Mechanisms of surface processes in silicon etching

A unified view on the mechanism allowing one to explain the experimental features governing spontaneous silicon etching by atomic fluorine is presented. Analysis of the phenomenological equation of adsorption shows a significant difference between etching mechanisms at high and low heat of adsorption on the surface being etched. As follows from the parameter estimates, one or another case can be realized under different experimental conditions. At steady-state the etching is argued to be determined only by the processes taking place on the SiF. film surface. To describe the process, it is necessary to understand the mechanism of overcoming the surface barrier for fluorine penetration into the film. At low heat of fluorine adsorption the barrier is overcome by thermal activation. In the opposite case the etching mechanism includes electron tunneling from silicon to adatoms and creation of a surface electric field. The field lowers the high energetic barrier for fluorine penetration. Based on the kinetic equations describing the electronic and atomic processes on the surface, the equation of the field strength is obtained. This equation is analyzed in different limit cases. The observed features are shown to be reproduced at some conditions on the parameters. Definite predictions on the temperature dependence of the etch rate are made.