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Excimer-Laser-Assisted Etching of Gallium Arsenide: The Effect of Substrate Temperature

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  26 February 2011

Michael R. Berman*
Affiliation:
McDonnell Douglas Research Laboratories, P. O. Box 516, St. Louis, MO 63166
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Abstract

The excimer-laser-assisted etching of GaAs in Cl2 at 308 nm has been studied as a function of substrate temperature in the range of 23 to 150°C. Rectangular channels were etched into (100)-oriented, undoped GaAs wafers. The fluence from the xenon chloride excimer laser at the GaAs surface was 175 mJ/cm2. At temperatures below 75°C, the etch rate was independent of substrate temperature and the etch rate increased with Cl2 pressure from 0.4 to 2.0 Torr. At substrate temperatures above 75°C, the etch rate increased with increasing substrate temperatures and was independent of Cl2 pressure. Analysis of the temperature dependence of the total etch rate above 75°C according to an Arrhenius expression gave an activation energy of 11.8 kcal/mol, which is consistent with the enthalpy of vaporization of GaCl3. The onset of the temperature dependent region coincides with the melting point of GaCl3.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 1991

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