Patent · US Expired

Selective plasma vapor etching process

US4213818A · kind A · utility

51Cited by
3References
14Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventors

Key dates

Filing dateJan 4, 1979
Grant dateJul 22, 1980
Priority date
Expiry dateJan 4, 1999

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
  • CPC primaryH01L21/31138
  • WIPO fieldSemiconductors
  • WIPO sectorElectrical engineering

Abstract

Selective plasma vapor etching process for performing operations on a solid body formed of at least two different materials capable of being vapor etched exposed at, at least, one surface of the body, with the body being disposed in a chamber having a partial vacuum therein. A gas plasma is created within the chamber to produce active species of atoms and molecules so that these species come into contact with the surface of the body to chemically react at least one of the materials with active species from the gas plasma to form a gas-non-gaseous chemical reaction by controlling the concentration and reaction kinetics of specific species, and by controlling the activation energy of the etching reactions to produce a difference in rates between the materials so that the etching is more selective to one material over the other. The species is also controlled by the frequency of the electromagnetic energy.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.