Abstract: A plasma generating gas and a reactive gas are fed into a vacuum container. A magnetic field and microwaves for plasma generation are applied to the vacuum container, whereupon plasma is generated by ECR, and whereupon, for example, an SiO.sub.2 or SiOF film is formed on aluminum wiring. In the initial phase of film deposition, the level of the radio-frequency power for plasma lead-in applied to the stage is adjusted, for example, to zero (first value includes zero) in advance. Then, after the SiO.sub.2 or SiOF film has been deposited to a thickness of tens of nanometers, for example, the radio-frequency power for plasma lead-in is adjusted to a normal power level (second value) and applied to the stage. Thereupon, an intensive anisotropic plasma is generated, and a potential distribution corresponding to the self-bias is formed in the plane direction of the wafer. Since the thin SiO.sub.

Abstract: Herein provided is an electrostatic chuck whose surface is processed so as to have projections and recesses, which has a simple structure and which makes it possible to establish a uniform temperature distribution on a wafer surface when the wafer is held on the processed surface thereof through the use of an electrostatic attractive force. The uneven surface configuration of the electrostatic chuck is designed so that the proportion of the area occupied by the projected surface in the peripheral portion, i.e., in the relatively outer region of the surface, is smaller than that of the area occupied by the projected surface in the central portion, i.e., in the relatively inner region of the surface of the electrostatic chuck, in order to change the rate of heat transmission so as to be larger in the central portion than in the peripheral portion between the wafer and the electrostatic chuck. In this case, the height of the projections is limited to the range of from 10 to 70 .mu.