Inductively coupled plasma etching in fabrication of 2D InP-based photonic crystals

The authors developed an inductively coupled plasma etching process for the fabrication of hole-type photonic crystals in InP. The etching was performed at 70°C using BCl3∕Cl2 chemistries. A high etch rate of 1.4μm∕min was obtained for 200nm diameter holes. The process also yields nearly cylindrical hole shape with a 10.8 aspect ratio and more than 85° straightness of the smooth sidewall. Surface-emitting photonic crystal laser and edge emitting one were demonstrated in the experiments.