Fabricating Small Apertures in Silicon-on-Insulator Wafers

Precise small apertures for a variety of optical applications can be formed in silicon-on-insulator (SOI) wafers by use of a photolithographic process developed specifically for the purpose. In comparison with the formation of apertures in standard silicon wafers by previously developed processes (including photolithographic ones), the present combination of SOI wafers and processing yields apertures of more precise, repeatable dimensions.