Patent ID: 8847148
Filing Date: 2014-09-30
Classification: B24B,G03F,H01J,H01L,H05H,Y10T

Abstract:
1. A method of treating a surface of a workpiece comprising the steps of: providing a reduced pressure chamber; forming a gas cluster ion beam comprising gas cluster ions within the reduced pressure chamber; accelerating the gas cluster ions to form an accelerated gas cluster ion beam along a beam path within the reduced pressure chamber; promoting fragmentation and/or dissociation of at least a portion of the accelerated gas cluster ions along the beam path by increasing the range of velocities of ions in the accelerated gas cluster ion beam; removing charged particles from the beam path to form an accelerated neutral beam along the beam path in the reduced pressure chamber; holding a workpiece in the beam path; and treating at least a portion of a surface of the workpiece by irradiating it with the accelerated neutral beam.