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Etch technique
Plasma etch
Plasma etching uses an ionised gas to clean, activate or remove material from a substrate. The process window depends on gas chemistry, plasma power, pressure, substrate and material sensitivity.
Plain language guide
What this means in practice
Plasma etch uses ionised gas to clean, activate or remove material from a surface. In research labs it is often used before deposition, during pattern transfer or when a gentle surface modification is needed.
What happens in the system
- A process gas is introduced at low pressure and energised into a plasma.
- Reactive species and ions interact with the surface, either cleaning, activating or removing material.
- The result depends on gas chemistry, plasma power, pressure, time, mask material and substrate sensitivity.
What changes the result
- Plasma can be useful and damaging at the same time; low-power development is important for sensitive materials.
- Etch selectivity depends on both the material being etched and the mask or neighbouring layers.
- Process recipes from one shared tool may not transfer directly to another chamber without adjustment.
Questions to answer first
- Are you cleaning, activating, thinning or patterning the material?
- What gas chemistry is compatible with the film, substrate and mask?
- Is the work exploratory enough to benefit from a local benchtop plasma tool?
Further reading
Useful external explainers
These neutral references are included to help newer readers understand the underlying process family. Moorfield system suitability still depends on a configuration discussion.
When it helps
Where this technique fits in research workflows
Plasma cleaning, surface activation and selected RIE/soft-etch process development for research materials. Moorfield can help connect the process requirement to a practical benchtop or modular configuration without treating the guide as a final specification.
Surface preparation before deposition
Use plasma cleaning or activation when interface quality and adhesion depend on controlled pre-treatment.
Sensitive materials
Low-power soft-etch approaches can be relevant where aggressive shared etch tools would be unsuitable.
Patterning and RIE studies
Define gas chemistry, target material, mask stack and desired etch depth before specifying a system.
Configuration thinking
Map the process need to a platform discussion
The table below is guidance for early selection conversations. It deliberately avoids over-specifying performance before Moorfield has reviewed the material set and lab environment.
| Research need | Relevant process consideration | Potential Moorfield fit |
|---|---|---|
| Benchtop plasma etch | RIE, plasma cleaning and surface activation | nanoETCH |
| Etch within a larger process platform | Plasma hardware in modular chamber or load-lock by configuration | MiniLab/nanoETCH discussion |
| Need deposition as well as etch | Separate film deposition and etch requirements | nanoPVD, MiniLab and nanoETCH discussion |
Relevant platforms
Systems to consider
Start with the process requirement, then compare platform size, source options, atmosphere control, substrate handling and future expansion needs.
nanoETCH
Benchtop plasma etch and surface-preparation capability for research-scale RIE and soft-etch workflows.
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MiniLab modular PVD
Configurable modular platforms for more complex source, chamber, transfer and sample-handling requirements.
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Material selector
Look up chart-based deposition guidance by material before starting a configuration discussion.
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Related technique guides
Move between technique pages to compare process families before using the selector or contacting Moorfield.
Next step
Need help choosing a process?
Tell Moorfield about your material set, substrate size, source preference and target film stack. We can help identify a practical platform and configuration.
Plasma cleaning (etch)
Plasma cleaning using etching technology from Moorfield is used for soft etching of sensitive materials and reactive ion etching (RIE) and for substrate cleaning. The technology is available packaged into dedicated nanoETCH tools or in combination with other hardware inside larger MiniLab process chambers and load-locks.
Soft etching
Moorfield’s Soft Etching technology was developed in collaboration with the Nobel Prize-winning graphene group at Manchester University, UK. Headed by Prof. Andre Geim, the group received their first system from Moorfield when they started their 2D materials research over 10 years ago. Since then, the technology, implemented within our compact nanoETCH range, has become a critical part of all experimental work. They now have 3 tools, housed within the National Graphene Insitutute (NGI). There is also another tool at the Graphene Engineering Innovation Centre (GEIC) — also in Manchester.
Soft Etching technology is optimised for providing the fine control required for substrate and device preparation in graphene and 2D materials research:
Substrate preparation for mechanical exfoliation: When preparing 2D material ‘flakes’ via mechanical exfoliation (also known as the sticky-tape method), the nature of the substrate surface is crucial. Soft Etching tools are now being used to obtain the topological and chemical substrate surface properties necessary for producing large flake areas.
2D material patterning: Given their thinness, 2D materials are fragile and require finely-controlled etching conditions for device fabrication. Soft Etching technology provides this control and also allows for patterning without cross-linking common mask photoresists (e.g., PMMA).
Defect engineering: A key research theme for graphene science is defect engineering. Through controlled low plasma-powers, soft-etching technology is being used for creating point defects in lattices for implementing control over this aspect of the material. Fine control is necessary for reproducible results and to avoid uncontrolled material destruction.
As well as 2D materials, Soft Etching technology has found numerous other applications. For example, it has been used for precision removal of alternative resists such as PPA and for the tuning of hydrophobicity of glass slides prior to wet depositions.
Soft Etching is available within our nanoETCH and MiniLab platforms.
SF6 and CHF3 etching
While the etching of 2D materials can be done through the careful application Ar and/or O2 plasmas, other materials more commonly targeted by RIE require a more aggressive approach. For this, Moorfield etching technology has recently been enhanced to provide for the use of the fluorine-chemistry etchants SF6 and CHF3. To allow for this, both hardware and software have been upgraded in line with the demands these process gases introduce.
Some examples of applications are:
h-BN sidewalls: A pit was etched into a multi-layer stack of h-BN, using Moorfield etching technology contained within a MiniLab 026. With SF6 as the etchant gas and a Soft Etching approach, just 7–8 layers of material were removed during a 2 minute process. Residual roughness at the bottom of the pit was just 1 atomic layer.
h-BN bulk etching: By changing conditions, much higher etch rates were possible. Users were able to achieve an etch depth of 130 nm at a rate of 1.1 nm/s.
SiO2 etching: A thermally oxidised Si wafer was etched using a nanoETCH tool using CHF3 as etchant gas. An ultra-low etch rate of ~1.3 Å/s was obtained, allowing for excellent control.
Fluorine-chemistry etching is available within our nanoETCH and MiniLab platforms.
Pre-deposition plasma cleaning
A requirement for many physical vapour deposition (PVD) processes is pre-cleaning of substrates. An effective method for this is to create reactive plasmas in close proximity to substrate surfaces, leading to the removal of unwanted contaminants. Moorfield, as a leading supplier of R&D deposition tools now routinely fit systems with etching stages that provide this functionality.
Etching stages can be fitted into a process chamber in combination with the deposition substrate stage itself (the stage is first active for etching, then for deposition). However, where possible, it is best to position the cleaning stage in a supporting load-lock as this confines removed material away from the process and also allows for equipping of the main deposition stage with hardware not compatible with plasma etching.
Pre-deposition etch cleaning is available in our MiniLab PVD tools.
