A microwave heating device includes a variable frequency microwave power supply, a waveguide launcher, and a fixture to contain a material to be heated, with the fixture located directly adjacent to the end of the launcher. All heating occurs in the near-field region, i.e., no cavity modes or standing waves are established within the fixture. This condition may be insured by keeping the thickness of the fixture or workpiece under one wavelength (at all microwave frequencies being used). The launcher is preferably a horn configured to spread the microwave power laterally over a selected area while maintaining a single propagating mode. The invention may be used to enhance catalytic reactions for research and other purposes. Alternatively, the invention may be configured to perform spot curing or repair operations involving adhesives and composites.

A microwave heating device includes a variable frequency microwave power supply, a waveguide launcher, and a fixture to contain a material to be heated, with the fixture located directly adjacent to the end of the launcher. All heating occurs in the near-field region, i.e., no cavity modes or standing waves are established within the fixture. This condition may be insured by keeping the thickness of the fixture or workpiece under one wavelength (at all microwave frequencies being used). The launcher is preferably a horn configured to spread the microwave power laterally over a selected area while maintaining a single propagating mode. The invention may be used to enhance catalytic reactions for research and other purposes. Alternatively, the invention may be configured to perform spot curing or repair operations involving adhesives and composites.

A microwave processing system includes: a broadband variable frequency microwave (VFM) source; a plurality of waveguide applicators, each of which includes a waveguide transition and is capable of supporting a selected subset of frequencies within the bandwidth of the broadband VFM source; a microwave switching means allowing the microwave source to be connected to any one of the waveguide transitions so that microwave power is delivered to the corresponding waveguide applicator; and wherein each of the waveguide applicators includes at least one channel through which a microwave transparent tube may be run so that process fluid flowing through the tube may be exposed to microwave power in the applicator.

A microwave plasma reactor for manufacturing synthetic diamond material via chemical vapour deposition, the microwave plasma reactor comprising: a plasma chamber defining a resonant cavity for supporting a primary microwave resonance mode having a primary microwave resonance mode frequency f; a plurality of microwave sources coupled to the plasma chamber for generating and feeding microwaves having a total microwave power P into the plasma chamber; a gas flow system for feeding process gases into the plasma chamber and removing them therefrom; and a substrate holder disposed in the plasma chamber and comprising a supporting surface for supporting a substrate on which the synthetic diamond material is to be deposited in use, wherein the plurality of microwave sources are configured to couple at least 30% of the total microwave power P into the plasma chamber in the primary microwave resonance mode frequency f, and wherein at least some of the plurality of microwave sources are solid state microwave sources.

The present invention provides a plasma processing apparatus having a radio frequency power supply supplying time-modulated radio frequency power which is controllable widely with high precision, and a plasma processing method using the plasma processing apparatus. The plasma processing apparatus includes: a vacuum chamber; a first radio frequency power supply for generating plasma in the vacuum chamber; a sample holder disposed in the vacuum chamber, on which a sample is placed; and a second radio frequency power supply supplying radio frequency power to the sample holder, wherein at least one of the first radio frequency power supply and the second radio frequency power supply supplies time-modulated radio frequency power, one of parameters of controlling the time-modulation has two or more different control ranges, and one of the control ranges is a control range for a high-precision control.

A microwave heating device includes a variable frequency microwave power supply, a waveguide launcher, and a fixture to contain a material to be heated, with the fixture located directly adjacent to the end of the launcher. All heating occurs in the near-field region, i.e., no cavity modes or standing waves are established within the fixture. This condition may be insured by keeping the thickness of the fixture or workpiece under one wavelength (at all microwave frequencies being used). The launcher is preferably a horn configured to spread the microwave power laterally over a selected area while maintaining a single propagating mode. The invention may be used to enhance catalytic reactions for research and other purposes. Alternatively, the invention may be configured to perform spot curing or repair operations involving adhesives and composites.

Disclosed is a plasma processing apparatus including a processing container, a plasma generation mechanism, a regulation unit, a detection unit, and a determination unit. The plasma generation mechanism includes a microwave oscillator, and generates plasma within the processing container using microwaves oscillated by the microwave oscillator. The regulation unit regulates an oscillation frequency, which corresponds to a frequency of the microwaves oscillated by the microwave oscillator, to a predetermined frequency. The detection unit detects the oscillation frequency regulated to the predetermined frequency by the regulation unit. The determination unit determines the success/failure of regulation of the oscillation frequency by the regulation unit, using the oscillation frequency detected by the detection unit, or using a parameter which is changed depending on a difference between the oscillation frequency and the predetermined frequency.

A plasma processing apparatus includes a processing vessel; a carrier wave group generating unit configured to generate a carrier wave group including multiple carrier waves having different frequencies belonging to a preset frequency band centered on a predetermined center frequency; a plasma generating unit configured to generate plasma by using the carrier wave group; a spectrum detecting unit configured to detect a progressive wave spectrum and a reflection wave spectrum of the carrier wave group; and a control unit configured to calculate, by using the progressive wave spectrum and the reflection wave spectrum, an absorption power which is a power of the carrier wave group absorbed into the plasma, and configured to adjust a parameter, which varies a minimum value of the reflection wave spectrum and a frequency corresponding to the minimum value, such that the absorption power becomes equal to or larger than a threshold value.

A plasma processing device in which plasma processing uniformity is improved up to an outer peripheral portion of a wafer and the number of non-defective devices that can be manufactured from one wafer is increased. The plasma processing device includes a vacuum container; a mounting table, a susceptor ring that covers an outer peripheral portion of an electrode base material, and an insulation ring covered by the susceptor ring and surrounding the electrode base material, and thin film electrode formed on an upper surface and a part of a surface facing the outer periphery of the electrode base material; a first high frequency power applied to the electrode base material a second high frequency power applied to the thin film electrode; a plasma generating unit that generates plasma on an upper portion of the mounting table inside the vacuum container; and a control unit.

A device includes a microwave generation unit that averages the first measured values and the second measured values at a predetermined movement average time and a predetermined sampling interval, and controls the microwave such that a value obtained by subtracting the averaged second measured value from the averaged first measured value comes close to the setting power, and in which the predetermined movement average time is 60 s or less, and a relationship of y78.178x.sup.0.1775 is satisfied when the predetermined sampling interval is indicated by x, and the predetermined movement average time is indicated by y.