Patent ID: 6974523

Claim:
A plasma processing apparatus comprising: an electrical ground; a vacuum chamber coupled to the electrical ground; a first electrode disposed within the vacuum chamber having a substantially planar surface facing an interior of the vacuum chamber coupled to the electrical ground; a second electrode disposed in the vacuum chamber having a substantially planar surface proximate and parallel to the first electrode; a power supply coupled to the second electrode; a containment device positioned about the periphery of the first and the second electrodes within the vacuum chamber, the containment device enclosing substantially all of an inter-electrode volume between the first and second electrode and comprising a cylindrical shroud having a plurality of openings, each opening extending substantially a length of an inter-electrode gap between the planar surfaces of the first and the second electrodes and facilitating gas flow and being electrically coupled to the electrical ground; and a supply line configured to channel a process gas directly through the first electrode and exit through an open circumference of the containment device.