New Design Concept and Fabrication Process for Three-Dimensional Silicon Photonic Crystal Structures

Abstract

We propose a new design concept and a fabrication process for three-dimensional (3D) silicon photonic crystals on a 100 nm scale that does not require any alignment processes. The elemental technique used in this process is two directional electrochemical etching processes at a particular magnetic field. First, we have performed photonic band calculation and estimated device parameters to obtain the maximum photonic band gap in the visible range centered at around 800 nm. Next, we have experimentally observed the formation of a two-dimensional periodic pore with a diameter of 80 nm and an aspect ratio above 80 on an n+ (100) silicon substrate. Finally, we have fabricated 3D microstructures by two directional etching processes. A clear directionality for the pore formation was observed in two directions, showing the possibility of projecting the patterns formed on the slope to the side of the wafer. These fundamental etching processes can be applied to the fabrication of 3D photonic crystals in the visible range without any alignment processes.