Plasma processing apparatus and method

Abstract

The main purpose of the present invention is to suppress deposition of byproducts on an inner wall of a vacuum chamber during wafer processing using plasma generated by an inductive coupling antenna and an electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna which are connected in series at a connection point. Deposition of byproducts on the inner wall of the vacuum chamber can be suppressed by grounding the connection point of the inductive coupling antenna and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna via a variable-impedance load and varying an impedance of the variable-impedance load, thereby controlling a ratio of plasma produced in the chamber by electrostatic capacitive coupling discharge.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a plasma processing apparatus and method for supplying high-frequency power to antennaes to generate an electric field, causing the electric field to generate a plasma and using the plasma to process specimens.

In a plasma processing apparatus which generates plasma in a vacuum processing chamber by supplying a high-frequency current to a coil-shaped antenna to generate an electric field, causing the electric field to generate a plasma, and using the plasma for processing, if the electric field generated by the coil-shaped antenna is strong, byproducts are hardly deposited on the inner wall of the vacuum chamber by the resulting high-density plasma. On the other hand, if the electric field is weak, the density of the resulting plasma is low, and byproducts are easily deposited on the inner wall of the chamber. Such a deposit is not desirable.

One method of solving this kind of problem has been disclosed in Japanese Non-examined Patent Publication No. 8-316210 (1996). The proposed method comprises the steps of providing a high-frequency antenna which can carry a high frequency current around the outer dielectric wall of a vacuum chamber, providing an electrode which forms a uniform electric field on the inner surface of the dielectric material between this high-frequency antenna and the dielectric member to electrostatically connect the electrode with a plasma, connecting the high-frequency antenna and the electrode in parallel, supplying a small power to the electrode during plasma processing, and supplying a great power to the electrode at a break in the processing to clean the inside of the chamber.

Further, a plasma processing method has been disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,811,022, which comprises the steps of providing a divided Faraday shield between the vacuum chamber and an induction coil to which a high-frequency power is applied, selecting the divided Faraday shield, and controlling the level of a plasma potential change.

The method described in the aforementioned Japanese patent employs a method of individually performing wafer processing and a cleaning process for cleaning the inside of the vacuum chamber. However, this method does not consider the throughput. Further, in this processing method, when a current flowing through an electrostatically capacitance-coupled electrode (or electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna) is made greater in a circuit having the high-frequency antenna and the electrode, which are connected in parallel, to prevent byproducts from being deposited on the inner surface of the vacuum chamber during plasma processing, the high-frequency impedances of the high-frequency antenna (inductive) and the electrode (capacitive) may not be matched. This is because the electrostatically capacitance-coupled electrode, which is provided to produce an electrostatic-coupling discharge in the circuit, works as an electric capacitor, and the high-frequency antenna, which is provided to produce an inductive coupling discharge, works as a coil. Consequently, this circuit forms a parallel resonance (which increases the combined impedance infinitely) and prevents impedance matching. Therefore, plasma processing is not available under conditions which may cause a parallel resonance, which restricts the plasma processing conditions.

Another possible problem of this processing method is that, when a current flowing through an electrostatically capacitance-coupled electrode (or electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna) is made greater to prevent byproducts from being deposited on the inner surface of the vacuum chamber during plasma processing, a great plasma by electrostatic capacitance discharge occurs, which greatly changes the plasma distribution and the uniform wafer processing condition.

In the method described in the aforementioned U.S. patent, the Faraday shield is capacitively coupled with the induction coil. In other words, when the Faraday shield is assumed to be an electrostatically-coupled electrode, the voltage applied to the electrode may be affected by the precision of re-installation of the induction coil and the electrode after the vacuum chamber is opened to the air, since the circuit for supplying a voltage to the electrode uses a floating capacitance. This floating capacitance must be increased to supply a higher voltage to the electrode. For this purpose, it is required to increase the area of the induction coil and bring the induction coil closer to the electrode. This area expansion means provision of a bigger high-voltage section and the shorter distance between the antenna or coil and the electrode may increase the possibility that abnormal discharges will be generated, which reduces the safety and reliability of the equipment. Therefore, it is not preferable to increase the voltage for the electrode so high in a system using a floating capacitance.

Meanwhile, a plasma processing apparatus of the magnetic-field plasma type can control the distribution of plasma by varying the magnetic field which is generated by an electromagnet or the like and is fit for uniform wafer processing with less deposition of byproducts. On the other hand, a plasma processing apparatus of the inductive discharge plasma type using no magnetic field has a limited means to control the plasma distribution. For example, this type of plasma processing apparatus controls the distribution of plasma by changing the shape of the vacuum chamber or adjusting the location of the inductive coupling antenna. Further, any change in a process condition may affect the plasma distribution, and a single plasma processing apparatus can perform processing only under a limited condition.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An object of the present invention is to provide a plasma processing apparatus and method which can easily control the plasma distribution in plasma processing using an inductive coupling antenna.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a plasma processing apparatus and a method thereof which can suppress deposition of byproducts on the inner wall of the vacuum chamber during plasma processing of a specimen using an inductive coupling antenna.

The aforesaid first problem can be accomplished by using an apparatus comprising an inductive coupling antenna for a wall enclosing a plasma generating area, an electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna at least for a surface which is not equipped with said inductive coupling antenna, which is electrically connected in series with the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna, and a means for controlling the ratio of high-frequency currents flowing through said electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna and said inductive coupling antenna by controlling the ratio of high-frequency currents flowing through the inductive coupling antenna and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna, which are electrically connected in series, generating a plasma in the vacuum chamber with the electric field using said inductive coupling antenna and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna, and using said plasma to process a specimen.

The aforesaid second problem can be accomplished by using an apparatus comprising an inductive coupling antenna for a wall enclosing a plasma generating area, an electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna for a surface which is not equipped with said inductive coupling antenna, which is electrically connected in series with the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna, and by generating an electric field using the inductive coupling antenna and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna, which are electrically connected in series, adding an electric field produced by the inductive coupling antenna to an area which has a very weak electric field, generating a plasma in the vacuum chamber by these electric fields, and using said plasma to process a specimen.

The plasma processing apparatus of the present invention can control the ratio of high-frequency currents flowing through inductive coupling and electrostatic capacitive coupling antennaes which are electrically connected in series to adjust the magnitudes of electric fields produced by said antennaes. The present invention has an effect of enabling production of an optimum plasma in the vacuum chamber and suppressing deposition of byproducts on the inner wall of the vacuum chamber during plasma processing of wafers by inductive coupling antennaes.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a plasma processing apparatus which represents a first preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the discharging circuit of the plasma processing apparatus of FIG. 1 .

FIG. 3 is an equivalent circuit diagram of the discharging circuit of FIG. 2 .

FIG. 4 is a diagram of another embodiment of the equivalent circuit of FIG. 3 .

FIG. 5 is a sectional view of a plasma processing apparatus which represents a second preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the discharging circuit of the plasma processing apparatus of FIG. 5 .

FIG. 7 is an equivalent circuit diagram of the discharging circuit of FIG. 6 .

FIG. 8 is a diagram of another embodiment of the equivalent circuit of FIG. 6 .

FIG. 9 is a sectional view of a plasma processing apparatus which represents a third preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the discharging circuit of the plasma processing apparatus of FIG. 9 .

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of the discharging circuit for an experimental plasma processing apparatus using the concept of the third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a graph which shows the result of an experiment using the apparatus of FIG. 11 .

FIG. 13 is a graph which shows the result of an experiment using the apparatus of FIG. 11 .

FIG. 14 is a graph which shows the result of an experiment using the apparatus of FIG. 11 .

FIG. 15 is a perspective view of a plasma processing apparatus which represents a fourth preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 16 is an equivalent circuit diagram of the discharging circuit of FIG. 15 .

FIG. 17 is a perspective view of a plasma processing apparatus which represents a fifth preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 18 is an equivalent circuit diagram of the discharging circuit of FIG. 17 .

FIG. 19 is a sectional view of a plasma processing apparatus which represents a sixth preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 20 is a sectional view of a plasma processing apparatus which represents another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 21 is a sectional view of a plasma processing apparatus which represents another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 22 is a sectional view of a plasma processing apparatus which represents another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 23 is a sectional view of a plasma processing apparatus which represents another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 24 is a flow diagram which shows an example of a semiconductor processing flow in accordance with the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

A first embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIG. 1 through FIG. 3 .

FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a plasma processing apparatus which represents the first preferred embodiment of the present invention. The vacuum chamber 2 consists of a discharging section 2 a made of an insulating material (or non-conductive material such as silica or ceramic) forming a plasma generating space in the section and a processing section 2 b equipped with an electrode 5 on which a specimen to be processed, such as a wafer 13 , is placed. The processing section 2 b is grounded and the electrode 5 is insulated from the processing section 2 b by a proper insulating material. A coil-like inductive coupling antenna 1 is wound around the discharging section 2 a . Above the discharging section 2 a there is placed a disk-shaped electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna 8 which couples with plasma 6 electrostatically. The inductive coupling antenna 1 and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna 8 are connected in series with a primary high-frequency power source 10 via an impedance matching box 3 . A load 17 , having a variable impedance, is grounded in parallel with the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna 8 . A processing gas is supplied from a gas supplying unit 4 into the vacuum chamber 2 . The atmosphere in the vacuum chamber 2 is evacuated to provide a predetermined gas pressure by a vacuum unit 7 . A secondary high-frequency power source 12 is connected to the electrode 5 .

In this plasma processing apparatus, a process gas supplied from the gas supplying unit 4 into the vacuum chamber is highly ionized (into plasma) by electric fields generated by the inductive coupling antenna 1 and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna 8 . The ionized (or plasma) gas is exhausted later by the vacuum unit 7 . A high-frequency power in a HF band (e.g. 13.56 MHz, 27.12 MHz, and 40.68 MHz) or in a higher frequency band, such as a VHF band, is supplied to the inductive coupling antenna 1 and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna 8 to produce electric fields for plasma. To suppress an unwanted power reflection, the impedance matching box 3 is provided to match the impedances of the antennaes with the output impedance of the primary high-frequency power source 10 . For this purpose, the impedance matching box 3 uses two general inverted-L-type variable capacitors having variable electrostatic capacitances. The wafer 13 to be processed is placed on the electrode 5 . The secondary high-frequency power source 12 supplies a biasing voltage to the electrode 5 to attract ions in plasma 6 towards the wafer 13 .

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the plasma processing apparatus of FIG. 1 to show the discharging circuit. In this discharging circuit, the high-frequency current from the primary high-frequency power source 10 flows through the matching box 3 , the inductive coupling antenna 1 , and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna 8 in that order. The current coming from the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna flows to the ground via the plasma. The load 17 having a variable impedance is grounded in parallel with the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna 8 . The load 17 having a series connection of a variable capacitor and a fixed inductor can reduce the impedance to 0 by resonating in series.

FIG. 3 shows a circuit equivalent to the discharging circuit of FIG. 2 . This circuit has the inductive coupling antenna 1 as load 9 and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna 8 as load 11 .

When the impedance of the load 17 is 0, the voltage across the load 11 is 0 and, consequently, a current flowing through the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna 8 becomes 0, which suppresses the electrostatic capacitive coupling discharge. In other words, plasma is generated only by the inductive coupling discharge. As the impedance of the load 17 increases, the current flowing through the load 11 increases. Consequently, the ratio of plasma generated by the electrostatic capacitive coupling discharge becomes greater.

In this case, the impedance of the load 11 must be varied in the matching range of the impedance matching box. The following conditions must be satisfied to match impedances.

One of the matching conditions will be explained by way of example. Let's assume that the loads 9 , 11 , and 17 , respectively, have reactances YL, YC, and YV (in that order). The reactance YL is greater than 0 as it is inductive and the reactance YC is less than 0 as it is capacitive. However, since the loads 11 and 17 are connected in parallel, if the reactance YC is equal to the negative value of the reactance YV, while the reactance YV is positive, this circuit causes a parallel resonance, which drastically increases the combined impedance and prevents impedance matching. As a result, plasma cannot be produced. To enable impedance matching, it is necessary to vary the load 11 while the reactance YV is negative.

Another matching condition will be explained as another example. Let's assume that the reactance of the combined impedance of the loads 11 and 17 , which are connected in series, is YG. The reactance YG is negative (less than 0) when both reactances YV and YC are negative. However, when the reactance YG is greater than YL, the reactance of the load of the whole circuit to be matched becomes negative. As a result, the inverted-L-type matching box may be disabled. In this case, impedance matching is enabled when an inductor is connected in series with the load 9 . Although the use of a n-type matching box is also effective, the matching box has a complicated structure.

As explained above, it is possible to change the ratio of a high-frequency current which flows through the inductive coupling antenna 1 and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna 8 by changing the impedance of the load 17 . This can change the magnitude of an electric field produced by the respective antennaes. In other words, it is possible to change the plasma density produced by respective electric fields according to the location of each antenna and thus control the distribution of plasma in the discharging section 2 a.

Namely, the inductive coupling antenna 1 produces stronger plasma in the outer areas 15 a and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna 8 produces a stronger plasma in the center area 15 b , as seen in FIG. 1 . Therefore, the density of the plasma in the center can be controlled by regulating the current flowing through the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna 8 . This enables adequate control of the plasma distribution and uniform wafer processing.

Further, the electron temperature of the plasma produced by electrostatic capacitive coupling discharge is apt to be higher than that of plasma produced by the inductive coupling discharge. Accordingly, by regulating the ratio of the current flowing through the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna 8 , it is possible to control the ratio of electrostatic capacitive coupling discharge relative to the inductive coupling discharge. Namely, it is possible to control the electron temperature of the plasma and the ionization of the process gas and select optimum processing conditions (e.g. fit for metal etching, gate etching, insulator etching, magnetic head etching, and so on).

The inductive coupling antenna 1 produces a stronger electric field in the area 15 a near the inductive coupling antenna. Therefore, when the inductive coupling antenna 1 produces a plasma, more byproducts are deposited on the ceiling of the discharging section 2 a than on the side walls of the discharging section 2 a in the vacuum chamber 2 . To suppress deposition of byproducts, a disk-like electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna 8 , which electrostatically couples with the plasma, is provided over the ceiling of the discharging section to 2 a produce a strong electric field in the area 15 b near the ceiling. This suppresses or prevents deposition of byproducts on the ceiling of the discharging section 2 a.

As described above, in accordance with the first embodiment of the present invention, a strong electric field produced by the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna can be formed in an area where the electric field produced by the inductive coupling antenna is weak by providing an inductive coupling antenna around the discharging section and an electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna over a surface of the discharging section where the inductive coupling antenna is not located, electrically connecting the inductive coupling antenna and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna in series, and supplying high-frequency power to the antennaes. This embodiment has an effect of suppressing the deposition of byproducts on the inner wall of the vacuum chamber even while wafer processing by plasma is in progress.

Further, by regulating the ratio of currents flowing through the inductive coupling antenna and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna, the density of the plasma in the central processing area can be controlled, which enables optimum control of the plasma distribution and uniform wafer processing.

Similarly, the ratio of the electrostatic capacitive coupling discharge to the inductive coupling discharge can be controlled by regulating the ratio of currents flowing through the inductive coupling antenna and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna, for example, by controlling the current which flows through the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna. This enables control of the electron temperature of the plasma and the ionization of the process gas.

Although the first embodiment of the present invention employs a method of controlling the current which flows through the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna using a load 17 as one of the methods of regulating the ratio of currents flowing through the inductive coupling antenna and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna, it is also effective to connect the load 17 in parallel with the inductive coupling antenna 1 . FIG. 4 shows the equivalent circuit thereof. When the impedance of the load 17 is 0, the high-frequency current flowing through the load 9 of the inductive coupling antenna 1 becomes 0. This current becomes greater as the impedance of the load 17 becomes greater. As explained above, this circuit can control the current which passes through the inductive coupling antenna 1 .

A second embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to FIG. 5 through FIG. 8 . FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the discharging circuit. Symbols in FIG. 5 and FIG. 6 identify the same members as those in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 . Their explanation is omitted here. FIG. 5 and FIG. 6 are different from FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 in that this embodiment has two upper and lower inductive coupling antennas 1 a and 1 b which are connected in parallel and that a variable capacitor 16 is connected in series with the inductive coupling antenna 1 a.

The plasma processing apparatus of this embodiment can control the plasma distribution by regulating the magnitudes of high-frequency currents which pass through the upper and lower inductive coupling antennaes. How the plasma distribution is controlled will be explained.

For this explanation, it is assumed that the upper and lower inductive coupling antennas 1 a and 1 b produce strong electric fields respectively in areas 25 a and 25 b , and that the inductive coupling antenna 8 produces a strong electric field in the area 25 c . Plasma is generated in these strong electric fields. The discharging section of the vacuum chamber 2 is tapered towards the top. In this embodiment, the area 25 a has a smaller diameter than the area 25 b . Consequently, plasma produced by the inductive coupling antenna 1 a is the strongest in the center and plasma produced by the inductive coupling antenna 1 b is the strongest in the outer periphery. Therefore, the distribution of plasma can be controlled by regulating the ratio of currents flowing through the inductive coupling antennas 1 a and 1 b.

A method of regulating the ratio of currents flowing through the inductive coupling antennas 1 a and 1 b will be explained with reference to FIG. 7 , which shows the equivalent circuit of the discharging circuit of FIG. 6 . This circuit represents the inductive coupling antenna 1 a as load 9 a and the inductive coupling antenna 1 b as load 9 b . Let's assume that the combined impedance of the load 9 a and the variable capacitor 16 is Za and the impedance of the load 9 b is Zb. The magnitudes of high-frequency current flowing through the loads 9 a and 9 b are respectively proportional to 1/Za and 1/Zb. Although the inductive coupling antenna 1 a has a positive reactance, the current can be controlled by changing the impedance Za from a positive value to 0 using the variable capacitor 16 having a negative reactance.

If the reactance Za becomes negative, impedance matching may be disabled as the reactance Zb is positive. To enable impedance matching, it is recommended to keep the reactance Za positive. Therefore, the circuit of FIG. 7 is able to increase the current flowing through the load 9 a.

In wafer processing by the aforesaid processing method and apparatus, when the high-frequency current for the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna 8 is made greater and the ratio of currents for the inductive coupling antennaes 1 a and 1 b is made constant, plasma in the area 25 c becomes greater and the current flowing through the inductive coupling antennaes 1 a and 1 b go lower relatively. As a result, less plasma is generated in areas 25 a and 25 b . Consequently, the plasma becomes highest in density in the center and the wafer processing speed is also highest in the center.

The plasma distribution and wafer processing speed can be made uniform by reducing the current for the inductive coupling antenna 1 a , increasing the current for inductive coupling antenna 1 b , and thus producing more plasma in the bigger area 25 b and less plasma in the smaller area 25 a.

As aforesaid, in addition to the effect described in the first embodiment, the second embodiment also has an effect of finely controlling the distribution of plasma in the discharging section because the plasma processing apparatus of the second embodiment has two inductive coupling antennas of different sizes to which variable quantities of high-frequency power are supplied to produce inductive coupling discharges of different magnitudes.

Further, as this embodiment can respectively control high-frequency currents which flow through two inductive coupling antennaes 1 a and 1 b and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna 8 , this embodiment can cause the antennaes to produce strong electric fields in areas 25 a , 25 b , and 25 c to produce the optimum plasma status, which can finely suppress deposition of byproducts on the walls of the vacuum chamber while plasma processing is in progress.

To reduce the current for the load 9 a in the second embodiment, the variable capacitor 16 in the circuit of FIG. 7 must be connected in series with the load 9 b (instead of connecting it in series with the load 9 a ).

As another circuit to reduce the current flowing through the load 9 a , an inductor 19 can be connected in series with the variable capacitor 16 , as shown in the equivalent circuit of FIG. 8 . In this circuit, the reactances of loads 9 a and 9 b are positive, while the reactance of the combined impedance of the variable capacitor 16 and the inductor 19 are positive. With this, impedance matching can be carried out without causing any parallel resonance.

A third embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIG. 9 and FIG. 10 . FIG. 9 shows a sectional view of the plasma processing apparatus in accordance with the present invention and FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the discharging circuit. Symbols in FIG. 9 and FIG. 10 denote the same members as those in FIG. 5 and FIG. 6 . Their explanation is omitted here. FIG. 9 and FIG. 10 are different from FIG. 5 and FIG. 6 in that the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna 8 a of this embodiment covers the whole discharging section 2 a of the vacuum chamber 2 .

For this explanation, it is assumed that the upper and lower inductive coupling antennas 1 a and 1 b produce strong electric fields respectively in areas 25 a and 25 b and that the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna 8 a produces a strong electric field in the area 25 d . Plasma is generated in these strong electric fields. Since the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna 8 a is provided to cover the whole discharging section 2 a of the vacuum chamber 2 , the area 25 d comprises an area adjoining the whole inner wall of the discharging section 2 a of the vacuum chamber 2 . The electrostatic capacitive coupling discharge in this area can suppress the deposition of byproducts on the whole inner wall of the discharging section 2 a or clean this area. The portion of the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna 8 a provided between the inductive coupling antennas 1 a and 1 b prevents an electrostatic capacitive coupling electric field produced by the inductive coupling antennas and plasma from propagating into the discharging section 2 a and thus prevents the inner walls of the discharging section 2 a from being eroded away. Namely, it works as a Faraday shield.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the discharging circuit of the plasma processing apparatus of FIG. 9 . The electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna 8 a has slits 14 which intersect the inductive coupling antennas 1 a and 1 b at right angles so that the electric fields produced by the inductive coupling antennas 1 a and 1 b may pass into the discharging section 2 a . The angle of intersection need not be a right angle so long as the slits do not block the electric fields produced by the inductive coupling antennas 1 a and 1 b.

As aforesaid, in addition to the effects described in the first and second embodiments, the third embodiment also has an effect of suppressing or preventing the deposition of byproducts on the whole inner wall of the discharging section 2 a because the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna 8 a is provided to cover the whole discharging section 2 a.

The result of an experiment which uses the concept of the third embodiment of the present invention to produce plasma will be explained with reference to FIG. 11 , which shows a discharging circuit used for the experiment. This discharging circuit contains a 1.2 μH inductor in the matching box for easier impedance matching. This circuit also has a 200 pF capacitor connected to the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna 8 a to suppress a current flowing through the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna. The inductive coupling antenna 1 a has two turns and the inductive coupling antenna 1 b has one turn. Currents for the two inductive coupling antennas 1 a and 1 b and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna 8 a are each controlled by a load comprising a variable capacitor ( 16 a and 16 b ) and a fixed inductor.

FIG. 12 shows a change of the ratio of a current flowing through the inductive coupling antenna 1 a to a current flowing through the inductive coupling antenna 1 b as the electrostatic capacitance of the variable capacitor 16 a changes. As seen from this drawing, it is apparent that the ratio of currents flowing through the antennas 1 a and 1 b can be controlled by the variable capacitor 16 a . In this circuit, a series connection of the variable capacitor 16 a and a 0.9 μH inductor is connected to the end of the antenna 1 b . When the variable capacitor 16 a is controlled to make the combined impedance of the variable capacitor 16 a , the 0.9 μH inductor, and the antenna 1 b have a value of 0, the high-frequency current flows through the antenna 1 b only and the current ratio is 0. If the impedance is greater than 0, the currents flowing through the antennas 1 a and 1 b have an identical phase and the current ratio is positive. On the other hand, if the impedance is smaller than 0, the currents flowing through the antennas 1 a and 1 b have different phases and the current ratio is negative.

FIG. 13 shows the uniformity in the density of plasma ion saturated current on the electrode 5 when the current ratio is varied. A positive uniformity means that the plasma density is high in the center and a negative uniformity means that the plasma density is high in the periphery. By controlling the current ratio, the plasma ion saturated current density can be controlled to be even in the whole area (from center to periphery). The experimental equipment shown in FIG. 11 can control the uniformity of the plasma ion saturated current density by 50%.

FIG. 14 shows the amplitude (peak-to-peak) of a voltage which is generated in the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna 8 a when the electrostatic capacitance of the variable capacitor 16 b is varied. As can be seen, the use of a discharging circuit comprising a series connection of an inductive antenna and an electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna can control the voltage on the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna 8 a in a wider range than the conventional circuit using the floating capacitance (0 to a maximum of about 1000 V).

Although the third embodiment of the present invention uses two inductive coupling antennas, the plasma processing apparatus can have three or more inductive coupling antennas to control the plasma distribution with a higher precision.

A fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIG. 15 and FIG. 16 . FIG. 15 is a perspective view of the plasma processing apparatus. Symbols in FIG. 15 denote the same members as those in FIG. 10 . Their explanation is omitted here. FIG. 10 and FIG. 15 are different from each other in that the inductive coupling antennas 1 a and 1 b are connected differently in the discharging circuit. Namely, in this discharging circuit, the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna 8 a is connected in series with a series connection of the inductive coupling antennas 1 a and 1 b . To control the current which flows through the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna 8 a , a variable-impedance load 17 a is connected in parallel with the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna 8 a . Further, to control the currents which flow through the inductive coupling antennas 1 a and 1 b , loads 17 b and 17 c are connected in series.

FIG. 16 shows an equivalent circuit of the discharging circuit of the plasma processing apparatus of FIG. 15 . This circuit represents the inductive coupling antennas 1 a and 1 b as load 9 a and load 9 b , respectively, and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna 8 a as load 11 . In this embodiment, the magnitude of the inductive coupling discharge is controlled by the magnitude of the load 17 a . As the impedance of the load 17 a increases, the current flowing through the load 11 increases and, consequently, the plasma produced by electrostatic capacitive coupling discharge becomes greater. Similarly, as the impedance of the load 17 b or 17 c increases, the inductive coupling discharge produced by the inductive coupling antenna 1 a or 1 b becomes greater. Therefore, the same effects as those of the first through third embodiments can be obtained by controlling the impedances of loads 17 a , 17 b , and 17 c.

Although the fourth embodiment of the present invention has loads 17 a , 17 b , and 17 c , which are respectively connected in parallel with the inductive coupling antennas 1 a and 1 b and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna 8 a , one of the loads 17 a , 17 b , and 17 c can be omitted for the same control effect.

For impedance matching, it is preferable that the reactance of the load 17 a should be negative to avoid parallel resonance, because the reactance of the impedance of the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna 8 a is negative. Similarly, it is preferable that the reactances of loads 17 b and 17 c should be positive to avoid parallel resonance, because the reactances of the impedances of the inductive coupling antennas 1 a and 1 b are positive.

If the reactance of the load of the discharging circuit to be impedance-matched is negative and the inverted-L-type matching box 3 is disabled, an inductor should be inserted in series between the matching box 3 and the discharging circuit to enable impedance matching.

A fifth embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIG. 17 and FIG. 18 . FIG. 17 is a perspective view of the plasma processing apparatus of the present invention. Symbols in FIG. 17 denote the same members as those in FIG. 15 . Their explanation is omitted here. FIG. 17 and FIG. 15 are different from each other in that the inductive coupling antennas are connected differently in the discharging circuit. Namely, in this discharging circuit, the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna 8 a is connected in series with a series connection of the inductive coupling antennas 1 a and 1 b . To control the current which flows through the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna 8 a , a variable-impedance load 17 a is connected in parallel with the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna 8 a . Further, a circuit is provided to ground the connection point of the inductive coupling antennas 1 a and 1 b via a variable-impedance load 17 b.

FIG. 18 shows a circuit equivalent to the discharging circuit of FIG. 17 . This circuit represents the inductive coupling antenna 1 a as load 9 a , the inductive coupling antenna 1 b as load 9 b , and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna 8 a as load 11 . In this embodiment, the magnitude of the inductive coupling discharge is controlled by the magnitude of the load 17 a . As the impedance of the load 17 a increases, the current flowing through the load 11 increases. Consequently, the ratio of plasma generated by the electrostatic capacitive coupling discharge becomes greater.

Further, the load 17 b is connected in parallel with a series connection of loads 9 b and 11 . Therefore, the inductive coupling discharge produce by the inductive coupling antenna 1 b and the electrostatic capacitive coupling discharge produced by the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna 8 a can be controlled by regulating the impedance of the load 17 b.

For impedance matching, it is preferable that the reactance of the load 17 a should be negative to avoid parallel resonance because the reactance of the impedance of the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna 8 a is negative. Similarly, to prevent a parallel resonance with the circuit connected in parallel with the load 17 b , it is preferable to make the reactance of the load 17 b positive when the combined reactance of the loads 9 b , 11 , and 17 a is positive or to make the reactance of the load 17 b negative when the combined reactance is negative. If the reactance of the load of the whole discharging circuit to be impedance-matched is negative and the inverted-L-type matching box 3 is disabled, an inductor should be inserted in series with the load 9 a to enable impedance matching.

Therefore, the same effects as those of the first through third embodiments can be obtained.

A sixth embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIG. 19 . FIG. 19 is a sectional view of the plasma processing apparatus of the present invention. The basic concept of this embodiment is the same as that of the first through third embodiments, but the discharging section 20 a of the vacuum chamber 20 and the antennas ( 21 and 28 ) have different shapes. In this embodiment, the discharging section 20 a is cylindrical and the cylindrical electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna 28 wholly covers the cylindrical discharging section 20 a . Two inductive coupling antenna coils 21 a and 21 b are provided on the ceiling of the discharging section 20 a.

In this embodiment, the two inductive coupling antenna coils 21 a and 21 b produce strong electric fields in areas 25 e and 25 f and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna 28 produces a strong electric field in area 25 g . These strong electric fields produce plasma. Since the cylindrical electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna 28 covers the whole cylindrical discharging section 20 a , the electric field in area 25 g covers the inner wall of the discharging section 20 a . Therefore, the electrostatic capacitive coupling discharge can prevent the deposition of byproducts on the inner wall of the discharging section 20 a or clean deposits from the inner wall.

Further, the inductive coupling antenna 21 a on the ceiling of the discharging section 20 a is smaller in diameter than the inductive coupling antenna 21 b . Consequently, the plasma produced by the inductive coupling antenna 21 a is strongest in the center and the plasma produced by the inductive coupling antenna 21 b is strongest in the circumferential area. This embodiment can produce the same effect as that of the other embodiments by using any of their discharging circuits.

As aforesaid, the plasma processing apparatus in accordance with the present invention controls the ratio of high-frequency currents which flow in the inductive coupling antenna(s) and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna. The plasma processing apparatus can also control the ratio of electrostatic capacitive coupling discharge and inductive coupling discharge by changing the impedances of the load 17 and the variable capacitor 16 in the discharging circuit. This can suppress deposition of byproducts on the inner wall of the vacuum chamber during plasma processing. This plasma processing apparatus can also control the distribution of plasma, which enables uniform and various plasma processing, such as etching by plasma.

The present invention is not limited to the aforesaid first through sixth embodiments. The discharging circuit of the plasma processing apparatus can be built up with a combination of these embodiments. The vacuum chamber need not be divided into two sections (a discharging section and a processing section) and the shape of the discharging section is not limited to those examples provided in the embodiments.

For example, the vacuum chamber can be shaped as shown in FIG. 20 through FIG. 23 . Further, the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna can be located outside the inductive coupling antenna as shown in FIG. 22 , attached to the outer surface of the vacuum chamber, or embedded in the vacuum chamber.

The reference numerals 20 c , 20 d , and 20 e denote vacuum chambers and at least their parts opposite to the antennas are made of non-conductive material. Reference numeral 21 denotes an inductive coupling antenna. Reference numerals 28 a , 28 b , 28 c , and 28 d denote electrostatic capacitive coupling antennas.

The present invention is applicable to apparatuses for and methods of using plasma (e.g. etching, CVD, sputtering, etc.) and can process various materials such as semiconductor wafers, liquid crystal display substrates, magnetic heads, etc., to the extent that they can be processed by plasma.

Further, the present invention can be applied to semiconductor manufacturing processes of the type illustrated in FIG. 24 , which shows one semiconductor processing example using the present invention. This process uses one of the plasma processing apparatuses of the aforesaid embodiments.

In the semiconductor processes, a process recipe is determined to process wafers uniformly (for etching or layer formation) by selecting and controlling the kinds of process (etching) gases, gas pressures in the vacuum chamber, gas flow rates, high-frequency power to be applied to the antennas, etc. To etch aluminum substrates, for example, a chlorine or boron trichloride gas is used. To etch silica substrates, C 4 F 8 gas is used as a process gas.

To etch the aforesaid materials by a conventional plasma processing method, different kinds of apparatuses are required because the distribution of plasma varies if the kind of gas or the pressure changes.

However, the plasma processing apparatus in accordance with the present invention can process two kinds of wafers with a fixed uniform plasma distribution in each process just by adding processes 31 a , 31 b , and 31 c for controlling high-frequency currents which flow through the inductive coupling antennas to control the plasma distribution and by placing process 30 a after process 31 a , process 30 b after process 31 b , and process 30 c after process 31 c.

This eliminates the steps required to transfer wafers between one plasma processing apparatus and another, and increases the throughput. Further, as the plasma processing apparatus in accordance with the present invention can perform a plurality of processes, no extra device is required.

Claims

1. A plasma processing apparatus comprising:at least two surfaces which enclose a plasma generating area; an inductive coupling antenna for one of the two surfaces; an electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna for at least two surfaces including the one surface; and a high-frequency power source which supplies high-frequency power to the inductive coupling antenna and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna; wherein the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna is electrically connected in series with the inductive coupling antenna; and wherein the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna for the one surface affected by the inductive coupling antenna is placed outside the inductive coupling antenna.

2. A plasma processing apparatus comprising:a vacuum chamber, a part or all of which forms a plasma generating space and is made of non-conductive material; a gas supplying unit which supplies a process gas into the vacuum chamber; an exhaust unit which evacuates the vacuum chamber; a coil-shaped inductive coupling antenna and a plate-shaped electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna which are electrically connected in series disposed over the part or all of the vacuum chamber made of non-conductive material to generate an electric field in the plasma generating area; a first high-frequency power source which supplies a high-frequency electric field to the inductive coupling antenna and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna which are connected in series; an impedance matching unit which matches impedances of the inductive coupling antenna and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna with an output impedance of the first high-frequency power source; an electrode on which a specimen to be processed is placed in the vacuum chamber; and a second high-frequency power source which supplies a high-frequency electric field to the electrode.

3. A plasma processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein a load circuit having a small actual resistance and a variable reactance is connected in parallel with the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna to control a high-frequency current flowing through the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna.

4. A plasma processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the load circuit consists of a variable capacitor and a fixed inductor which are connected in series.

5. A plasma processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the inductive coupling antenna includes two or more inductive coupling antenna circuits; andwherein the plasma processing apparatus further comprises a current controlling circuit which controls a magnitude of a high-frequency current flowing through each of the inductive coupling antenna circuits.

6. A plasma processing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the inductive coupling antenna circuits are connected in parallel; andwherein the current controlling circuit includes a load circuit having a small actual resistance and a variable reactance which is connected in series with at least one of the inductive coupling antenna circuits.

7. A plasma processing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the inductive coupling circuits are connected in parallel; andwherein the current controlling circuit includes a load circuit having a small actual resistance and a variable reactance which is connected in parallel with at least one of the inductive coupling antenna circuits.

8. A plasma processing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the inductive coupling antenna circuits are connected in series at a connection point; andwherein the current controlling circuit includes a load circuit having a small actual resistance and a variable reactance which is connected between the connection point and ground.

9. A plasma processing apparatus comprising:an inductive coupling antenna for a surface enclosing a plasma forming area; and an electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna for a surface which is not equipped with the inductive coupling antenna; wherein the inductive coupling antenna and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna are electrically connected in series; and wherein the plasma processing apparatus further comprises current controlling means for controlling a ratio of a high-frequency current which flows through the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna and the inductive coupling antenna.

10. A plasma processing apparatus according to claim claim 9, wherein the current controlling means controls a magnitude of a high-frequency current which flows through at least one of the inductive coupling antenna and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna.

11. A plasma processing apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the inductive coupling antenna includes at least two inductive coupling antenna circuits; andwherein the plasma processing apparatus further comprises a current controlling circuit which controls a magnitude of a high-frequency current flowing through each of the inductive coupling antenna circuits.

12. A plasma processing apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the at least two inductive coupling antenna circuits are connected in parallel; andwherein the current controlling circuit includes a load circuit connected in series with one of the at least two inductive coupling antenna circuits, the load circuit having a small actual resistance and a variable reactance.

13. A plasma processing apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the at least two inductive coupling antenna circuits are connected in parallel; andwherein the current controlling circuit includes a load circuit connected in parallel with one of the at least two inductive coupling antenna circuits, the load circuit having a small actual resistance and a variable reactance.

14. A plasma processing apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the at least two inductive coupling antenna circuits are connected in series at a connection point; andwherein the current controlling circuit includes a load circuit connected between the connection point and ground, the load circuit having a small actual resistance and a variable reactance.

15. A plasma processing apparatus comprising:an inductive coupling antenna for a surface enclosing a plasma forming area; and an electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna for a surface which is not equipped with the inductive coupling antenna; wherein the inductive coupling antenna and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna are electrically connected in series; and wherein the plasma processing apparatus further comprises a circuit for controlling a ratio of a high-frequency current which flows through the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna.

16. A plasma processing apparatus according to claim 15, wherein the circuit is a load circuit having a variable reactance which is connected in parallel with the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna.

17. A plasma processing apparatus comprising:an inductive coupling antenna for a surface enclosing a plasma forming area; and an electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna for a surface which is not equipped with the inductive coupling antenna; wherein the inductive coupling antenna and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna are electrically connected in series; and wherein the plasma processing apparatus further comprises a circuit for controlling a high-frequency current which flows through the inductive coupling antenna.

18. A plasma processing apparatus according to claim 17, wherein the circuit is a load circuit having a variable reactance which is connected in parallel with the inductive coupling antenna.

19. A plasma processing method comprising the steps of:controlling a ratio of a high-frequency current flowing through an inductive coupling antenna and an electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna which are electrically connected in series; generating plasma in a vacuum chamber with an electric field produced by the inductive coupling antenna and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna; and using the plasma to process a specimen.

20. A plasma processing method comprising the steps of:controlling a ratio of a high-frequency current flowing through an electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna so as to control a density of plasma generated in a center of a vacuum chamber; and processing a speciment in the vacuum chamber with plasma produced by an inductive coupling antenna wound around an outer surface of the vacuum chamber with the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna being placed inside of loops of the inductive coupling antenna and being electrically connected in series with the inductive coupling antenna.

21. A plasma processing method comprising the steps of:connecting one end of a variable-impedance load to a connection point of an inductive coupling antenna and an electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna which are electrically connected in series, and connecting another end of the variable-impedance load to groud; and controlling an impedance of the variable-impedance load to change a ratio of plasma generated in a vacuum chamber by electrostatic capacitive coupling discharge.

22. A plasma processing method comprising the steps of:controlling a ratio of a high-frequency current flowing through an inductive coupling antenna so as to control a density of plasma generated in an outer periphery of a vacuum chamber; and processing a specimen in the vacuum chamber with plasma produced by the inductive coupling antenna which is wound around an outer surface of the vacuum chamber with an electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna being placed inside of loops of the inductive coupling antenna and being electrically connected in series with the inductive coupling antenna.

23. A plasma processing method comprising the steps of:controlling a ratio of a high-frequency current flowing through an electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna and an inductive coupling antenna so as to control a density of plasma generated in a center of a vacuum chamber and in an outer periphery of the vacuum chamber; and processing a specimen in the vacuum chamber with plasma produced by the inductive coupling antenna which is wound around an outer surface of the vacuum chamber with the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna being placed inside of loops of the inductive coupling antenna and being electrically connected in series with the inductive coupling antenna.

24. A plasma processing method comprising the steps of:electrically connecting a coil-shaped inductive coupling antenna and a plate-shaped electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna in series to generate an electric field in a plasma generating area in a vacuum chamber; supplying high-frequency power to the inductive coupling antenna and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna after matching impedances of the inductive coupling antenna and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna with an output impedance of a high-frequency power source; generating plasma in the plasma generating area in the vacuum chamber; applying a bias voltage to attract plasma ions to a specimen placed in the vacuum chamber; and processing the specimen with plasma.

25. A plasma processing method according to claim 24, further comprising the steps of:constructing the inductive coupling antenna with at least two inductive coupling antenna circuits; and changing a ratio of respective high-frequency currents which flow through the inductive coupling antenna circuits without changing a plasma distribution.

26. A plasma processing method according to claim 24, wherein continous plasma processing according to different process recipes is performed by repeating the steps of:controlling respective high-frequency currents which flow through the inductive coupling antenna circuits; and executing a process according to one of the process recipes using the currents set in the current controlling step.

27. A plasma processing method comprising the steps of:generating respective electric fields in a chamber with an inductive coupling antenna and an electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna which are electrically connected in series such that the electric field generated in an area in the chamber in which the electric field generated by the inductive coupling antenna is weak; causing electric fields generated by the inductive coupling antenna and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna to generate plasma in the chamber; and using the plasma to process a specimen in the chamber.

28. A plasma processing method using an electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna and an inductive coupling antenna which are electrically connected in series for plasma processing;wherein a strong electric field generated by the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna is generated in an area having a weak electric field to prevent byproducts from being deposited there.

29. A plasma cleaning method comprising the steps of:controlling a ratio of a high-frequency current which flows through an inductive coupling antenna and an electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna which are electrically connected in series; causing respective electric fields generated by the inductive coupling antenna and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna to generate plasma in a chamber; and using the plasma to clean an inside of the chamber.

30. A plasma processing apparatus comprising:a vacuum chamber including a discharging section, the discharging section being made of an insulating material, a plasma being generated in the discharging section; an inductive coupling antenna disposed outside the discharging section opposite one surface of the discharging section; an electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna disposed outside the discharging section and covering an entirety of the discharging section; and a high-frequency power source which supplies high-frequency power to the inductive coupling antenna and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna; wherein a portion of the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna which covers the one surface of the discharging section is disposed between the one surface of the discharging section and the inductive coupling antenna and has at least one opening therein through which an electric field from the inductive coupling antenna passes; and wherein the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna and the inductive coupling antenna are electrically connected in series with the high-frequency power source.

31. A plasma processing apparatus comprising:a vacuum chamber including a discharging section, the discharging section being made of an insulating material, a plasma being generated in the discharging section; an inductive coupling antenna disposed outside the discharging section opposite one surface of the discharging section; an electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna disposed outside the discharging section and covering an entirety of the discharging section; and a high-frequency power source which supplies high-frequency power to the inductive coupling antenna and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna; wherein the inductive coupling antenna is disposed between the one surface of the discharging section and a portion of the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna which covers the one surface of the discharging section; and wherein the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna and the inductive coupling antenna are electrically connected in series with the high-frequency power source.

32. A plasma processing apparatus comprising:a vacuum chamber, at least a portion of the vacuum chamber forming a plasma generating space and being made of a non-conductive material; a gas supplying unit which supplies a process gas into the vacuum chamber; an exhaust unit which evacuates the vacuum chamber; a coil-shaped inductive coupling antenna disposed outside the at least a portion of the vacuum chamber forming a plasma generating space and being made of a non-conductive material; a plate-shaped electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna disposed outside the at least a portion of the vacuum chamber forming a plasma generating space and being made of a non-conductive material, the inductive coupling antenna and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna being electrically connected in series; a first high-frequency power source which supplies high-frequency power to the inductive coupling antenna and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna connected in series, thereby causing the inductive coupling antenna and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna to generate respective electric fields in the plasma generating space; an impedance matching unit which matches an impedance of the inductive coupling antenna and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna connected in series with an output impedance of the first high-frequency power source; a load circuit connected in parallel with the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna which controls a high-frequency current flowing through the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna, the load circuit having a small actual resistance and a variable reactance; an electrode disposed in the vacuum chamber, an object to be processed being placed on the electrode; and a second high-frequency power source which supplies high-frequency power to the electrode.

33. A plasma processing apparatus according to claim 32, wherein the load circuit includes a variable capacitor and a fixed inductor connected in series.

34. A plasma processing method comprising the steps of:placing an object to be processed in a vacuum chamber; constructing a coil-shaped inductive coupling antenna having at least two inductive coupling antenna circuits; electrically connecting the inductive coupling antenna and a plate-shaped electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna in series; matching an impedance of the inductive coupling antenna and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna connected in series with an output impedance of a high-frequency power source; supplying high-frequency power from the high-frequency power source to the inductive coupling antenna and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna connected in series, thereby causing the inductive coupling antenna and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna to generate respective electric fields in a plasma generating space in there vacuum chamber; generating a plasma in the plasma generating space; changing a ratio of a high-frequency current which flows through the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna to change a distribution of a portion of the plasma generated b y the electric field generated by the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna without changing a distribution of a portion of the plasma generated by the electric field generated by the inductive coupling antenna; changing a ratio of high-frequency currents which flow through the inductive coupling antenna circuits to change the distribution of the portion of the plasma generated by the electric field generated by the inductive coupling antenna without changing the distribution of the portion of the plasma generated by the electric field generated by the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna; applying a bias voltage to the object to be processed to attract ions in the plasma towards the object to be processed; and processing the object to be processed with the plasma.

35. A plasma processing method comprising the steps of:placing an object to be processed in a vacuum chamber; providing a coil-shaped inductive coupling antenna including at least two inductive coupling antenna circuits; electrically connecting the inductive coupling antenna and a plate-shaped electrostatic capacitive coupling antena in series; matching an impedance of the inductive coupling antenna and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna connected in series with an output impedance of a high-frequency power source; supplying high-frequency power from the high-frequency power source to the inductive coupling antenna and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna connected in series, thereby causing the inductive coupling antenna and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna to generate respective electric fields in a plasma generating space in the vacuum chamber; generating a plasma in the plasma generating space; applying a bias voltage to the object to be processed to attract ions in the plasma toward the object to be processed; and processing the object to be processed with the plasma; wherein continuous plasma processing according to different process recipes is performed by repeating the steps of: controlling respective high-frequency currents which flow through the inductive coupling antenna circuits; and executing a process according to one of the process recipes using the currents set in the current controlling step.

36. A plasma processing method comprising the steps of:generating respective electric fields in a chamber with an inductive coupling antenna and an electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna which are electrically connected in series such that the electric field generated by the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna is generated in an area in the chamber where the electric field generated by the inductive coupling antenna is weak; preventing an electrostatic capacitive coupling electric field which is generated by the inductive coupling antenna from propagating into the chamber with the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna; generating a plasma in the chamber using the electric fields generated by the inductive coupling antenna and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna; and processing an object with the plasma.

37. A plasma processing method comprising the steps of:generating respective electric fields in a chamber with an inductive coupling antenna and an electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna which are electrically connected in series such that the electric field generated by the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna is strong near an inside wall of the chamber where the electric field generated by the inductive coupling antenna is weak to prevent byproducts from being deposited on the inside wall of the chamber; and preventing an electrostatic capacitive coupling electric field which is generated by the inductive coupling antenna from propagating into the chamber with the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna.

38. A plasma cleaning method comprising the steps of:providing an electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna which covers an entirety of a discharging section of a chamber, the discharging section being made of an insulating material; providing an inductive coupling antenna opposite one part the discharging section; electrically connecting the inductive coupling antenna and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna in series; controlling a ratio of respective high-frequency currents which flow through the inductive coupling antenna and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna which are electrically connected in series; generating a plasma in the chamber using the electric fields generated by the inductive coupling antenna and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna; and using the plasma to clean an inside of the chamber.

39. A plasma processing apparatus comprising:a vacuum chamber including a discharging section, the discharging section being made of an insulating material, a plasma being generated in the discharging section; an inductive coupling antenna disposed outside the discharging section opposite one surface of the discharging section; an electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna disposed outside the discharging section and covering an entirety of the discharging section; and a high-frequency power source which supplies high-frequency power to the inductive coupling antenna and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna; wherein the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna and the inductive coupling antenna are electrically connected in series with the high-frequency power source.

40. A plasma processing apparatus comprising:a vacuum chamber, at least a portion of the vacuum chamber forming a plasma generating space and being made of a non-conductive material; a gas supplying unit which supplies a process gas into the vacuum chamber; an exhaust unit which evacuates the vacuum chamber; a coil-shaped inductive coupling antenna disposed outside the at least a portion of the vacuum chamber forming a plasma generating space and being made of a non-conductive material, the inductive coupling antenna being disposed opposite one surface of the at least a portion of the vacuum chamber forming a plasma generating space and being made of a non-conductive material; a plate-shaped electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna disposed outside the at least a portion of the vacuum chamber forming a plasma generating space and being made of a non-conductive material, the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna covering an entirety of the at least a portion of the vacuum chamber forming a plasma generating space and being made of a non-conductive material, the inductive coupling antenna and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna being electrically connected in series; a first high-frequency power source which supplies high-frequency power to the inductive coupling antenna and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna connected in series, thereby causing the inductive coupling antenna and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna to generate respective electric fields in the plasma generating space; an impedance matching unit which matches an impedance of the inductive coupling antenna and the electrostatic capacitive coupling antenna connected in series with an output impedance of the first high-frequency power source; an electrode disposed in the vacuum chamber, an object to be processed being placed on the electrode; and a second high-frequency power source which supplies high-frequency power to the electrode.