Reactive ion etching assisted lift-off processes for fabricating thick metallization patterns with tight pitch

• Main Authors: Cohen Guy M, Engelmann Sebastian U, Patel Jyotica V, Holmes Steve
• Format: Patent
• Language: English
• Published: 08.08.2017
• Subjects: APPARATUS SPECIALLY ADAPTED THEREFOR; BASIC ELECTRIC ELEMENTS; CASINGS OR CONSTRUCTIONAL DETAILS OF ELECTRIC APPARATUS; CINEMATOGRAPHY; CURRENT COLLECTORS; ELECTRIC SOLID STATE DEVICES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; ELECTRIC TECHNIQUES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; ELECTRICITY; ELECTROGRAPHY; HOLOGRAPHY; LINE CONNECTORS; MANUFACTURE OF ASSEMBLAGES OF ELECTRICAL COMPONENTS; MATERIALS THEREFOR; ORIGINALS THEREFOR; PHOTOGRAPHY; PHOTOMECHANICAL PRODUCTION OF TEXTURED OR PATTERNED SURFACES,e.g. FOR PRINTING, FOR PROCESSING OF SEMICONDUCTORDEVICES; PHYSICS; PRINTED CIRCUITS; SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES

Lift-off methods for fabricating metal line patterns on a substrate are provided. For example, a method to fabricate a device includes forming a sacrificial layer on a substrate and forming a photoresist mask over the sacrificial layer, isotropically etching a portion of the sacrificial layer exposed through an opening of the photoresist mask to form an undercut region in the sacrificial layer below the photoresist mask, wherein the undercut region defines an overhang structure, and anisotropically etching a portion of the sacrificial layer exposed through the opening of the photoresist mask to form an opening through the sacrificial layer down to the substrate. Metallic material is deposited to cover the photoresist mask and to at least partially fill the opening formed in the sacrificial layer without coating the overhang structure with metallic material. The sacrificial layer is dissolved to lift-off the metallic material covering the photoresist mask.