Etch characteristics of magnetic tunnel junction (MTJ) stack masked with TiN films were investigated using an inductively coupled plasma reactive ion etcher in Cl-2/Ar and BCl3/Ar gases for magnetic random access memory. The effect of etch gas on the etch profile of MTJ stacks was examined. As Cl-2 and BCl3 concentrations increased, the etch slope of etched MTJ stack became slanted and the dimensional shrinkage was observed. A high degree of anisotropic etching of MTJ stacks was achieved using Cl-2/Ar gas at the optimized etch conditions. (C) 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.