Abstract: The present invention relates to a dry etching method in which the type of reactive gas used is improved and the selectively between a workpiece being etched and a substance below the workpiece is increased. A gas comprising a fluoride gas and a compound gas containing hydrogen as a constituent element is used as the reactive gas. According to the present invention, the etching selectivity between a workpiece being etched and a substance below the workpiece is greatly increased, and etching of the substance below the workpiece can be prevented.The present invention is applicable to a semiconductor structure having a silicon oxide film below a silicon nitride film.

Abstract: A vacuum processing apparatus has a vacuum vessel within which a work to be processed is drawn and held fixed on a specimen table by an electrode functioning doubly as an electrostatic chuck, to which is connected a gas feeding pipe for feeding a gas affording good heat transmission between the mutually contacting surfaces of the work and the electrode thereby to control the temperature of the work.

Abstract: An apparatus for producing semiconductor devices in which a plurality of treatment chambers such as a load chamber, an etching chamber, a sputtering chamber, an ion implantation chamber, a CVD chamber, an unload chamber, a transfer chamber, a heat-treatment chamber, a rinsing chamber and the like, are connected in series preferably in the form of U for effecting various treatments of semiconductor wafers. Wafer conveyor and transfer means are provided to move a wafer through the treatment chambers in which the wafer is normally sequentially processed and these conveyor and transfer means are reversible so that a wafer which has been moved into a predetermined treatment chamber can be returned to the inlet of the apparatus, whereby the quantity of dust attached to the wafer in each treatment chamber can be easily and positively detected.

Abstract: An electrostatic chuck for holding a work by electrostatic forces, which has an electrostatic attraction body for attracting the work, an electrostatic conductive support body for supporting the electrostatic attraction body, channels for passing cooling medium therethrough and cover means for covering the exposed surfaces of the support body except a portion thereof over which the work is placed. This chuck can not only prevent impure matters from generating from the surfaces of the support body but also prevent damages due to heat.

Abstract: A plurality of bar-like magnets are arranged in a vacuum chamber at an equal space interval to form a plurality of strong magnetic fields in a stripe-pattern form and the magnets are moved reciprocally in the direction of arrangement of the magnetic fields while changing gradually the stop points of the magnets over a work to be processed by etching or sputtering in a step-like manner so that the integral effect of each magnetic field acting on the work is uniform over the entire region of the work.

Abstract: A sputter-etching device has a hollow electrode with an internal space in which gas plasma is formed and an opening which is confronted with the inner wall of a vacuum chamber to provide an electric discharge gap therebetween. An object to be processed is placed on the side of the vacuum chamber instead of the side of the electrode. The sputter-etching device is combined with a sputtering device so that immediately after being cleaned by sputter-etching, the object is subjected to sputtering.

Abstract: The sputtering device disclosed herein is based on the fact that the lower the pressure of a gas atmosphere in which glow discharge is effected the smaller the number of chances for metallic atoms emitted from a target or cathode by sputtering to collide with residual molecules between the electrodes is, and the finer the finish of a metallic film formed by depositing the metallic atoms arriving directly to a workpiece is. Also, if the energy of electrons emitted from the target is reduced upon arrival at the anode, the temperature rise inside of the device and especially that of the workpiece can be minimized.