Choi, Sunhae Bong, Haekyun Kim, Kyunghwan Jeon, Sumin Oh, Jungwoo 2026-02-04T07:00:19Z 2026-02-04T07:00:19Z 2026-02-02 2026-01 1463-9076 https://pubs.kist.re.kr/handle/201004/154207 Metal-assisted chemical etching (MACE) has emerged as a promising method for fabricating high-aspect-ratio Si microstructures without the damage or complexity associated with plasma-based etching. However, its thermal activation behavior and the role of catalyst morphology remain poorly understood, especially at the microscale. This study systematically investigated the effects of etchant temperature, metal thickness, and pattern geometry on the etching kinetics of MACE. By constructing Arrhenius plots from etch depth data, activation energies were extracted under various catalyst conditions, revealing that both metal coverage and thickness significantly influence the thermal energy barrier. Notably, an activation energy as low as 20.02 kJ mol−1 was achieved, which is substantially lower than that of conventional wet etching (>50 kJ mol−1), highlighting the efficiency of catalytic charge injection and transport in MACE. This quantitative analysis provides new insights into the fundamental mechanism of MACE and offers practical guidance for optimizing microscale three-dimensional Si fabrication processes. English Royal Society of Chemistry Analysis of metal-assisted chemical etching for microscale Si structures using Arrhenius method Article 10.1039/d5cp04347f 1 Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics, v.28, no.3, pp.2615 - 2620 Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics 28 3 2615 2620 Y scie scopus 001659656700001 2-s2.0-105027268494 Chemistry, Physical Physics, Atomic, Molecular & Chemical Chemistry Physics Article SILICON