Typical Thermal Atomic Layer Etching (ALE) Processes for Representative Materials

This comparison summarizes the key thermal atomic layer etching (ALE) processes reported for representative materials as presented in “Thermal atomic layer etching: Mechanism, materials and prospects” by Chang Fang, Yanqiang Cao, Di Wu, and Aidong Li https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pnsc.2018.11.003. It provides an overview of etching parameters—surface reactants, etching precursors, etching per cycle (EPC) values, and etching temperatures—for commonly studied materials such as Al₂O₃, HfO₂, ZrO₂, ZnO, TiO₂, SiO₂, WO₃, W, TiN, AlN, and AlF₃. The table highlights mechanistic diversity across fluorination, ligand-exchange, and oxidation–fluorination processes and captures how experimental variations (e.g., plasma-assisted steps) influence EPC and etch efficiency.