Abstract: A method for reducing particles from an electrostatic chuck, having the steps of: setting a wafer onto an attracting face of an electrostatic chuck, attracting the wafer onto the attracting face by applying a voltage to the electrostatic chuck, releasing stress due to a difference in heat expansion between the wafer and the electrostatic chuck by sliding the wafer relative to the attracting face before the wafer's temperature arrives at a saturated temperature, and increasing the wafer's temperature to a saturated temperature from its lower temperature than that of the attracting face.

Abstract: The disclosed ceramics joint structure, in which a ceramics member having an oxidation resistance property and a metal member are joined via a joint layer, has a structure such that a part of the embedded member is exposed to a joint surface of the ceramics member, which is contacted with the joint layer to form a metal exposing portion, and the ceramics member and the metal exposing portion are joined via the joint layer to the metal member respectively. Moreover, the joint layer is mainly made of one or more metal selected from the group consisting of gold, platinum and palladium.

Abstract: In a plasma processing apparatus, a temperature control of a substrate to be processed is improved. A ceramic made support member having a substantially cylindrical shape is provided in a process chamber. An upper end of the support member is airtightly connected to a back surface of a placement table by solid state bonding. A lower end of the support member is airtightly connected to a bottom of the process chamber via a lower cooling jacket and O-rings. A cooling jacket made of a disc-like aluminum block is provided in an atmosphere chamber formed inside the support member. The cooling jacket is mounted to the back surface of the placement table via a heat conductive sheet member.

Abstract: A method for reducing particles from an electrostatic chuck, having the steps of: setting a wafer onto an attracting face of an electrostatic chuck, attracting the wafer onto the attracting face by applying a voltage to the electrostatic chuck, releasing stress due to a difference in heat expansion between the wafer and the electrostatic chuck by sliding the wafer relative to the attracting face before the wafer's temperature arrives at a saturated temperature, and increasing the wafer's temperature to a saturated temperature from its lower temperature than that of the attracting face.

Abstract: A method for reducing particles from an electrostatic chuck, having the steps of: setting a wafer onto an attracting face of an electrostatic chuck, attracting the wafer onto the attracting face by applying a voltage to the electrostatic chuck, releasing stress due to a difference in heat expansion between the wafer and the electrostatic chuck by sliding the wafer relative to the attracting face before the wafer's temperature arrives at a saturated temperature, and increasing the wafer's temperature to a saturated temperature from its lower temperature than that of the attracting face.

Abstract: A ceramic heater includes a ceramic substrate having a heating surface, and a resistance heating element buried inside the ceramic substrate, wherein at least a part of the resistance heating element is constituted by a conductive network member, and a ceramic material constituting the ceramic substrate is filled in meshes of the network member.

Abstract: A plasma generating electrode device including a substrate 31 made of a dense ceramic, and an electrode 55 buried in said substrate 31, wherein said electrode 55 is isolated from a setting face of said substrate 31, and plasma is generated over said substrate. It is preferable that the minimum thickness of an electromagnetic wave permeation layer 37 is not less than 0.1 mm, the average thickness of the electromagnetic wave permeation layer is not less than 0.5 mm, the electrode 55 is a planar electrode made of a metal bulk, and the electrode is a monolithic sinter free from a joint face. This structure can be applied to an electric dust collector, an electromagnetic shield device or an electrostatic chuck. These can be preferably installed inside a semiconductor production unit using a halogen-based corrosive gas.

Abstract: An electrostatic chuck for attracting an object for treatment. The electrostatic chuck includes a substrate, an insulating dielectric layer and at least one electrode located between the substrate and the insulating dielectric layer. The object is attracted onto the electrode via the insulating dielectric layer. The insulating dielectric layer is between 0.5 mm and 5.0 mm thick, and utilizes a gas-introducing hole to form a gas-diffusing depression on the side of an attractive surface, allowing for more uniform heat conduction. The gas-diffusing depression is between 100 um and 5.0 mm deep. The distance between the bottom surface of the gas-diffusing depression and an electrode may range from 500 .mu.m to 5 mm.

Abstract: A joined article is constituted by a first member made of aluminum nitride joined to each other through a joining layer, wherein a second member is made of a material selected from a ceramic material or a metal, and the joining layer involves a continuous phase made of a metal selected from the group consisting of copper, aluminum and nickel as a main component and 10% by weight of at least one active metal selected from the group consisting of magnesium, titanium, zirconium and hafnium relative to the joining layer.

Abstract: A plasma generating electrode device including a substrate 31 made of a dense ceramic, and an electrode 55 buried in said substrate 31, wherein said electrode 55 is isolated from a setting face of said substrate 31, and plasma is generated over said substrate. It is preferable that the minimum thickness of an electromagnetic wave permeation layer 37 is not less than 0.1 mm, the average thickness of the electromagnetic wave permeation layer is not less than 0.5 mm, the electrode 55 is a planar electrode made of a metal bulk, and the electrode is a monolithic sinter free from a joint face. This structure can be applied to an electric dust collector, an electromagnetic shield device or an electrostatic chuck. These can be preferably installed inside a semiconductor production unit using a halogen-based corrosive gas.

Abstract: A joint structure having a metal member and a ceramic member having a housing hole for accommodating at least a part of the metal member therein, in which an electrically conductive joint layer is formed between a bottom face of the metal member and a bottom face of the housing hole, and a film having a given wettability by the electrically conductive joint layer is formed on at least a part of the side wall face of the metal member.

Abstract: A joined ceramic structure including a ceramic member and a metallic joining member joined to each other through a joining layer made of a brazing material wherein a metallic member is buried in the ceramic member in the state that a metal-exposed portion is formed through partial exposure of the metallic member from such a joining surface of the ceramic member as contacting said joining layer, and the ceramic member and the metal-exposed portion are also joined to the joining layer along the joining surface of the ceramic member.

Abstract: A ceramic member-electric power supply connector coupling structure includes a ceramic member with a hole and is provided with a metallic member therein so as to be partially exposed to the hole. An electric power supply connector and a tubular atmosphere-shielding member are provided in the hole. Further, a stress-mitigating, low heat expansion conductor is provided inside the atmosphere-shielding member and the power supply connector is partially positioned therein. The atmosphere-shielding member is gas-tightly joined to the power supply connector, and the expansion conductor and the tubular atmosphere-shielding member are joined to the metallic member. The coupling structure has high heat and corrosion resistance, high joining strength, and remains highly conductive even at high temperature conditions in an oxidative or corrosive environment.

Abstract: An electrostatic chuck for attracting an object to be treated, includes a substrate, an insulating dielectric layer and at least one electrode provided between the substrate and the insulating dielectric layer, wherein the above object is to be attracted onto the electrode via the insulating dielectric layer and an average thickness of the insulating dielectric layer is not less than 0.5 mm and not more than 5.0 mm.

Abstract: A ceramic susceptor with an embedded metal electrode. The metal electrode has multiple apertures, and the ceramic material is cross-linked through the apertures. An electrical connection to the electrode protects the electrode from the environment in the processing chamber. The ceramic may be aluminum nitride, and the metal electrode may be a mesh of molybdenum wires. To form the electrical connection, the susceptor may be heated until an eutectic forms between a conductive connector and the metal electrode. Alternately, a brazing material may be placed between the metal layer and a conductive connector.

Abstract: A plasma generating electrode device including a substrate 31 made of a dense ceramic, and an electrode 55 buried in said substrate 31, wherein said electrode 55 is isolated from a setting face of said substrate 31, and plasma is generated over said substrate. It is preferable that the minimum thickness of an electromagnetic wave permeation layer 37 is not less than 0.1 mm, the average thickness of the electromagnetic wave permeation layer is not less than 0.5 mm, the electrode 55 is a planar electrode made of a metal bulk, and the electrode is a monolithic sinter free from a joint face. This structure can be applied to an electric dust collector, an electromagnetic shield device or an electrostatic chuck. These can be preferably installed inside a semiconductor production unit using a halogen-based corrosive gas.

Abstract: Novel method of joining ceramics containing aluminum nitride and another member made of a metal or a ceramic is provided having an improved joining strength and a corrosion-resistant property by joining a first member made of a ceramics consisting of an aluminum compound. The second member is made of a ceramics or a metal, forming a metal film directly on a surface to be joined of the first member interposing a metallic joining material which is made of a different material from the metal film. The metallic joining material is between the metal film and the second member, and by heating at least the metallic joining material and the metal film in such an interposed state to form a joining layer made of the metallic joining material and an intermetallic compound between the first and second members, so as to join the two members.

Abstract: An aluminum nitride sintered body is provided comprising metal elements contained in an amount of not more than 100 ppm for each metal element except for aluminum and assuming black color of a lightness of not more than N 4 according to the definition of JIS Z 8721. The aluminum nitride sintered body has preferably a relative density of at least 99.3% and crystal grains constituting the sintered body have an average particle diameter of at least 0.6 .mu.m but not more than 4.0 .mu.m. A powder of aluminum nitride obtained by reduction nitriding method is sintered at a temperature of at least 1,800.degree. C. under a pressure of at least 120 kg/cm.sup.2. Sintering temperature is preferably not more than 2,000.degree. C. and the sintering is preferably effected for at least 2 hrs but not more than 5 hrs.

Abstract: A ceramic heater includes a substrate made of aluminum nitride, a resistive heating element buried in the substrate and made of a metal having a high melting point, and terminals electrically connected to the resistive heating element and buried in said substrate. The terminals are made of a metal having a high melting point and a coefficient of thermal expansion not smaller than that of the substrate. The metal of the resistive heating element has a coefficient of thermal expansion not smaller than that of the substrate. The coefficient of thermal expansion of each of the terminals and the resistive heating element is in a range from 5.0.times.10.sup.-6 /.degree.C. to 8.3.times.10.sup.-6 /.degree.C.

Abstract: A ceramic heater composed of a ceramic substrate and a resistant heating element embedded within the ceramic substrate along a predetermined planar pattern is obtained by holding a convolution of a spiral-coiled high melting metallic filament in the above predetermined planar pattern and heat-treating the convolution at a temperature not higher than a primary recrystallization commencement temperature of the high melting metal under a non-oxidative atmosphere to provide the resistant heating element, embedding the resulting resistant heating element within a ceramic shaped body, and then, sintering the ceramic shaped body.