Alignment feature that avoids comet tail formation in spin-on materials and production method therefor

摘要

An alignment feature that avoids comet tail formation in spin- on materials and production method therefor. In one embodiment, the present invention alignment feature that comprises a trench is anisotropically etched into a surface of a substrate layer. The alignment feature exhibits a cross-sectional profile with sidewalls that are oriented substantially orthogonal to the surface of the substrate layer. Importantly, the present invention alignment feature does not have protruding structures disposed proximate to an intersection of the sidewalls and the surface of the substrate layer. The profile of the present invention alignment feature, with the absence of protruding structures as described above, averts the formation of comet tails in subsequently deposited spin-on materials. Thus, the present invention provides an alignment feature that completely avoids the deleterious effects of comet tails in spin-on materials without having to waste voluminous amounts of expensive spin-on materials. The present invention also lowers the overall costs and improves the yield and the throughput of manufacturing processes used in the art without requiring significant expenditure in acquiring new equipment or retrofitting existing equipment.