Simulation of inductively coupled plasma with applied bias voltage using COMSOL

Abstract

Fluid models can approach plasma simulations with accuracy and low computational costs within certain limits. A new approach using a fluid model was tested in this work in COMSOL to simulate inductively coupled plasma (ICP) chambers with applied RF bias voltage. Therefore, two separate COMSOL modules have been coupled to describe these chambers, an approach that has not been reported so far. The aim was to achieve fast plasma simulations whose initial conditions can be easily changed to adjust to different chambers and operation points. The model provides values for the main variables of an ICP chamber closed to the experimental ones. In addition, the influence of a RF bias voltage in an ICP chamber is shown, focussing on the ion energy distribution (IED) on the substrate. A comparison with real experiments is shown.