Dry Film Resist Stripping

Fall 1989

Dry Film Resist Stripping

Dry film photoresists have become the most widely used plating and etching resists for photochemical machining operations. They are classified into solvent, semi-aqueous and full aqueous resists, based on the type of chemistry required to ploce s the resist. Solvent resists use chlorinated solvents for both developing and stripping. Semi-aqueous resists are developed in a solution of weak alkali and water miscible solvent. Full aqueous resists are usually developed with weak alkali alone. They can be stripped in hot alkali, but performance of alkali-only strippers is barely adequate for many production operations. Demands for higher strip rates and loading force many users of aqueous resist to use a semi-aqueous stripper: either a homebrew solution of a glycol ether and caustic or a proprietary blend of chemicals.

Peter R. Rose and Thomas R. Meeker, Inland Specialty Chemicals