ABSTRACT

The material deposition that occurs in the low-pressure electrical discharge has been discussed under various terminologies such as plasma polymerization (PP), plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD), plasma-assisted chemical vapor deposition (PACVD), plasma chemical vapor deposition (PCVD), and so forth [1]. However, none of these terminologies seems to represent the phenomenon adequately. The ‘‘plasma’’ aspect in the low-pressure discharge is remote, although it plays a key role in creating the environment from which material deposition occurs to the extent that no chemical reaction occurs without the ‘‘plasma.’’ In this sense, PECVD and PACVD could be out of the context in many cases in which nothing happens without plasma. In such cases, PP or PCVD would describe the phenomenon better. If the substrate was not heated substantially above the ambient temperature, the use of PECVD or PACVD should be avoided.