Post-processing of indium-containing compound semiconductors

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12412747-B2
Application number	US-202318123954-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 20, 2023
Priority date	Jun 30, 2022
Publication date	Sep 9, 2025
Grant date	Sep 9, 2025

Abstract

A method of plasma etching an indium-containing compound semiconductor substrate and plasma etch apparatus for plasma etching an indium-containing semiconductor substrate can use a primary plasma etching process and a secondary plasma etching process. The primary plasma etching process uses a halogen-containing component and a nitrogen-containing component. The secondary plasma etching process uses an oxygen-containing component.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method of plasma etching an indium-containing compound semiconductor substrate, the method comprising the steps of:
providing a substrate on a substrate support within a chamber, wherein the substrate comprises an indium-containing compound semiconductor material;
performing a primary plasma etching process by generating a plasma from a first etchant gas mixture within the chamber to plasma etch the indium-containing compound semiconductor material to form an etched substrate,
wherein the first etchant gas mixture comprises a halogen-containing component and a nitrogen-containing component; and
performing a secondary plasma etching process by generating a plasma from a second etchant gas or gas mixture comprising an oxygen-containing component,

wherein an RF bias power is applied to the etched substrate during the secondary etching process and the RF bias power is between about 10 W and about 50 W.

2. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the RF bias power applied to the substrate during the secondary etching process is between about 15 W and about 40 W.

3. The method according to claim 2 , wherein the RF bias power applied to the substrate during the secondary etching process is between about 20 W and about 30 W.

4. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the second etchant gas or gas mixture consists of the oxygen-containing component.

5. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the oxygen-containing component comprises O 2 , H 2 O, N 2 O and/or O 3 .

6. The method according to claim 5 , wherein the oxygen-containing component is O 2 .

7. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the primary etching process is performed at a temperature of at least 150° C.

8. The method according to claim 7 , wherein the primary etching process is performed at a temperature of between about 150° C. and about 250° C.

9. The method according to claim 8 , wherein the primary etching process is performed at a temperature of about 175° C.

10. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the halogen-containing component is a chlorine-containing component.

11. The method according to claim 10 , wherein the chlorine-containing component is selected from the group consisting of Cl 2 , SiCl 4 and BCl 3 .

12. The method according to claim 11 , wherein the chlorine-containing component is Cl 2 .

13. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the nitrogen-containing component is N 2 .

14. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the substrate comprises an inorganic dielectric mask formed on a surface which, during the etching process, is opposite a surface in contact with the substrate support.

15. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the plasma generated in the primary and/or the secondary plasma etching process is an inductively coupled plasma.

Assignees

• Spts Technologies Ltd

Inventors

• Fan Weikang
• Beachey Adam S

Classifications

• H10P50/242 Primary

  of Group IV materials · CPC title

• H10P50/246 Primary

  of Group III-V materials · CPC title

• H10P72/0471

  comprising at least one ion or electron beam chamber · CPC title

• H10P72/0402

  Apparatus for fluid treatment (H10P72/0441, H10P72/0448 take precedence) · CPC title

• G02B2006/12078

  Gallium arsenide or alloys (GaAs, GaAlAs, GaAsP, GaInAs) · CPC title