Abstract
Mass spectrometry has been used to analyze microwave-induced plasmas of silicon tetrachloride diluted in mixtures of hydrogen and argon. The effects of process parameters such as pressure in the reactor, power input, and the composition of the gas mixture were investigated. Sampling by a quadrupole mass-spectrometer along the gas stream showed that the reactions were initiated upstream where the reactants enter the plasma. It was found that the input power had an optimal value for the decomposition rate of SiCl4; above that optimum, recombination occurred downstream. Upstream the concentrations of SiCl4 decrease with increasing pressure in the range 1–10 torr, independent of the input power. The effect of admixing argon to the reaction mixture is discussed, and the results obtained are correlated to experimental results reported in previous works concerning silicon deposition from SiCl4 on a grounded substrate.
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Manory, R., Grill, A., Carmi, U. et al. Decomposition and polymerization of silicon tetrachloride in a microwave plasma. A mass-spectrometry investigation. Plasma Chem Plasma Process 3, 235–248 (1983). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00566022
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00566022