Reactive Ion Etching of Sputtered PbZr1-xTixO3 Thin Films

Reactive ion etching (RIE) by CCl4 plasma of sputtered PbZr1-x Ti x O3 (PZT) thin film has been investigated. The etching rate of the as-deposited pyrochlore phase PZT is comparable to that of perovskite which was crystallized by 600°C annealing. Etching rate increased with increasing RF power and reached a plateau at 1.0 W/cm2. Highly anisotropic etching of PZT with little resist damage could be realized by reducing RF power.