Prediction of release-etch times for surface-micromachined structures

A one-dimensional model is presented which describes the release-etch behavior of sacrificial oxides in aqueous HF. Starting from first principles and an empirical rate law, release etch kinetics are derived for primitive geometries. The behavior of complex three-dimensional structures is described by joining the solutions of constituent primitives and applying appropriate boundary conditions. The two fitting parameters, k/sub 1/ and k/sub 2/, are determined from the simplest structure and describe the more complex structures well. Experimental validation of the model is presented with data for all of the geometries and four types of sacrificial oxides.