Size-selective photoetching enabled precise size control of chalcopyrite AgInS 2 nanoparticles in a basic aqueous solution containing ammonia by selecting the wavelength of monochromatic irradiation light in the range between 650 and 520 nm. The energy gap of the photoetched particles was enlarged from 1.8 to 2.4 eV with a decrease in particle size from 5.1 to 2.7 nm due to the quantum size effect, while the crystal structure and chemical composition of the particles were unchanged after the photoetching processes. AgInS 2 nanoparticle-immobilized electrodes exhibited an anodic photocurrent similar to that of n-type semiconductors, the onset potential of which was negatively shifted with a decrease in particle size. Potentials of the conduction band edge (E CB ) and the valence band edge (E VB ) of AgInS 2 nanoparticles were estimated from their photoelectrochemical measurements, and they exhibited remarkable size dependence: with a decrease in particle size from 5.1 to 2.7 nm, E CB was shifted negatively from −0.6 to −1.0 V vs Ag/AgCl, accompanied by a positive shift of E VB from 1.3 to 1.7 V vs Ag/AgCl.

Extreme ultraviolet interference lithography was carried out at the long undulator beamline in NewSUBARU. It was confirmed that the spatial coherence length is 1.1 mm using a 10-µm-wide slit in the Young's double slit experiment. A 25-nm half pitch (hp) resist pattern was successfully replicated by extreme ultraviolet interference lithography (EUV-IL) utilizing a two-window transmission grating pattern of a 50-nm line and space (L/S). For the replication of a 20-nm L/S resist pattern by EUV-IL, we contrived a fabrication process that is suitable for a transmission grating pattern of 40-nm L/S and smaller. Employing a hard-mask process with a silicon dioxide (SiO2) layer on a tantalum–nitride (TaN) layer in the fabrication of a two-window transmission grating, we successfully achieved five times larger dry-etch selectivity in comparison with a non-hard-mask process. As a result, we confirmed the ability to apply this process to a 40-nm hp grating.

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The extreme ultraviolet microscope (EUVM) has been developed for an actinic mask inspection of a EUV finished mask and a EUV blank mask. Using this microscope, amplitude defects on a finished mask and phase defects on a glass substrate are observed. However, it has a problem of low contrast, which originates from 1) thermal noise of a charge coupled device (CCD) camera, 2) wave aberrations of an optical component, and 3) a nonuniform illumination intensity. To resolve these issues, EUVM was improved. 1) To reduce a thermal noise, a cooled CCD camera is installed. 2) To remove wave aberrations of a back-end turning mirror, a Mo/Si multiplayer-coated thick glass substrate with a high surface accuracy is employed instead of a Si wafer substrate. Furthermore, in situ alignment was carried out to remove wavefront aberrations for a Schwarzschild imaging optics. In addition, 3) by installing a scanning system on the front-end turning mirror, a highly uniform illumination intensity was achieved. As a result, images of less than 100 nm without astigmatism were obtained.

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