The influence of reactor wall conditions on the characteristics of high density fluorocarbon plasma etch processes has been studied. Results obtained during the etching of oxide, nitride, and silicon in an inductively coupled plasma source fed with various feedgases, such as CHF3, C3F6, and C3F6/H-2, indicate that the reactor wall temperature is an important parameter in the etch process. Adequate temperature control can increase oxide etch selectivity over nitride and silicon. The loss of fluorocarbon species from the plasma to the walls is reduced as the wall temperature increased. The fluorocarbon deposition on a cooled substrate surface increases concomitantly, resulting in a mon efficient suppression of silicon and nitride etch rates, whereas oxide etch rates remain nearly constant.