Chemical and Discharge Effects in Plasma Etching with Freons and Other Electronegative Gases

Low pressure plasmas of halogens, halocarbons, and their mixtures are in general use for etching micron-sized features on Si, GaAs, and InP. Several processing parameters may be varied to optimize plasma conditions for etching rates and profile control. Manipulation of substrate temperature, pressure, applied frequency and gas feed composition are discussed in detail and specific examples are presented to illustrate these effects on etching Si and III-V compounds.