Integrated circuit fabrication etching

Main Principles of Plasma Etching as Part of Integrated Circuit Fabrication Technology... 

Etching. After a resist is patterned on a wafer, the exposed or unwanted substrate is removed by etching processes. Subsequentiy the resist is removed, leaving a desired pattern in a functional layer of the integrated circuit. Etching is performed to pattern a number of materials in the IC fabrication process, including blanket polysiHcon, metal layers, and oxide and nitride layers. The etch process for each material is different, and adapted to the material requirements of the substrate. 

The chemical dissolution of silicon can be obtained in both liquid and gaseous media. The latter is known as dry etching or reactive ion etching (RIE) and is used in today s microelectronic manufacturing. However, wet processes related to silicon are also very important, as one third of the total number of process steps for the fabrication of today s integrated circuits involve... 

Lithography is a method of printing an image by applying patterned layers of color to paper with a series of etched metal or stone plates. This is the process used to print many newspapers and multi-colored lithographs. It is also the general name for the techniques used to fabricate integrated circuits (ICs). 

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