Two dimensional simulations of triode VHF SiH ₄ plasma

Two-dimensional simulations of a triode VHF SiH ₄ plasma (60 MHz) were performed using a fluid model, where the plasma was realized using multirod electrodes. Higher-order silanes that are responsible for the quality of amorphous silicon were included in the simulations. A typical VHF plasma with an electron density higher than 10 ¹⁶ m ^%3 and an electron temperature lower than 3 eV was predicted between discharge electrodes while the electron density near the substrate was very low. The SiH ₃ density was fairly uniform between discharge electrodes and did not decrease rapidly near the substrate, suggesting a high-speed deposition. Higher-order molecules and radicals that play an important role in dust formation had similar spatial profiles and their densities were five to 6 orders of magnitude lower than the SiH ₃ density. We discussed the effect of the rate constant of reaction, SiH ₃ + SiH ₃ G SiH ₂ + SiH ₄ , on the SiH ₃ density.