The plasma etching Of SiO2 has been investigated in perfluorobutadiene-oxygen containing plasmas using a homemade dual frequency reactor. The process has been characterized by evaluating SiO2 etch rate, SiO2-to-Si selectivity, the surface contamination of Si, and the atmospheric emission of greenhouse gases. The plasma phase has been studied by means of optical emission spectroscopy. Perfluorobutadiene appears to be promising for replacing conventional high global warming potential reactants in SiO2 dry etching. (C) 2003 American Vacuum Society.