Patent ID: 6198616
Filing Date: 2001-03-06
Classification: H01L,Y10T

Abstract:
Apparatus for retaining a substrate, in a semiconductor processing system comprising:an electrostatic chuck having an electrode embedded beneath a substrate support surface;a power supply, coupled to said electrode of said electrostatic chuck, for applying a variable chucking voltage to said electrode, where said substrate is retained by a potential difference between said substrate and said electrostatic chuck;a monitoring circuit, coupled to said electrostatic chuck, for measuring a peak-to-peak or peak voltage of a signal used to generate a plasma in said semiconductor processing system and for generating a chucking indicator value from said peak-to-peak or peak voltage; anda controller, coupled to said power supply and said monitoring circuit, for dynamically maintaining said potential difference at a predefined value in response to said chucking indicator value.