Reactive ion etching of quartz and pyrex for micro electronic applications

Zeze, D.A; Forrest, R.D.; Carey, J.D.; Cox, D.C.; Robertson, I.D.; Weiss, B.L.; Silva, S.R.P.

Abstract

The reactive ion etching of quartz and Pyrex substrates was carried out using CF4/Ar and CF4/O2 gas mixtures in a combined radio frequency (rf)/microwave (µw) plasma. It was observed that the etch rate and the surface morphology of the etched regions depended on the gas mixture (CF4/Ar or CF4/O2), the relative concentration of CF4 in the gas mixture, the rf power (and the associated self-induced bias) and microwave power. An etch rate of 95 nm/min for quartz was achieved. For samples covered with a thin metal layer, ex situ high resolution scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy imaging indicated that, during etching, surface roughness is produced on the surface beneath the thin metallic mask. Near vertical sidewalls with a taper angle greater than 80° and smooth etched surfaces at the nanometric scale were fabricated by carefully controlling the etching parameters and the masking technique. A simulation of the electrostatic field distribution was carried out to understand the etching process using these masks for the fabrication of high definition features.

Citation

Zeze, D., Forrest, R., Carey, J., Cox, D., Robertson, I., Weiss, B., & Silva, S. (2002). Reactive ion etching of quartz and pyrex for micro electronic applications. Journal of Applied Physics, 92(7), 3624-3629. https://doi.org/10.1063/1.1503167

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Jul 1, 2002
• Online Publication Date: Oct 1, 2002
• Publication Date: Oct 1, 2002
• Deposit Date: Oct 24, 2006
• Publicly Available Date: Dec 20, 2017
• Journal: Journal of Applied Physics
• Print ISSN: 0021-8979
• Electronic ISSN: 1089-7550
• Publisher: American Institute of Physics
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 92
• Issue: 7
• Pages: 3624-3629
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1063/1.1503167
• Keywords: Quartz, Flass, Sputter etching, High-frequency discharges, Surface chemistry, Reaction rate constants, Surface topography, Scanning electron microscopy, Atomic force microscopy, Masks, Nanotechnology.
• Public URL: https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/1585174