In situ method for real time measurement of dielectric film thickness in plasmas

An in situ thickness measurement method of dielectric films (dual frequency method) was developed, and the thicknesses were measured in an inductively coupled plasma. This method uses a small ac bias voltage with two frequencies for thickness measurement. The dielectric thickness is obtained from measuring the amplitudes of the two frequency ac currents through a sensor, as well as using an equivalent circuit model describing impedance of the dielectric film and the plasma sheath. In the experiment, the thicknesses of Al2O3 film could be accurately measured in real time. To check the measurement reliability, the dual frequency method was compared with reflection spectrophotometry as a technique for optical thickness diagnostics. It was found that the dual frequency method agrees closely with reflection spectrophotometry at various rf powers and pressures. In addition, this method is very simple and can be installed anywhere in plasma reactors, in contrast with optical methods; therefore, it is expected to be applied to in situ surface diagnostics for various processing plasmas.