Etching a substrate: processes – Nongaseous phase etching of substrate – Etching inorganic substrate
Reexamination Certificate
2011-04-19
2011-04-19
Olsen, Allan (Department: 1716)
Etching a substrate: processes
Nongaseous phase etching of substrate
Etching inorganic substrate
C438S745000, C257SE21309, C257SE21582, C257SE21645
Reexamination Certificate
active
07927500
ABSTRACT:
The use of an ammonium hydroxide spike to a hot tetra methyl ammonium hydroxide (TMAH) solution to form an insitu poly oxide decapping step in a polysilicon (poly) etch process, results in a single step rapid poly etch process having uniform etch initiation and a high etch selectivity, that may be used in manufacturing a variety of electronic devices such as integrated circuits (ICs) and micro electro-mechanical (MEM) devices. The etching solution is formed by adding 35% ammonium hydroxide solution to a hot 12.5% TMAH solution at about 70° C. at a rate of 1% by volume, every hour. Such an etch solution and method provides a simple, inexpensive, single step self initiating poly etch that has etch stop ratios of over 200 to 1 over underlying insulator layers and TiN layers.
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Micro)n Technology, Inc.
Olsen Allan
Schwegman Lundberg & Woessner, P.A.
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