Patent ID: 6853141

Claim:
A plasma reactor comprising: a vacuum enclosure including a side wall and a ceiling defining a vacuum chamber, and a workpiece support within said chamber and facing said ceiling for supporting a planar workpiece, said workpiece support and said ceiling together defining a processing region between said workpiece support and said ceiling; process gas inlets for furnishing process gas into said chamber; an RF power generator and a plasma source power electrode connected to said RE power generator for capacitively coupling plasma source power into said chamber for maintaining a plasma within said chamber; at least a first overhead solenoidal electromagnet adjacent said ceiling, said overhead solenoidal electromagnet, said ceiling, said sidewall and said workpiece support being located along a common axis of symmetry; a current source connected to said first solenoidal electromagnet and furnishing a first electric current in said first solenoidal electromagnet whereby to generate within said chamber a magnetic field which is a function of said first electric current, said first electric current having a value such that said magnetic field increases uniformity of plasma ion density radial distribution about said axis of symmetry near a surface of said workpiece support; and wherein said electric current is a D.C. electric current and said magnetic field is a static magnetic field.