Plasmatherm RIE Study

A parameter study was conducted with the Plasmatherm. This is intended to help users tune there recipes based on the desired profile of the etch. Click on each parameter to view photos. A detailed spreadsheet with measurement will be published here soon.

 

Table 1: Parameters measured. Standard RIE Parameters

RF Power (W)	550, 650, 750, 850, 950
Pressure (mTorr)	16, 20, 22, 24
Ar Flow (sccm)	10, 20, 30, 40, 50
O2 Flow (sccm)	0, 10, 20
SF6 Flow (sccm)	50, 60, 70, 80, 90

 

RF Power (W)

As the RF power is increased, the etch depth/rate increases then decreases, peaking at 750W, except for 8$𝜇$m which peaks at 850W. 

The initial increase in etch depth/rate is due to the higher energy of the reactive ions, which leads for more efficient material removal. The lower etch performance at higher power can be explain by several different phenomenon include; Ion deflection and scattering, aspect ratio-dependent etching, and charge buildup and deflections.

It seems that 750W may be a more efficient parameter for the standard process as it maximizes the etch rate.

Additional data analysis is performed on the 20$\mu$m line, generating plots that illustrate the relationships between power and etch depth, undercut, photoresist depth, and selectivity (PR depth/ Etch Depth).

20 $\mu$m (4000 Magnification)

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550 W

650 W

750 W

850 W

950 W

10 $\mu$m (4000 Magnification)

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550 W

650 W

750 W

850 W

950 W

8 $\mu$m (6000 Magnification)

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550 W

650 W

750 W

850 W

950 W

7 $\mu$m (6000 Magnification)

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550 W

650 W

750 W

850 W

950 W (8000 Magnification)

5 $\mu$m (10,000 Magnification)

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550 W

650 W

750 W

850 W

950 W (8000 Magnification)

Pressure (mTorr)

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Additional data analysis is performed on the 20$\mu$m line, generating plots that illustrate the relationships between Pressure and etch depth, undercut, photoresist depth, and selectivity (PR depth/ Etch Depth).

 

20 $\mu$m (4000 Magnification)

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16 mTorr

20 mTorr

22 mTorr

24 mTorr

10 $\mu$m (4000 Magnification)

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16 mTorr

20 mTorr

22 mTorr

24 mTorr

8 $\mu$m (6000 Magnification)

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16 mTorr

20 mTorr

22 mTorr

24 mTorr

7 $\mu$m (6000 Magnification)

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16 mTorr

20 mTorr

22 mTorr

24 mTorr

5 $\mu$m (10,000 Magnification)

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16 mTorr

20 mTorr

22 mTorr

24 mTorr

Ar Flow (sccm)

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Additional data analysis is performed on the 20$\mu$m line, generating plots that illustrate the relationships between Argon flow and etch depth, undercut, photoresist depth, and selectivity (PR depth/ Etch Depth).

20 $\mu$m (4000 Magnification)

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10 sccm

20 sccm

30 sccm

40 sccm

50 sccm

10 $\mu$m (4000 Magnification)

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10 sccm

20 sccm

30 sccm

40 sccm

50 sccm

8 $\mu$m (6000 Magnification)

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10 sccm

20 sccm

30 sccm

40 sccm

50 sccm

7 $\mu$m (6000 Magnification)

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10 sccm

20 sccm

30 sccm

40 sccm

50 sccm

5 $\mu$m (10,000 Magnification)

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10 sccm

20 sccm

30 sccm

40 sccm

50 sccm

O₂ Flow (sccm)

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Additional data analysis is performed on the 20$\mu$m line, generating plots that illustrate the relationships between Oxygen flow and etch depth, undercut, photoresist depth, and selectivity (PR depth/ Etch Depth).

20 $\mu$m (4000 Magnification)

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0 sccm

10 sccm

20 sccm

10 $\mu$m (4000 Magnification)

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0 sccm

10 sccm

20 sccm

8 $\mu$m (6000 Magnification)

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0 sccm

10 sccm

20 sccm

7 $\mu$m (6000 Magnification)

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0 sccm

10 sccm

20 sccm

5 $\mu$m (10,000 Magnification)

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0 sccm

10 sccm

20 sccm

SF₆ (sccm)

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Additional data analysis is performed on the 20$\mu$m line, generating plots that illustrate the relationships between SF₆ flow and etch depth, undercut, photoresist depth, and selectivity (PR depth/ Etch Depth).

20 $\mu$m (4000 Magnification)

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50 sccm

60 sccm

70 sccm

80 sccm

90 sccm

10 $\mu$m (4000 Magnification)

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50 sccm

60 sccm

70 sccm

80 sccm

90 sccm

8 $\mu$m (6000 Magnification)

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50 sccm

60 sccm

70 sccm

80 sccm

90 sccm

7 $\mu$m (6000 Magnification)

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50 sccm

60 sccm

70 sccm

80 sccm

90 sccm

5 $\mu$m (10,000 Magnification)

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50 sccm

60 sccm

70 sccm

80 sccm

90 sccm