Effect of focus ring with external circuit on cathode edge sheath dynamics in a capacitively coupled plasma

Capacitively coupled plasmas are widely used in semiconductor processes. The control of plasma to obtain uniform deposition and etching is an open problem, particularly within a few millimeters of the substrate edge. Complex material stacks commonly referred to as focus rings are placed at the wafer edge to provide uniform processes across the entire substrate but have limitations with regard to process window and eventual material erosion. One approach is to combine a focus ring with a tunable external circuit ground path termination to extend the plasma uniformity to the wafer edge over a wider process space. The external circuit coupling focus ring to the ground influences the ion energy profile and the ion angular profile by changing the impedance between the focus ring and the ground and allows wafer edge tuning over a wide range of operating parameters. In this work, it is found that the adjustable external circuit can control the partitioning of bias and RF voltages between the RF powered and passively coupled plasma facing surfaces. The focus ring with an external circuit assembly can also control the spatial distribution of plasma density and, therefore, improve the sheath edge profile. These results point to possible source designs for engineering the distribution of power dissipation and the electric field of the wafer edge in industrial plasma reactors.