Carbonyl fluoride (COF2) has been investigated as an alternative gas for plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) chamber cleaning in order to reduce greenhouse gases emitted from the cleaning process in semiconductor manufacturing. The cleaning performance of COF2 and the environmental impact of its exhaust gases were evaluated using an experimental plasma tool. The results indicated that the cleaning performance of COF2 was equivalent to that of conventional C2F6. Furthermore, it was confirmed that the use of COF2 would enable the reduction of global warming emissions by over 95% relative to the use of C2F6, and thus COF2 is considered to be a promising alternative cleaning gas. (C) 2004 The Electrochemical Society.