Abstract: This paper presents a Monte Carlo method for the simulation of the surface morphology during wet anisotropic etching.Based on the step flow model,the atomistic characteristics of the active step region of four silicon crystalline families (h+2,h,h),(h,1,1),(h+2,h+2,h),and (h,h,1) are investigated.Atoms with 3 first neighbors and 7 second neighbors on the active step region are restricted in the removal probability under the effect of both micro mask and silicate particles adherence.By applying the above conditions on the RPF function,the formation of pyramid protrusion on (100) plane,the zigzag strip structures on (110) plane,and triangular etch pits on (111) plane is explained and simulated.The simulation result on three principle planes and high index (332) plane agrees well with the surface morphology from the experiment,which provides verification of the simulation method.

Key words: Monte Carlo simulation, single crystal silicon, wet chemical etching, surface morphology