High-density plasma etching of indium-zinc oxide films in Ar/Cl2 and Ar/CH4/H2 chemistries

The dry etching characteristics of transparent and conductive indium-zinc oxide (IZO) films have been investigated using an inductively coupled high-density plasma. While the Cl2-based plasma mixture showed little enhancement over physical sputtering in a pure argon atmosphere, the CH4/H2/Ar chemistry produced an increase of the IZO etch rate. On the other hand, the surface morphology of IZO films after etching in Ar and Ar/Cl2 discharges is smooth, whereas that after etching in CH4/H2/Ar presents particle-like features resulting from the preferential desorption of In- and O-containing products. Etching in CH4/H2/Ar also produces formation of a Zn-rich surface layer, whose thickness (∼40 nm) is well-above the expected range of incident ions in the material (∼1 nm). Such alteration of the IZO layer after etching in CH4/H2/Ar plasmas is expected to have a significant impact on the transparent electrode properties in optoelectronic device fabrication.