The shelf life and film life of the electron beam resist, Microposit SAL601-ER7 from Shipley, were studied. Solutions and films of this resist were found to exhibit a performance degradation which is a function of the storage time and temperature. Refrigeration significantly improves the stability of the resist. Component studies were used to determine that the shelf life problem is due to an interaction between the novolak resin and melamine crosslinker. Results indicate that considerable stability can be realized by using less reactive crosslinkers in the resist formulation.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.