Chromium (Cr) metal is commonly used to make photomasks for lithography it is also used as a hardmask for etching materials such as Silicon Dioxide. It can be etched using Inductively Coupled Plasma (ICP), Reactive Ion Etching (RIE) or Ion Beam Etch (IBE).
Process demonstrates excellent control of CD with optimised profile.
70nm Fused Silica lines. 933nm deep Cr mask. Courtesy of Cornell Nanoscience facility
Process expertise applied to control redeposition and produce good profile at competitive etching rate.
Good control of profile demonstrated across wafer.