Based on research published in the November/December 2009 Journal of Vacuum Science & Technology B (JVST B), the etch recipe is available for download from ADT’s website . 

Using standard processes available in most foundries, the dry etch recipe enables designers to develop cutting-edge diamond micro devices and sensors, eliminating the complexity traditionally associated with diamond.



“The process to make diamond available, accessible, and affordable is complete. We have published this recipe so diamond can be incorporated into process flows using the same equipment and materials used to process silicon,"  says (right) ADT’s president, Neil Kane. 

"We’ve eliminated the risk—and mystery—of how to make diamond devices and we hope to stimulate the creativity and ingenuity of designers to make diamond devices without having them worry about processing steps,”

“Nanofabrication of Sharp Diamond Tips by E-beam Lithography and Inductively Coupled Plasma Reactive Ion Etching,” describes the etch recipe developed while creating sharp diamond tips for atomic force (AFM) microscopy probes.

The dry etch recipe was optimised to achieve a maximum etch rate of 650 nm/min using ADT’s UNCD Wafers. Parameters to achieve slower etch rates are also outlined, applicable for developing delicate nano-structures. Process steps for creating and patterning the hard mask, a 350nm thick plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposited SiOx layer, are also detailed.

“We have customers using our UNCD Wafers to make diamond products as diverse as AFM probes, switches for phased-array radar, biosensors to detect E. coli in water, LED lighting, and boron-doped diamond electrodes for water purification.

"A simple, optimised etch recipe makes the adoption of diamond very straightforward,” says ADT’s CTO Dr. John Carlisle. (R2L: ADT scientist Charles West, US Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman & ADT owner, Dr John Carlisle.)

“A whole generation of 2D and 3D diamond structures are now conceivable such as high performance RF MEMS devices and accelerometers,” said ADT’s MEMS lead scientist and lead author of the JVST B article, Dr. Nicolaie Moldovan.

The development of an optimised dry etch capability is part of ADT’s ongoing research to advance its 2009 R&D100 Award winning NaDiaProbes the world’s first all-diamond AFM probes, created using UNCD Wafers as  starting material.

NaDiaProbes are not diamond-coated probes or pieces of diamond mounted on cantilevers, but the entire cantilever and tip assembly is made of the thinfilm form of nanocrystalline diamondUNCD.