Abnormal characteristics of etched profile on thick dielectrics for MEMS in inductively coupled plasma. (August 2019)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Lim, Nomin; Han, Il Ki; Kim, Young-Hwan; Lee, Hyun Woo; Cho, Yunsung; Kim, Jeong-Su; Im, Yeon-Ho; Kwon, Kwang-Ho
• Is Part Of: Vacuum. Volume 166(2019)
• Page Start: 45
• Page End: 49
• Publication Date: 2019-08
• Subjects: Plasma etching -- Etched profile -- Ion behavior -- MEMS; Vacuum -- Periodicals; 621.55
• DOI: 10.1016/j.vacuum.2019.04.054
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0042-207X

Abstract

Abstract: We present a study that shows the independent influence of abnormal ion trajectories in the etched hole profile on thick dielectrics used in micro-electro mechanical system (MEMS) fabrication under fluorocarbon plasma. Under fixed neutral and ion fluxes, a simple dielectric block located on the chuck electrode can control the plasma molding effect, thus creating non-symmetric incidence ion angles. Changes in nanoscale etching profiles with variations in the plasma molding effect were obtained to investigate the quantitative effects of abnormal incidence ion angles under fixed plasma conditions. We found no significant changes in abnormal etching behavior with variation in the size of the nanoscale hole. We believe that this approach will be an effective method to support quantitative data of predictive modeling for the better understanding of abnormal plasma etching behavior in nanoscale device fabrications. Highlights: Abnormal characteristic of etched profile on thick dielectric for MEMS application was investigated. Using plastic blocks of various heights to maximize profile tilt during contact hole etching. It supports data of predictive modeling for abnormal etching behavior.