METHOD OF WORKING MATERIAL BY HEAVY ION BOMBARDMENT AND A SUBSEQUENT ETCHING PROCESS

摘要

The invention relates to a method of producing clearances or apertures in a dielectric material by wet-chemical etching, in which surfaces of solid bodies or films of a dielectric material bombarded with high-energy heavy ions are exposed to the action of an etchant, whereby the latent ion traces produced as a result of the penetration of the heavy ions are widened into clearances or apertures. The aim is to produce clearances or apertures with geometrical dimensions that are variable within wide limits and, in particular, with a geometry that widens into the material. According to the invention, for this purpose the surface of the material is first bombarded with heavy ions of low ion energy per nucleon. The energy can be dimensioned such that the heavy ions are completely retarded within a small layer thickness of the material, but it may also cause a film to be completely penetrated by the heavy ions. Latent ion traces of a predetermined length are created. In the subsequent etching process, the temperature of the etchant is set along the trajectory of motion of the heavy ions such that a predetermined removal of material along a trajectory of motion is obtained. In this way, different geometries of the clearances or apertures created in the etching process can be produced. For example, it is possible to realize clearances which taper to a point as they extend into the material, take the form of a cylinder or take the form of a lobe as they extend into the material, but also apertures which widen as they extend into the material.