Method of making a sloped insulator charge-coupled device

A method for making a charge-coupled device that has electrodes deposited on sloped areas of an insulation layer, said method comprising:

• growing an insulation layer on a semiconductor wafer such that the insulation layer and the semiconductor form an insulation-semiconductor interface;
• depositing a first etching material on the surface of the insulation layer that is oppositely disposed from the insulation-semiconductor interface, said first etching material being reactive with etching solutions with which said insulation layer is also reactive, said first etching material having a substantially higher etching rate in said etching solutions than said insulation layer;
• depositing a second etching material on said first etching material, said second etching material being substantially inert with etching solutions with which said insulation layer and said first etching material are reactive;
• forming a bilayer structure on said insulation layer, said bilayer structure including portions of said first and second layers of etching material with channels provided in selected portions of said first and second layers;
• depositing a third layer of etching material over said bilayer structure and over said insulation layer within the channels of said bilayer structure, said third layer of etching material being reactive with etching solutions with which said first etching material and said insulation layer are reactive, said third etching material having a substantially higher etching rate in said etching solutions than said insulation layer;
• forming a channel in the third etching material, said channel being offset with respect to the channel in said bilayer structure such that a portion of said channel in the third etching material coincides with a portion of the channel of said bilayer structure;
• etching said first and third etching materials and said insulation layer until said first and third etching materials are etched away and areas of said insulation layer that were covered by said first etching material are etched to form sloped areas which are substantially in a plane that intersects the plane of the insulation-semiconductor interface;
• and
• depositing electrodes on the sloped areas of the insulation layer surface so that the electrodes induce an electric field in said semiconductor wafer in response to clocking signals, said electric field having a substantial lateral component that aids the transfer of charge carriers through the semiconductor wafer.