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Vapor Phase Metal‐Assisted Chemical Etching of Silicon
Author(s) -
Hildreth Owen J.,
Schmidt Daniel R.
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
advanced functional materials
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 6.069
H-Index - 322
eISSN - 1616-3028
pISSN - 1616-301X
DOI - 10.1002/adfm.201304129
Subject(s) - materials science , silicon , isotropic etching , etching (microfabrication) , mace , dry etching , microelectromechanical systems , catalysis , metal , chemical engineering , microporous material , reactive ion etching , nanotechnology , analytical chemistry (journal) , composite material , optoelectronics , metallurgy , chromatography , organic chemistry , psychology , chemistry , layer (electronics) , psychiatry , myocardial infarction , conventional pci , engineering
This work introduces and explores vapor phase metal‐assisted chemical etching (VP‐MaCE) of silicon as a method to bypass some of the challenges found in traditional liquid phase metal‐assisted chemical etching (LP‐MaCE). Average etch rates for Ag, Au, and Pd/Au catalysts are established at 31, 70, and 96 nm/min respectively, and the relationship between etch rate and substrate temperature is examined experimentally. Just as with LP‐MaCE, 3D catalyst motion is maintained and three‐dimensional structures are fabricated with nanoparticle‐ and lithography‐patterned catalysts. VP‐MaCE produces less microporous silicon compared with LP‐MaCE and the diffusion/reduction distance of Ag + ions is significantly reduced. This process sacrifices etch rate for increased etch uniformity and lower stiction for applications in micro‐electromechanical systems (MEMS) processing.