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Room-Temperature Radical-Complexation Wet Etch Chemistry Demonstrated on VO2
Ha Young Choi1, Lance McGowen1, Kyung Ho Park2
1Department of Physics, Sungkyunkwan University, 2066 Seobu-ro, Jangan-gu, Suwon, Gyeonggi-do16419, Republic of Korea.
ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces
|August 10, 2026
Summary
A new room-temperature wet etching method using HCl/H2O2 for vanadium dioxide (VO2) thin films improves pattern fidelity and material preservation. This advanced etching technique enhances device performance and reproducibility in oxide electronics.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Nanotechnology
- Chemical Engineering
Background:
- Metal oxide device fabrication faces challenges with pattern fidelity and low thermal budgets.
- Existing etching strategies for vanadium dioxide (VO2) thin films are limited.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop a room-temperature wet etching strategy for VO2 thin films.
- To improve pattern fidelity, material preservation, and device reproducibility in oxide electronics.
Main Methods:
- A novel HCl/H2O2 wet etching system was developed for VO2 thin films.
- The system utilizes radical-assisted oxidation and chloride complexation for efficient material removal.
- Characterization included structural, morphological, electrical, and device-level analyses.
Main Results:
- The HCl/H2O2 system achieved a high VO2 etch rate (5.64 nm/min) and excellent selectivity (806:1) over sapphire substrates.
- Minimized lateral width loss (0.47 µm) was observed, with increased selectivity and reduced lateral loss compared to conventional etchants.
- Etching preserved intrinsic VO2 properties and reduced device switching variability by up to 38%.
Conclusions:
- The developed wet etching strategy offers a practical framework for reliable fabrication of functional oxide devices.
- Mechanism-driven wet chemistry can simultaneously enhance pattern fidelity, material preservation, and device reproducibility.
- This approach establishes a direct process-structure-device relationship crucial for oxide electronics advancement.