Chemical etching of pure and implanted superconducting oxide films

Abstract

Chemical etching of high-temperature superconducting films was studied. A new method of rapid etching which combines ion implantation and chemical etching is presented. Using phosphoric acid with concentration higher than , it is found that the etching rate in an ion implanted film is much faster than that in a pure film. Below the threshold concentration of , the acid has no etching affect on a pure film while it still etches an implanted film. This result is utilized in a selective etching process for patterning of superconducting oxide films.