Thin films are etched in a recently developed modality of high vacuum reactor. Diamond-like Carbon films manufactured by sputtering technique are used to the plasma etch studies. A constricted hollow cathode (CHC) is used as Argon plasma source. To reach etching characteristics adequate to the microelectronic processes, extensive experiments are carried out to estimate the influence of several control parameters. Bias voltage technique is employed for energetic ion extraction from the produced plasma jet. Helmholtz coil applies an axial magnetic field for improved plasma confinement. The effect of varying bias voltage, magnetic field intensity and plasma power on etch rate has been studied. The bias voltage determines the sputtering yield through the acceleration of Ar ions extracted from the CHC originated plasma jet. The applied magnetic field drives the ion flux to the substrate. Ion flux adjust is also attained by plasma power selection. The results show that the processes in high vacuum with the presence of moderate magnetic fields offer some potential advantages of this technique in comparison to the standard plasma etching processes.
