Toward Fundamental Understanding: Correlating the Gas-Phase, Surface, and Gas-Surface Interface in Halogenated Plasma Systems

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The focus of this project, funded through the NSF/DOE Partnership in Basic Plasma Science and Engineering, is to improve understanding of the fundamental chemical processes that occur at surfaces during plasma processing using halogenated plasmas. These systems are widely used to etch and deposit high performance materials, and will continue to be employed for manufacturing of next generation integrated circuit (IC) materials. Plasma processing of materials has become indispensable in a wide range of applications where high-performance materials with tailored surface properties are employed. The focus is on elucidating fundamental, molecular-level chemistry in these systems. The primary experimental tool is our unique laser-based Imaging of Radicals Interacting with Surfaces (IRIS) technique, which provides steady-state surface interaction data for plasma species. Two modifications planned for the IRIS apparatus are a hot-filament chemical vapor deposition source to provide an ion-free molecular beam, and a cooled substrate holder to access substrate temperatures 300 K. Gas-phase diagnostics and surface characterization will also be employed to provide a complete picture of the entire plasma system. Collectively, the experiments will produce critically important data on the plasma-surface interface unobtainable through other experimental techniques.The Intellectual Merit of the research lies in the potential for significant advancement in knowledge and basic understanding of halogenated plasma systems. IRIS surface-interaction measurements will be carefully correlated with gas-phase and surface analysis data to provide a virtually complete set of information on the plasma-surface interface. Internal and kinetic energy measurements for plasma species will provide insight into energy partitioning mechanisms unobtainable with other techniques. The intrinsic interdisciplinary nature of this research will afford students a broad exposure to and education in chemistry, engineering, and materials science, beyond the traditional boundaries in chemistry. The Broader Impacts of the research lie in the increased understanding of chemical processes occurring during etching and deposition from halogenated plasmas. These systems are recognized as important scientific and technologically-relevant processes with a wide range of applications where high performance materials are needed such as IC production and coatings technologies. A more complete understanding of the underlying chemistry in these systems could lead to manufacturing improvements with enormous economic impact across many industries. Furthermore, the PI is committed to broadening participation of underrepresented groups; she routinely supervises a research group with 50 percent female or underrepresented minority coworkers. The PI has been integral to development of the institution's materials program and plans additional educational activities with the work.