Publications Details

Reactive Ion Beam Etching of GaAs and Related Compounds in an Inductively Coupled Plasma of Cl(2)-Ar Mixture

Abernathy, C.R.; Hahn, Y.B.; Hays, D.; Lambers, E.S.; Lee, J.W.; Pearton, S.J.; Shul, R.J.; Vawter, G.A.

Reactive ion beam etching (RD3E) of GaAs, GaP, AIGaAs and GaSb was performed in a Cl2-Ar mixture using an Inductively Coupled Plasma (ICP) source. `The etch rates and yields were strongly affected by ion energy and substrate temperature. The RJBE was dominated by ion-assisted etching at <600 eV and by physical sputtering beyond 600 eV. The temperature dependence of the etch rates revealed three different regimes, depending on the substrate temperature: 1) sputtering-etch limited, 2) products-resorption limited, and 3) mass-transfer limited regions. GaSb showed the overall highest etch rates, while GaAs and AIGaAs were etched at the same rates. The etched features showed extremely smooth morphologies with anisotropic sidewalls.