Measurements of the electron energy distribution function in an Ar/CF4 inductively coupled plasma

Abstract

Measurements of the electron energy distribution function (eedf) of a low-pressure inductively coupled plasma operated in a mixture of Ar and CF4 are reported. The measurement method was laser Thomson scattering. Extensive test were performed in order to verify that any perturbations caused by the laser did not affect the measurements. The eedf was measured for different concentrations of CF4 gas, and the results indicated that it was non-Maxwellian when even small amounts of CF4 gas were present. This dependence was attributed partially to the effect of electron-molecule vibrational excitation collisions.