Etching refers to removing materials from the substrate by bombarding accelerated particles to the surface of the substrate.
Etching is most used for the fabrication of integrated circuits in semi-conductor, display, and MEMS manufacturing.

Etching is divided into two types — Isometric and Anisometric.
However, as the circuit gets significantly smaller each year, anisotropic etching is preferred in most cases.

Etching takes place only in vacuum plasma systems.