Etch Rate of SOI Wafers: Exploring RIE Experiments

[Excom]

Hi

I am trying to make a Si nanowire MOSFET and in this process I have to etch the toplayer of a SOI wafer.

I have made some reactive ion etching (RIE) experiments on Si wafers and obtained an etch rate of 550 nm/min. SF6 have been used as the feedstock gas.

However, when trying to etch the to Si layer on a SOI wafer the etch rate is reduced to 10 nm/min. Is there anyone that can explain this lowering of the etch rate when going form a Si wafer to a SOI wafer? Or is there anyone that have a good recipe for RIE etching of SOI wafers?

 

[Mapes]

I wonder if charging of the top layer is affecting the etch process. What's your biasing setup (e.g., DC, RF)?

CF₄ is another very common etch gas for silicon, but you may encounter the same problem.

 

[Excom]

I am using a RF plasma.

I will try to exchange the SF₆ with CF₆ and see what happens.

Thanks for your help.

 

[Mapes]

Hmm, RF should get around any problems with non-conductive layers. The buried oxide is somewhat of a thermal insulator, but that should only speed up etching if the top silicon layer is getting hotter than a regular wafer would. I'm stumped.

Maybe the CF₄ will work well, and in any case it's good experience to try another etch recipe. Usually some oxygen is added to react with any deposited carbon. Hopefully a characterized recipe already exists for your tool.

 

[L62]

are you using RIE or DRIE (passivation steps)?

 

[Excom]

I am using RIE

 

[Mapes]

Any progress?

 

[L62]

the lowering of the etch rate could be due to a change in thermal conductivity since now the flim is on a different substrate and the oxide has a lower thermal conductivity. did your etch geometry change? etch rate also changes with geometry of exposed area due to the loading effect.

 

[Excom]

I have had no progress with the etching.

One solution could be that I try to use a ICP RIE system instead of a RIE system.

Lower thermal conductivity. Why should a lower thermal conductivity result in a lower etching rate? A higher temperature will probably only increase the etch rate or is there something that I am not aware of?

The geometry that I am trying to etch on the SOI wafer is the same as the one on the SI wafer.