A plasma accelerator based on inductively coupled plasma source, which is able to produce an axially directed flux of accelerated ions onto the wafer without applying the bias voltage, has been studied and utilized in a semiconductor etch process. Ion kinetic energies up to 60 eV have been measured for an absorbed power of about 800 W, while the plasma density was similar to 10(10) cm(-3) at the plasma source exit. The experimental results show that the plasma accelerator can be used for an anisotropic etch process without the radio-frequency bias of the substrate. (c) 2007 American Vacuum Society.