Investigation of non-selective material removal by electrochemical method on different III-V semiconductors

The electrochemical layer removal is widely used in the processing of semiconductors. The surface remaining after the layer removal is generally rough. Under certain conditions this layer removal may be selective and it results in the development of dislocation while under other conditions the selectivity decreases and the surface remains smooth after the electrochemical etching. In our present work we compared the surface characteristics of GaAs and InP after electrochemical layer removal using different electrolytes. The investigation of the surface was carried out using scanning electron microscopy and α-step profiling equipment. In order to compare the surface roughness we introduced a so-called roughness number. The surface morphology was investigated from the point of view of pattern formation.