An argon Ion Beam Etching (IBE) simulation model has been developed to inve
stigate the mesa profile evolution in III-V semiconductors' technology. Par
ticular attention has been focused on the sputtering yield angular dependen
ce effect, on the influence of the material and 2D-morphology of the mask o
nto the pattern transfer. Experimental sputtering yield versus ion incidenc
e angle is injected into the simulation model. The equations which govern t
he surface evolution, stem from the current method of characteristics. The
simulated profiles show that the trenching phenomenon can appear by only co
nsidering the variation of the sputtering yield versus the etched surface c
anting. This is obtained when neither the ion reflection nor the electric f
ield line deviation are taken into account. On the other hand, the slope tr
ansfer from the mask to the GaAs and InP substrates is studied.