Patent ID: 6881608

Claim:
A method of processing semiconductor substrates and reducing particle contamination and/or process drift during consecutive processing of the substrates, the method comprising steps of: (a) placing a substrate on a substrate holder in an interior space of a plasma processing chamber, the processing chamber including at least one slip cast part having a surface exposed to the interior space, the slip cast part having free silicon contained therein and a protective layer on the surface which protects the silicon from being attacked by the plasma in the interior space; (b) processing the substrate by supplying process gas to the processing chamber and energizing the process gas into a plasma state in the processing chamber, the slip cast part being exposed to the plasma and optionally providing a ground path for RF current sustaining the plasma; (c) removing the substrate from the processing chamber; and (d) consecutively processing additional substrates in the processing chamber by repeating steps (a-c) while minimizing particle contamination of the substrates and/or reducing process drift during the processing step as a result of protecting the free silicon from attack by the plasma.