Plasma instabilities in electronegative inductive discharges

Plasma instabilities have been observed in low-pressure inductive discharges, in the transition between low density capacitive mode and high density inductive mode of the discharge when attaching gases such as SF₆ and Ar/SF ₆ mixtures are used. Oscillations of charged particles, plasma potential and light emitted from the plasma with the frequencies from a few hertz to tens of kilohertz are seen for gas pressures between 1 and 100 mTorr and the discharge power in the range of 75–1200 W. The region of instability increases as the plasma becomes more electronegative and the frequency of plasma oscillations increases as the power, pressure, and gas flow rate increase. The instability frequencies may also depend on the settings of a matching network.; A volume-averaged (global) model of the instability has been developed, for a discharge containing time varying densities of electrons, positive ions, and negative ions, and time invariant excited states and neutral densities. The particle and energy balance equations are integrated to produce the dynamical behavior. As pressure or power is varied to cross a threshold, the instability goes through a series of oscillatory states to large scale relaxation oscillations between higher and lower density states. The model qualitatively agrees with experimental observations, and also shows a significant influence of the matching network. A stability analysis of an electronegative discharge has been performed, using a Hurwitz criterion, for a system of linearized particle and power balance differential equations.; Capacitive coupling plays a crucial role in the instability process. A variable electrostatic (Faraday) shield has been used to control the capacitive coupling from the excitation coil to the plasma. The plasma instability disappears when the shielded area exceeds 65% of the total area of the coil. The global model of instability gives a slightly higher value of 85% for instability suppression with the same discharge conditions (Ar/SF₆ 1:1, 5 mTorr).; A quadrupole mass spectrometer has been used to measure the degree of dissociation and chemical composition of the SF₆ and Ar/SF ₆ plasmas. These measurements allowed improvements in the instability model, by identifying the most important ionic species.