Wet Etching

Our wet etching services provide precise chemical etching solutions for semiconductor, MEMS, and microfabrication applications. We support isotropic and highly selective material removal across a wide range of substrates, including silicon, glass, quartz, and thin film materials. Wet etching is ideal for batch processing, undercut structures, and applications requiring smooth surfaces and high material selectivity. Our processes are tailored for research, prototyping, and advanced device development.

Key capabilities

Isotropic & crystallographic etching

Wet etching can produce isotropic profiles or crystal-dependent anisotropic etching depending on chemistry and substrate.

Undercut-based release structures
Crystal-plane selective etching (e.g. Si)
Uniform bulk material removal

Selective material removal

High selectivity between materials enables controlled removal of films while preserving underlying layers.

Oxide vs silicon selectivity
Metal etching chemistries
Layer-by-layer removal control

Cost-effective batch processing

Wet processes are scalable and efficient for batch fabrication and large-area substrates.

Parallel wafer processing
Simple equipment setup
High throughput capability

Etching approaches

Acid etching

Acid-based chemistries are commonly used for metals and oxide films, offering fast etch rates and high selectivity.

Alkaline etching

Alkaline solutions such as KOH or TMAH enable anisotropic silicon etching with crystal-plane dependence.

Buffered etching

Buffered oxide etchants (BOE) provide controlled etch rates and improved uniformity for oxide removal.

Technical considerations

Etch type	Isotropic / anisotropic (crystallographic)
Materials	Si, SiO₂, Si₃N₄, metals, glass
Selectivity	Material dependent chemistry control
Etch rate	Temperature and concentration dependent
Masking	Photoresist, oxide, nitride
Surface finish	Smooth or crystal-faceted surfaces
Batch scale	High throughput parallel processing

Typical materials

Silicon SiO₂ Si₃N₄ Aluminum Gold Glass Quartz

Applications

MEMS

Release structures, cavities, microchannels

Microelectronics

Oxide removal, surface cleaning, pattern transfer

Photonics

Waveguide and optical structure definition

Sensors

Selective layer removal and device structuring

Engineering considerations

Wet etching is often preferred for its simplicity, scalability, and strong material selectivity. However, compared with dry etching, it provides less directional control and may introduce undercutting. Choosing the correct chemistry, mask material, and process temperature is critical to achieving the desired etch profile and device performance.

Need a wet etching process?

Share your material, etch depth, and structure requirements.

Start your Project →