Apparatus and Methods for Cyclical Oxidation and Etching

This invention describes a machine that shapes tiny layers of material, such as those used in computer chips, by repeatedly forming and then removing a thin oxide layer from its surface. The machine performs these steps in a single chamber, etching the material at a low temperature (below 100°C) and then oxidizing it at a much higher temperature (between 200°C and 1000°C) to achieve the desired shape.

Why it matters: Filed in 2010, this technology predates the widespread maturity of Atomic Layer Etching (ALE) and advanced Atomic Layer Deposition (ALD) for precise material shaping. The continued drive for extremely narrow pitch semiconductor devices, especially for memory, makes such cyclical, atomic-scale processing more critical and feasible today.

Status: ExpiredProtection ended and was never renewed
How hard to build: SpecializedVacuum chamber, gas delivery, plasma, temperature control.

3 AI reinvention directions for this patent

See all three

AI gives you a few directions you could take this. Pick one, and we check whether your version is different enough to patent, then write the filing.

Reinvent this with AI

Where this one came from

Every morning we go through millions of abandoned patents and pick out 15 worth your time. This was one of today’s.

This one

+10