The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Sep. 01, 2026
Filed:
Sep. 29, 2024
Tokyo Electron Limited, Tokyo, JP;
Tulashi Dahal, Austin, TX (US);
Kate Abel, Austin, TX (US);
Tokyo Electron Limited, Tokyo, JP;
Abstract
Various embodiments of methods are provided for etching tungsten in a wet ALE process. The methods disclosed herein use a wide variety of wet etch chemistries to: (a) halogenate a tungsten surface and form a self-limiting, tungsten halide passivation layer in a surface modification step of the wet ALE process, and (b) selectively remove the tungsten halide passivation layer in a dissolution step of the wet ALE process. In the embodiments disclosed herein, a surface modification solution containing a halogenation agent dissolved in non-aqueous solvent is used to form a self-limiting, tungsten halide passivation layer, which is selectively removed in an aqueous dissolution solution via reactive dissolution/hydrolysis.