Ion Beam Milling (Dry Etching) is a process where ions are driven into the part being etched at a high rate of speed. When the ions make contact, metal particles are then knocked off. Ion Beam Milling is not selective--it etches everything, but at different rates. Gold is one of the fastest metals to etch (1000A/sec).

Ion Beam Milling is the superior choice

The greatest benefit of dry etching is we can precisely duplicate the photo-resist image with no under-cut. This allows engineers to design much tighter lines and spaces for higher frequency circuits.

Ion Beam Milling (dry) provides a cleaner etching process than conventional chemical (wet) etching. Some materials such as Quartz and Platinum cannot be chemically etched without affecting other metal layers. Chemical etching can also introduce cross contamination, which degrades overall circuit performance. Dry etching offers increased yields and reliability, keeping rework down.

Etch rates for various materials

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