Si Orientation Dependent Release of SiO2 Microcantilevers by Wet Chemical Etching Method

Abstract: Micro-cantilevers (MCs) are widely used in sensing, probing and a variety of other purposes. Apart from Si, the most versatile material in the micro domain, SiO2 MCs have attracted much attention lately. In this study, fabrication of SiO2 MCs using wet anisotropic etching technique is reported. Thermally grown SiO2 (300 nm) layer on single crystalline(c-) Si is utilized for the micro-fabrication. Standard lithographic procedure was followed and the exposure of the photo-resist was performed by mask-less direct laser writer. Various orientations on the c-Si wafer, their properties and implications on the structure and integrity of the released SiO2 MC are discussed. The 110 direction was found to be much time consuming and sticking of the released structures was almost evident. On the other hand 100 and 410 directions showed lesser release time and higher stability of the released structures due to under-etching along the width of the MCs.