Fundamentals of Plasma Etching of Indium Tin Oxide Thin Film

This paper reviews the basic mechanism of plasma etch of ITO. The chemistry of surface reactions, i.e., halide and organic compound froamtions, has been examined. Examples on various ITO etch processes based on different gases and reactor designs have been studied. In addition to etch rate, other small-geometry, large-area etching issues have also been discussed. The high temperature process has the potential to fulfill most of the ITO etch requirements. However, more studies are needed.