Characterization of the Chemical Kinetics in an O2/HMDSO RF Plasma for Material Processing

Experimental study of the plasma gas phase in low-pressure radiofrequency discharges of oxygen and hexamethyldisiloxane is presented. The plasma phase has been studied by means of optical emission spectroscopy. Mass spectroscopy of the neutral and of the charged species has been performed too, directly sampling the plasma gas phase, by a dedicated spectrometer. We also measured the ion energy distribution. We have studied the influence of the operating conditions on the plasma gas-phase composition which plays a primary role in the formation process of SiO2 films, which are known for their important applicative uses.