A review of magnetron etch technology

Magnetic confinement of a low pressure rf discharge is useful in generating high density plasmas with low sheath voltages at the bounding surfaces. Thus, substrates exposed to such plasmas receive large fluxes of low energy ions. Additionally, since source gas fragmentation is substantially higher than in conventional systems, the etching chemistry is also very different. This paper focuses on designs in which the magnetic field is generally parallel to the substrate and highlight the physical properties of these configurations which lead to low impedance and high plasma density. Examples of etching characteristics in polymer and silicon etch chemistries are given