NSF Award
9960809
This Small Business Innovation Research Phase I project proposes to demonstrate a novel method of very-high-throughput isotropic etching for semiconductor manufacturing. Many steps in semiconductor manufacturing, especially the removal of photoresist, employ isotropic etching, often implemented with low-pressure plasma. We have demonstrated that inductive thermal plasmas can be used for isotropic etching at atmospheric pressure, achieving very high local etch rates while simplifying equipment requirements. We propose to develop a novel extended 'linear' plasma source, which will enable tool throughputs of 200-500 wafers/hour, much higher than conventional methods can achieve. Commercialization of the technology will be pursued through licensing arrangements with existing manufacturers of semiconductor capital equipment, who will in their turn be able to achieve compelling cost-of-ownership advantages in resist strip, backside etch, wafer thinning, and other isotropic etch steps.
