Impact of template stiffness during peeling release in nanoimprint lithography

Abstract

In earlier works, the authors observed that the template stiffness played a role in the success of the demolding step in nanoimprint lithography. They established that the release force increases with the template stiffness whereas the induced stress in the resist follows an opposite trend, decreasing with an increase in the template stiffness. However, the results obtained were quantitatively inconsistent with the experimental results; therefore, the authors set up a new simulation model in order to obtain realistic values. They successfully demonstrated that the bending of the template, depending on its stiffness, is a key factor to be optimized in order to reduce the defect formation during the process.

Continuous roller nanoimprinting: next generation lithography

“…The maximum demold force is not directly proportional to the mold area. 137 For a given mold size, the maximum demolding force depends on the stiffness of the mold, with a lower stiffness indicating a lower demolding force. However, the induced stress acting on the resist declines as the stiffness of the template increases, which reduces the defects of demolding in theory.…”