D.S. Manegin1, V.D. Sokolov2, O.P. Plotnikova3, E.V. Vorobev4, S.G. Ivakhnenko5

1-5 «SEC «Ion Plasma Technologies», BMSTU (Moscow, Russia)

1 manegin@bmstu.ru; 2 sokolovvd@bmstu.ru; 3 plotnikova@bmstu.ru; 4 evv@bmstu.ru; 5 ivakhnenko@bmstu.ru

One of the most commonly used tools in ion-plasma technology is the End Hall ion source, which is used, in particular, for etching and other processes. The ability to operate on almost any gas, a highly divergent beam and the generated ions energy range up to several hundred electronvolts determine the wide possibilities of using End Hall ion sources in science and production. There are two main design schemes of such sources which are most actively used – with a floating and with an anode potential of the discharge chamber rear wall. The ion beam energy characteristics of the sources with a floating potential of the rear wall have been extensively studied by various research teams, but there is currently no comparable data available for sources with an anode potential, making it difficult to develop processes based on these ion sources. This study aims to investigate the energy characteristics of ions emitted from End Hall sources following these two design approaches. The ion beams were examined via a retarding potential analyzer. Measurements were conducted on argon at various discharge voltage and current settings for each source. One design included a floating potential of the discharge chamber rear wall, whereas the other design had an anode potential. The geometrical dimensions of the discharge chambers and the magnetic field intensities were identical for both configurations tested. Based on the ion beam retarding curves, corresponding ion energy distributions were determined. It was observed that for End Hall source with an anode potential of the discharge chamber rear wall an approximately continuous spectrum of ion energies was typical, whereas there was a clearly expressed peak in the energy distribution of the traditional configuration ion source beam. The mean ion energy in beam of the source with an anode potential of the discharge chamber rear wall was lower than that of the source with a floating potential, as confirmed by lower etch rates observed during control sputtering of stainless steel samples. These results can be used to develop technological procedures utilizing End Hall ion sources designed according to different configurations.

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