A method for performing atomic layer etching (ALE) on a substrate, including the following method operations: performing a surface modification operation on a surface of the substrate, the surface modification operation configured to convert at least one monolayer of the substrate surface to a modified layer; performing a removal operation on the substrate surface, to remove the modified layer from the substrate surface, wherein removing the modified layer includes exposing the substrate surface to a metal complex, such that a ligand exchange reaction occurs between the metal complex and converted species of the modified layer; performing, following the removal operation, a plasma treatment on the substrate surface, the plasma treatment configured to remove residues formed from the exposure of the substrate surface to the metal complex, wherein the residues are volatilized by the plasma treatment; repeating the foregoing operations until a predefined thickness has been etched from the substrate surface.