Evaporated As2S3 thin films are employed as inorganic resists in microlithography. Its sensitivity is enhanced by overcoating with a AgCl layer to form a composite. The approach combines the silver halide technology well known to the photographic industry with the newly developed chalcogenide resist technology to yield higher sensitivity and resolution. A CF4 plasma process is developed for pattern generation in these inorganic resists. Since the resist contains arsenic, a dopant for silicon device fabrication, a diffusion process is developed and silicon p–n diodes are fabricated and characterized. A complete dry process of silicon device fabrication is discussed. Possible mechanisms of the photostructural change in As2S3 and the silver photodissolution into As2S3 are mentioned.