RIE 3 (MRC)

RIE 3 (MRC) Location Bay 2 Tool Type Dry Etch Manufacturer Materials Research Corporation (MRC) Description RIE #3 Fluorine-Based System MRC 51 Primary Supervisor Lee Sawyer (805) 893-2123 lee_sawyer@ucsb.edu Secondary Supervisor Aidan Hopkins Recipes Dry Etch Recipes SignupMonkey: Sign up for this tool

About

This is a Materials Research Corporation RIE-51 parallel plate, 13.56 MHz system used for etching with fluorine-containing gases (CF₄, SF₆, and CHF₃). The system is used primarily for etching of Si, SiO₂, and Si₃N₄ films. Metals such as tungsten may also be etched. Tool features include: six inch diameter water cooled cathode/substrate platform, pyrex cylinder for plasma confinement and gas flow control, adjustable cathode-anode spacing, fixed DC bias or RF power control and a HeNe laser etch monitor with chart recorder. It is turbo pumped and has no loadlock.

CF₄/O₂ and SF₆/O₂ will etch Si, SiO₂ and Si₃N₄ readily since free fluorine is readily liberated in the plasma. The oxygen (up to 40%) initially enhances the fluorine concentration resulting in a higher etch rate. The oxygen also minimizes polymer formation in CF₄/O₂. Too much Oxygen will compete for fluorine available, suppressing the etch rate. Argon can be added to increase the physical component of etching. The highest etch rates are achieved with SF₆ due to the ease of liberating fluorine compared with CF₄. The relative etch rate decreases as one goes from Si to Si₃N₄ to SiO₂. CF4 and CHF3 can be used to selectivity etch SiO₂ over Si and resist due to increased polymer formation from the presence of hydrogen. This polymer layer is thicker on Si and resist than on SiO₂. The trade-off is selectivity versus sidewall profile as the polymer will result in a tapered wall profile. Also, the polymer can be difficult to remove after etching.

The etches have good selectivity to many metals and semiconductors such as Ni, Al, Cr, Ti, GaAs, InP, and GaN. The system generally produces anisotropic etch profiles unless one goes into a purely chemical fluorine etch mode with higher pressure SF₆ processes. The system also has a strong loading effect so that larger substrates and open areas will require more feed gas and higher pressure to compensate. As a result, individual processes need to be characterized.

Detailed Specifications

• Etch gases include: CF₄, CHF₃, SF₆, Ar, O₂
• Low 1 E -6 ultimate chamber pressure
• 13.56 Mhz excitation frequency
• Manual gas control
• Automatic pressure control
• Manual RF tuning network
• Timer circuit for stopping the plasma
• Sample size limited to approximately 4 inches
• Masking materials include: Ni, photoresist (limited to low bias/power), Cr, Al

Documentation

• RIE #3 Standard Operating Procedure