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Title: ScAIN etch mask for highly selective etching

Patent ·
OSTI ID:1650902

A fabrication process employing the use of ScAlN as an etch mask is disclosed. The ScAlN etch mask is chemically nonvolatile in fluorine-based etch chemistries and has a low sputter yield, resulting in greater etch mask selectivity and reduced surface roughness for silicon and other semiconductor materials. The ScAlN etch mask has an etch mask selectivity of greater than 200,000:1 relative to silicon compared to an etch mask selectivity of less than 40,000:1 for a prior art AlN etch mask relative to silicon. Further, due to reduced sputtering of the ScAlN etch mask, and thus reduced micromasking, the ScAlN etch mask yielded a surface roughness of 0.6 μm compared to a surface roughness of 2.8 μm for an AlN etch mask.

Research Organization:
Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA)
DOE Contract Number:
NA0003525
Assignee:
National Technology & Engineering Solutions of Sandia, LLC (Albuquerque, NM)
Patent Number(s):
10,651,048
Application Number:
16/537,953
OSTI ID:
1650902
Resource Relation:
Patent File Date: 08/12/2019
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

References (1)


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