Measurements of atomic carbon density in processing plasmas by vacuum ultraviolet laser absorption spectroscopy

Measurements of the absolute C atom density in an inductively coupled plasma (ICP) source were carried out by using vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) laser absorption spectroscopy with the resonance lines of C atoms at wavelengths around 94.5 and 165.7 nm. A tunable VUV laser covering these wavelength ranges was generated by a two-photon resonance/four-wave mixing technique in Xe gas. No absorption at around 94.5 nm could be observed, but from the absorption spectra around 165.7 nm we successfully derived the absolute density of C atoms in the ICP source. The obtained values varied from 1x10(10) to 1x10(11) cm(-3), depending on the source gas and operating conditions of the plasma source. The relatively small density values compared to other atomic species are attributed to the large loss rates, which mostly occur on the surface. (C) 2002 American Institute of Physics.