Effect of Hydrobromic Acid Concentration on the Chemical Etching Behavior of PbTe and Pb1 –xSnxTe Single Crystals in Aqueous H2O2–HBr–Ethylene Glycol Solutions

Abstract

We have studied the effect of HBr concentration in (H₂O₂–HBr–EG)/EG etching mixtures on chemical–mechanical polishing (CMP) and dynamic chemical polishing (DCP) of single-crystal PbTe and Pb_{1 –x}Sn_xTe solid solutions. The CMP and DCP rates have been measured as functions of solution composition, and the effect of initial HBr concentration on the composition range of polishing etchants, surface quality, and surface condition after polishing has been assessed by measuring surface roughness. We have optimized the composition of polishing mixtures and processing conditions for obtaining high-quality polished surfaces.