Plasma CVM (chemical vaporization machining): an ultra precision machining technique using high-pressure reactive plasma

摘要

Conventional machining processes, such as turning, grinding, or lapping, are still applied for many materials including functional ones. But these processes give rise to deformed layers which means that the machined surfaces cannot perform original functions. In order to avoid this, plasma CVM has been developed. Plasma CVM is a chemical machining method utilizing radical reaction. In plasma CVM, high density radicals are generated in plasma under atmospheric pressure, so that the removal rate is very high (>or=200 mu m min-1for Si) and is equivalent to mechanical machining methods. In this paper, basic concepts and some applications of plasma CVM will be introduced.