KOH etch of silicon As temperature and concentration of the etching solution have major impact on the wet etch rates, various etching processes can be optimized and etch end points determined when the etchant concentration is known. For instance, the Potassium hydroxide, KOH etch process can be optimized when the composition of heated KOH/H2O solution is continuously monitored with Vaisala K-PATENTS® semicon refractometer. As etching progresses, some KOH (namely OH- ions) is consumed in the process and fresh etchant needs to be replaced. With Vaisala K-PATENTS® semicon refractometer the fabs can: Monitor real-time the concentration of the KOH etch bath and determine the correct etch end-point. Extend KOH etch bath life significantly, in some cases doubling the bath life. Prolong use of etchants, minimize chemical waste. Vaisala’s application note explains how a semicon refractometer can improve process with recommended installation points for best performance. Dissolved silicate increases the concentration reading. The application note also explains how to compensate this offset with simple balance calculation and without introducing any extra measurements. Download the full application note here: Email Address*First Name*Last Name*My application (process/ liquid)Country*--Please Select--United StatesUnited KingdomCanadaChinaIndiaJapanAustraliaBrazilFranceGermanyFinland--------------AfghanistanÅland IslandsAlbaniaAlgeriaAmerican SamoaAndorraAngolaAnguillaAntarcticaAntigua and BarbudaArgentinaArmeniaArubaAustraliaAustriaAzerbaijanBahamasBahrainBangladeshBarbadosBelarusBelgiumBelizeBeninBermudaBhutanBoliviaBosnia and HerzegovinaBotswanaBouvet IslandBrazilBrit/Indian Ocean Terr.Brunei DarussalamBulgariaBurkina FasoBurundiCambodiaCameroonCanadaCape VerdeCayman IslandsCentral African RepublicChadChileChinaChristmas IslandCocos (Keeling) IslandsColombiaComorosCongoCongo, The Dem. Republic OfCook IslandsCosta RicaCôte D'IvoireCroatiaCubaCyprusCzech RepublicDenmarkDjiboutiDominicaDominican RepublicEcuadorEgyptEl SalvadorEquatorial GuineaEritreaEstoniaEthiopiaFalkland IslandsFaroe IslandsFijiFinlandFranceFrench GuianaFrench PolynesiaFrench Southern Terr.GabonGambiaGeorgiaGermanyGhanaGibraltarUnited KingdomGreeceGreenlandGrenadaGuadeloupeGuamGuatemalaGuineaGuinea-BissauGuyanaHaitiHeard/McDonald Isls.HondurasHong KongHungaryIcelandIndiaIndonesiaIranIraqIrelandIsraelItalyJamaicaJapanJordanKazakhstanKenyaKiribatiKorea (North)Korea (South)KuwaitKyrgyzstanLaosLatviaLebanonLesothoLiberiaLibyaLiechtensteinLithuaniaLuxembourgMacauMacedoniaMadagascarMalawiMalaysiaMaldivesMaliMaltaMarshall IslandsMartiniqueMauritaniaMauritiusMayotteMexicoMicronesiaMoldovaMonacoMongoliaMontenegroMontserratMoroccoMozambiqueMyanmarN. Mariana Isls.NamibiaNauruNepalNetherlandsNetherlands AntillesNew CaledoniaNew ZealandNicaraguaNigerNigeriaNiueNorfolk IslandNorwayOmanPakistanPalauPalestinian Territory, OccupiedPanamaPapua New GuineaParaguayPeruPhilippinesPitcairnPolandPortugalPuerto RicoQatarReunionRomaniaRussian FederationRwandaSaint Kitts and NevisSaint LuciaSamoaSan MarinoSao Tome/PrincipeSaudi ArabiaSenegalSerbiaSeychellesSierra LeoneSingaporeSlovak RepublicSloveniaSolomon IslandsSomaliaSouth AfricaSpainSri LankaSt. HelenaSt. Pierre and MiquelonSt. Vincent and GrenadinesSudanSurinameSvalbard/Jan Mayen Isls.SwazilandSwedenSwitzerlandSyriaTaiwanTajikistanTanzaniaThailandTimor-LesteTogoTokelauTongaTrinidad and TobagoTunisiaTurkeyTurkmenistanTurks/Caicos Isls.TuvaluUgandaUkraineUnited Arab EmiratesUnited StatesUS Minor Outlying Is.UruguayUzbekistanVanuatuVatican CityVenezuelaViet NamVirgin Islands (British)Virgin Islands (U.S.)Wallis/Futuna Isls.Western SaharaYemenZambiaZimbabweState or Province*--Please Select--Other - not US or CAAlaskaAlabamaArkansasArizonaCaliforniaColoradoConnecticutD.C.DelawareFloridaMicronesiaGeorgiaHawaiiIowaIdahoIllinoisIndianaKansasKentuckyLouisianaMassachusettsMarylandMaineMichiganMinnesotaMissouriMarianasMississippiMontanaNorth CarolinaNorth DakotaNebraskaNew HampshireNew JerseyNew MexicoNevadaNew YorkOhioOklahomaOregonPennsylvaniaRhode IslandSouth CarolinaSouth DakotaTennesseeTexasUtahVirginiaVermontWashingtonWisconsinWest VirginiaWyomingAlbertaManitobaBritish ColumbiaNew BrunswickNewfoundland and LabradorNova ScotiaNorthwest TerritoriesNunavutOntarioPrince Edward IslandQuebecSaskatchewanYukon TerritoryCompany*TitleBusiness PhoneI accept marketing emails from Vaisala By submitting this form you acknowledge Vaisala’s Privacy Policy You can manage your preferences here
As temperature and concentration of the etching solution have major impact on the wet etch rates, various etching processes can be optimized and etch end points determined when the etchant concentration is known. For instance, the Potassium hydroxide, KOH etch process can be optimized when the composition of heated KOH/H2O solution is continuously monitored with Vaisala K-PATENTS® semicon refractometer. As etching progresses, some KOH (namely OH- ions) is consumed in the process and fresh etchant needs to be replaced. With Vaisala K-PATENTS® semicon refractometer the fabs can: Monitor real-time the concentration of the KOH etch bath and determine the correct etch end-point. Extend KOH etch bath life significantly, in some cases doubling the bath life. Prolong use of etchants, minimize chemical waste. Vaisala’s application note explains how a semicon refractometer can improve process with recommended installation points for best performance. Dissolved silicate increases the concentration reading. The application note also explains how to compensate this offset with simple balance calculation and without introducing any extra measurements. Download the full application note here: Email Address*First Name*Last Name*My application (process/ liquid)Country*--Please Select--United StatesUnited KingdomCanadaChinaIndiaJapanAustraliaBrazilFranceGermanyFinland--------------AfghanistanÅland IslandsAlbaniaAlgeriaAmerican SamoaAndorraAngolaAnguillaAntarcticaAntigua and BarbudaArgentinaArmeniaArubaAustraliaAustriaAzerbaijanBahamasBahrainBangladeshBarbadosBelarusBelgiumBelizeBeninBermudaBhutanBoliviaBosnia and HerzegovinaBotswanaBouvet IslandBrazilBrit/Indian Ocean Terr.Brunei DarussalamBulgariaBurkina FasoBurundiCambodiaCameroonCanadaCape VerdeCayman IslandsCentral African RepublicChadChileChinaChristmas IslandCocos (Keeling) IslandsColombiaComorosCongoCongo, The Dem. Republic OfCook IslandsCosta RicaCôte D'IvoireCroatiaCubaCyprusCzech RepublicDenmarkDjiboutiDominicaDominican RepublicEcuadorEgyptEl SalvadorEquatorial GuineaEritreaEstoniaEthiopiaFalkland IslandsFaroe IslandsFijiFinlandFranceFrench GuianaFrench PolynesiaFrench Southern Terr.GabonGambiaGeorgiaGermanyGhanaGibraltarUnited KingdomGreeceGreenlandGrenadaGuadeloupeGuamGuatemalaGuineaGuinea-BissauGuyanaHaitiHeard/McDonald Isls.HondurasHong KongHungaryIcelandIndiaIndonesiaIranIraqIrelandIsraelItalyJamaicaJapanJordanKazakhstanKenyaKiribatiKorea (North)Korea (South)KuwaitKyrgyzstanLaosLatviaLebanonLesothoLiberiaLibyaLiechtensteinLithuaniaLuxembourgMacauMacedoniaMadagascarMalawiMalaysiaMaldivesMaliMaltaMarshall IslandsMartiniqueMauritaniaMauritiusMayotteMexicoMicronesiaMoldovaMonacoMongoliaMontenegroMontserratMoroccoMozambiqueMyanmarN. Mariana Isls.NamibiaNauruNepalNetherlandsNetherlands AntillesNew CaledoniaNew ZealandNicaraguaNigerNigeriaNiueNorfolk IslandNorwayOmanPakistanPalauPalestinian Territory, OccupiedPanamaPapua New GuineaParaguayPeruPhilippinesPitcairnPolandPortugalPuerto RicoQatarReunionRomaniaRussian FederationRwandaSaint Kitts and NevisSaint LuciaSamoaSan MarinoSao Tome/PrincipeSaudi ArabiaSenegalSerbiaSeychellesSierra LeoneSingaporeSlovak RepublicSloveniaSolomon IslandsSomaliaSouth AfricaSpainSri LankaSt. HelenaSt. Pierre and MiquelonSt. Vincent and GrenadinesSudanSurinameSvalbard/Jan Mayen Isls.SwazilandSwedenSwitzerlandSyriaTaiwanTajikistanTanzaniaThailandTimor-LesteTogoTokelauTongaTrinidad and TobagoTunisiaTurkeyTurkmenistanTurks/Caicos Isls.TuvaluUgandaUkraineUnited Arab EmiratesUnited StatesUS Minor Outlying Is.UruguayUzbekistanVanuatuVatican CityVenezuelaViet NamVirgin Islands (British)Virgin Islands (U.S.)Wallis/Futuna Isls.Western SaharaYemenZambiaZimbabweState or Province*--Please Select--Other - not US or CAAlaskaAlabamaArkansasArizonaCaliforniaColoradoConnecticutD.C.DelawareFloridaMicronesiaGeorgiaHawaiiIowaIdahoIllinoisIndianaKansasKentuckyLouisianaMassachusettsMarylandMaineMichiganMinnesotaMissouriMarianasMississippiMontanaNorth CarolinaNorth DakotaNebraskaNew HampshireNew JerseyNew MexicoNevadaNew YorkOhioOklahomaOregonPennsylvaniaRhode IslandSouth CarolinaSouth DakotaTennesseeTexasUtahVirginiaVermontWashingtonWisconsinWest VirginiaWyomingAlbertaManitobaBritish ColumbiaNew BrunswickNewfoundland and LabradorNova ScotiaNorthwest TerritoriesNunavutOntarioPrince Edward IslandQuebecSaskatchewanYukon TerritoryCompany*TitleBusiness PhoneI accept marketing emails from Vaisala By submitting this form you acknowledge Vaisala’s Privacy Policy You can manage your preferences here