<i>In situ</i>dissolution analysis of half-pitch line and space patterns at various resist platforms using high speed atomic force microscopy

Santillan, Julius Joseph; Itani, Toshiro

doi:10.1117/12.2011373

Cited by 3 publications

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“…[12] HSP distance between these resist polymers and ERC candidates were calculated respectively and shown in Table 3. As our assumption is that the smaller HSP distance indicates the higher affinity, and more improvement of LER can be expected.…”

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New approach to improve LER of EUV resist pattern by chemical and thermal treatment

et al. 2015

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In this paper, we discuss a new approach to improve the resist roughness, which is applied after the lithography process. The ERC (Edge Roughness Controller) process is composed of two steps, 1) To deliver resist softening material at the resist surface 2) To give thermal flow at that region in the bake step. Several samples were prepared based on this concept and consistent improvement was observed. Finally, by optimizing ERC chemistry using HSP (Hansen Solubility Parameter), LWR improvement of 14.8% could be achieved.

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New approach to improve LER of EUV resist pattern by chemical and thermal treatment

et al. 2015

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Novel EUV resist materials design for 14nm half pitch and below

et al. 2014

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Polymers with a different Tg and activation energy were prepared to clarify influences of acid diffusion on resolution at 15 nm half-pitch (hp) and 14 nm hp using a EUV micro-field exposure tool (MET) at LBNL. Resolution on such a narrow pattern was limited by collapse and pinching. Clear relationship between pinching numbers and polymer Tg indicates that acid diffusion is one of major contributors on the pinching. In addition, polymers with a low thermal activation energy (Ea) on deprotection were effective for reducing pinching. This is probably originated from its high chemically amplification character even in low post-exposure bake (PEB) temperature to obtain both large chemical contrast and short acid diffusion. On the other hand, a good correlation between a cleanable outgassing amount and Ea indicates trade-off relationship between outgassing and resolution. Advantages of n-butyl acetate (nBA) developer have been investigated in viewpoint of dissolution uniformity. Surface roughness of a non-patterned resist film at half-exposed area, which was well correlated with LWR, was measured by AFM as indicator of uniformity in development process. To avoid any differences in resist chemistry other than development process, cross linking negative tone resist was applied for this study. The surface roughness obtained by nBA, which is conventional negative-tone imaging (NTI) developer, was 32 % lower than that obtained by 2.38 % TMAH solution. NTI resist system with a nBA developer and optimized resist reduced LWR from 4.8 nm to 3.0 nm in comparison with conventional positive tone resist with a 2.38 % TMAH developer. In addition, advantage on semi-dense trench patterning was well defined. New EUV sensitizer with 1.15 times higher EUV absorption resulted in 1.15 times higher acid yield by EUV exposure. Lithography performance of the new EUV sensitizer has been investigated by MET at SEMATECH Albany. Sensitivity was indeed improved from 20 mJ/cm 2 to 17 mJ/cm 2 according to the acid yield increase, but resolution was significantly degraded.

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In situ Analysis of the EUV Resist Pattern Formation during the Resist Dissolution Process

Santillan

Itani

2013

J. Photopol. Sci. Technol.

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The dissolution characteristics of EUV resist patterns as they are formed during the development process were analyzed using the HS-AFM. This in situ dissolution analysis method has been significantly optimized and can now be utilized for the analysis of 32 nm hp L/S pattern developed with a standard concentration (0.26 N) of the tetramethyl ammonium hydroxide developer solution. Further investigations have shown that this method is presently limited to hp L/S patterns around 32 nm hp L/S. This was mainly attributed to the comparatively thick radius of curvature of presently available cantilevers. Furthermore, the results obtained here have shown that resists of good pattern LWR exhibit smooth patterns even during dissolution. On the other hand, resists of comparatively large LWR also show signs of such roughness even during the dissolution process. These results show the possibility of defining the formation mechanism of LWR during the development process.

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In situdissolution analysis of half-pitch line and space patterns at various resist platforms using high speed atomic force microscopy

Cited by 3 publications

References 8 publications

New approach to improve LER of EUV resist pattern by chemical and thermal treatment

New approach to improve LER of EUV resist pattern by chemical and thermal treatment

Novel EUV resist materials design for 14nm half pitch and below

In situ Analysis of the EUV Resist Pattern Formation during the Resist Dissolution Process

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