HAR/Nano-ICP Dry Etching Process Unit

• Subject Area: Systems Engineering
• Term: Funded in 2019
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 435273093

The ICP dry etching technique is a basic microfabrication method for silicon. The etching process is anisotropic and enables to create trenches, holes and recesses with almost any shape and largely vertical flanks. Together with the anisotropic wet chemical etching technique, where the etching rate is oriented to the crystal planes, ICP dry etching offers a very high design variety for micromechanical structures made of silicon.Silicon bulk micromechanics is a central topic at IMT, which plays a major role in almost all research projects. However, the ICP dry etching system purchased in 1995 has now been irreparably damaged and has failed completely. In addition, the requirements regarding the minimum structure width, the aspect ratio, an exactly adjustable and uniform etching depth and the orthogonality of the flank angle have increased significantly. Furthermore, modern RIE/DRIE etching systems offer high selectivity when using resist masks, powerful ICP sources, integrated process cooling and fast sample infeed and outfeed. Vertical structural flanks and a transition as perpendicular as possible between the flanks and the etching ground are favored, among other things, by a very fast gas change. In order to carry out current and planned research projects successfully and with state-of-the-art industrial technology, it is therefore essential to procure a modern, high-performance HAR/Nano-ICP dry etching system that meets the increased requirements.

• DFG Programme: Major Research Instrumentation
• Major Instrumentation: HAR/Nano-ICP-Trockenätzanlage
• Instrumentation Group: 0910 Geräte für Ionenimplantation und Halbleiterdotierung
• Applicant Institution: Technische Universität Braunschweig
• Leader: Professor Dr. Andreas Dietzel