Abstract: Method for etching metal oxide films, especially tin oxide on a substrate in which a metal (Zn) is deposited on said film and etching is performed by a mixture of an acid, such as hydrochloric acid (HCl) and a metal dissolution agent, such as ferric chloride. The hydrochloric acid reacts with the zinc to produce active hydrogen which reduces the tin oxide to tin, which in turn is etched with the hydrochloric acid.

Abstract: An alumina film, a silicon oxide film, and a silicon nitride film formed on a substrate containing a large amount of alumina are etched by using an etching material in which the concentration of ammonium fluoride, which is a component of BHF, is set low. Etching is performed by using an etching material that is an aqueous solution produced by mixing hydrofluoric acid, ammonium fluoride and water at a weight ratio of x:y:(100-x-y) where x and y satisfy a relationship y<-2x+10 (0<x.ltoreq.5, 0<y.ltoreq.10). 50% hydrofluoric acid on the market and 40% aqueous solution of ammonium fluoride are used.

Abstract: A method of manufacturing a decorative article, the method including: choosing a non-silicon substrate material which will form the substrate for the decorative article; coating the substrate with a photoresist material; forming a decorative graphic art image pattern in the photoresist coating; transferring the decorative graphic art image pattern in the photoresist coating to the substrate; and removing the photoresist coating.

Abstract: A method in a variable-gap plasma processing chamber for controlled removal of at least a portion of an upper crust of a photoresist layer disposed above a substrate. The upper crust represents a hardened upper layer of the photoresist layer. The method includes loading the substrate into the variable-gap plasma processing chamber. The method further includes flowing an ash source gas comprising O.sub.2 into the variable-gap plasma processing chamber. The ash source gas is substantially free of an O.sub.2 bombarding gas. The method further includes performing the controlled removal of at least the portion of the upper crust of the photoresist layer with a plasma struck from the ash source gas while a gap between an upper surface of the substrate and an upper electrode of the variable-gap plasma processing chamber is maintained at a predefined wide gap distance.

Abstract: A method for pre-shaping a major surface (21,22) of a semiconductor wafer (20) in preparation for polishing includes shaping the major surface (21,22) so that it has a concave shape. In a preferred method, an etching process is used to form the concave shape. The concave shape provides a starting wafer that is extremely flat after polishing.

Abstract: In a method of holding a substrate and a substrate holding system, the amount of foreign substances on the back surface of the substrate can be decreased and only a small amount of foreign substances transferred from a mounting table to the substrate. For this purpose, the substrate holding system has a ring-shaped leakage-proof surface providing a smooth support surface on the specimen table corresponding to the periphery of the substrate, a plurality of contact holding portions which bear against the substrate on the specimen table between the corresponding position to the periphery of the substrate and the corresponding position to the center of the substrate, and electrostatic attraction means for fixing the substrate by contacting the back surface of the substrate to the ring-shaped leakage-proof surface and the contact holding portions.

Abstract: A substrate processing system configured for processing a substrate utilizing source gas released from at least one gas jet into a substrate processing chamber of the substrate processing system. The substrate processing system includes a first gas port configured to introduce the gas jet into the substrate processing chamber and a directional blocking wall protruding above a plane formed by the opening of the first gas port. The directional blocking wall is disposed closer to a first portion of a circumference of the first gas port than a second portion of the circumference.

Abstract: Improved commercial single crystal wafers (250), as shipped to end users form a full circle, and comprise a "stress concentration notch" (172) which accurately defines a desired cleavage plane. The stress concentration notch is introduced into the wafers in bulk by means of a properly oriented cut along the length of a single crystal ingot, after machining the ingot to the desired end product diameter, and prior to sawing the ingot into slices. The stress concentration notch uniquely defines the first and second faces of the wafer.

Abstract: The dry etching device according to the present invention comprises a vacuum chamber connected to a vacuum source, a gas supply unit including a gas supply source and a number of gas supply pipes for leading a gas from the gas supply source to an inside of the vacuum chamber, and a number of electrical discharge electrodes, respectively arranged inside the vacuum chamber, for changing the gas led to the inside of the vacuum chamber into a plasma, active ions or both of the plasma and the active ions, wherein the electrical discharge electrode has a number of circular or polygonal ring shaped permanent magnets detachably interfitted into a shaft at regular intervals via each insulator in a magnetizing direction of the each permanent magnet, and aligned so that each magnet pole of the permanent magnets adjacent to each other may be equal to that of the adjacent permanent magnet.

Abstract: A susceptor on which a wafer is placed, and an upper electrode are arranged in the processing chamber of an etching apparatus to oppose each other. An optical transmission window is disposed in the side wall of the processing chamber. The upper electrode and the susceptor are supplied with RF powers from a second RF power supply and a first RF power supply, respectively, to excite a plasma in the processing chamber. Emission of the plasma is detected by an optical detector through the optical transmission window, and data is sampled. In a CPU, the sampling data is subjected to fitting based on the Weibull distribution function, thus obtaining an approximate equation, and furthermore the differential equation of the approximate equation is obtained. The virtual end point of etching is expected from the approximate equation and differential equation.

Abstract: This disclosure relates to an anhydrous dental etchant composition that includes a mixture of phosphoric acid or an equivalent and anhydrous glycerin having a final acid concentration in the range of 10% to 40%, and having a trace of a color indicator therein; and a unit package and dispenser for the anhydrous dental etch that includes an applicator and a predetermined amount of anhydrous etchant which is self contained for single patient application and which can be readily disposed of after use.

Abstract: A plasma reactor for generating and maintaining plasma. The plasma reactor has a resonant cavity whose cross-section tapers in summit regions in which the wall of the resonant cavity is closed to such an extent that an excited field mode in the region of the cross-sectional tapered portions displays main peaks whose maximum field intensity is increased relative to the field intensity of adjacent secondary peaks. A reaction unit is provided in the region of a main peak with a substrate which is to be processed and which can be coated in the gas phase of the plasma. As a result of the field intensity distribution brought about by a resonant cavity of the given shape, with main peaks which are greatly increased with respect to secondary peaks, process parameters such as gas pressure and coupled electromagnetic power can be selected very largely independently of one another when the plasma is in a stable situation, without the plasma igniting undesirably in the region of the secondary peaks.

Abstract: The present invention generally provides a rotary wafer carousel and related wafer handler for moving wafers or other workpieces through a processing system, i.e., a semiconductor fabrication tool. Generally, the present invention includes a rotary wafer carousel having a plurality of wafer seats disposed thereon to support one or more wafers. The rotary carousel is preferably disposed through the lid in a transfer chamber opposite the robot which is preferably disposed through the bottom of the transfer chamber. The rotary carousel and the robot cooperate to locate wafers adjacent to process chambers and move wafers into and out of various chambers of the system. The invention improves the throughput of the system by positioning wafers adjacent to the appropriate chamber to reduce the amount of movement required of the robot for transporting wafers between chambers.

Abstract: A plasma reactor has plural dielectric gas injection tubes extending from a gas injection source and through a microwave guide and into the top of the reactor chamber. The semiconductor wafer rests near the bottom of the chamber on a wafer pedestal connected to a bias RF power source which is controlled independently of the microwave source coupled to the microwave guide. The microwaves from the waveguide ignite and maintain a plasma in each of the tubes. Gas flow through the tubes carries the plasmas in all the tubes into the chamber and into contact with the wafer surface.

Abstract: A resist having a three-dimensional shape of a microlens array and a material layer of the microlens array are simultaneously etched under a condition by which planar patterns transferred from the resist to the material layer are larger than planar patterns of the resist. The spacing between microlenses can be made narrower than the spacing between the planar patterns of the resist. Even when the planar shape of the microlens is an ellipse, the curvatures can be optimized in both the row and column directions by making the heights in these directions different from each other. It is possible to provide a microlens array having a small non-focusing region and a solid-state image pickup device having a high sensitivity and little smear.

Abstract: A method for reducing particles (235) during a semiconductor process. A semiconductor substrate (230) is placed into a processing chamber (210). A processing pressure (108) is applied within the chamber (212). A processing power (102) is applied to the chamber. A grid power (104,106) for removing particles (235) is applied to the chamber (212). The processing power (102) is removed. The grid power (106) is removed after the processing power (102).

Abstract: An object of the present invention is to provide a method for the heat treatment of a ZnSe crystal whereby the crystal can be prevented from crystallinity deterioration and caused to have low resistivity without occurrence of precipitates in the crystal.The feature of the present invention consists in a method for the heat treatment of ZnSe comprising subjecting ZnSe crystal grown by a chemical vapor transport method using iodine as a transport agent to a heat treatment in a Zn vapor atmosphere and controlling a cooling rate after the heat treatment in 10 to 200.degree. C./min.

Abstract: A method of enabling analysis of defects of a semiconductor with three dimensions includes the steps of: coating a photoresist film on the passivation layer except a predetermined portion of the passivation layer including a portion where the defects exist; coating a vinyl film on the photoresist film and on the side of the wafer; removing the passivation layer on the second metal interconnect; and removing an insulating layer formed between two metal interconnects using a selective wet etching. The defects existing in the metal interconnects remaining after etching of the passivation layer and insulating layer are thereby observable, e.g., with a scanning electron microscope or equivalent, the wafer being set on a holder of the scanning electron microscope and being changed in tilt and rotational angles whereby the analysis is enabled.

Abstract: A method for continuously monitoring and controlling the etch rates within integrated circuits of silicon nitride insulator layers and silicon nitride insulator structures in aqueous ortho-phosphoric acid (H3PO4) solutions. To practice the method of the present invention, there is first provided an etch bath chamber containing therein an aqueous ortho-phosphoric acid (H3PO4) solution. There is provided continuously from the etch bath chamber to a hydrometer cell a sample stream of the aqueous ortho-phosphoric acid (H3PO4) solution. The sample stream of the aqueous ortho-phosphoric acid (H3PO4) solution is analyzed continuously within the hydrometer cell to provide a continuous specific gravity analysis of the sample stream of the aqueous ortho-phosphoric acid (H3PO4) solution.

Abstract: Disclosed is a method of fabricating electronic components on a semiconductor substrate by etching features in the substrate through a mask including apertures which are separated by a prescribed spacing. Etching is continued until the etched features merge into a single channel. This technique can be used to form channels having nonuniform shapes, or could be used to monitor the end point of an etching operation.