme. Space and time dependent results show ionization rate is high at sheath edge while dissociation rate is also high in the plasma bulk. Dissociation and ionization rate are also high near the electrode where DC bias voltage is applied. Deposition rate was calculated by sampling impinging particles at the electrode. Ion energy at the electrode is strongly dependent on the DC bias voltage. However, for the same RF voltage, there was no distinct relation between deposition rate and DC bias voltage.
- OSTI ID:
- 428008
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-960634--
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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