Reactive ion etching of ZnSe by gas mixture of ethane and hydrogen

ZnSe epitaxial layers grown by gas source molecular beam epitaxy were etched by reactive ion etching (RIE) with a gas mixture of ethane and hydrogen (C2H6/H2). Smooth etching surfaces were obtained under the following RIE conditions: an ethane concentration (flow fraction) of 3%, total flow (C2H6+H2) of 55 sccm, total pressure of 15 Pa and radio frequency power density of 0.6 W/cm2. This ethane concentration is smaller than that in III–V semiconductors, 5%–7%. The etching rate of ZnSe was 21 nm/min and smaller than that of III–V semiconductors.