This PDF file contains the front matter associated with SPIE Proceedings Volume 11610, including the Title Page, Copyright information, and Table of Contents.

Manufacturing cost is the highest risk for μLED displays. μLED display cost is composed of backplane and frontplane costs. Backplane cost may be similar to OLED displays. The major cost contributors for frontplane are epitaxy, transfer, and defect management. Here, the technology requirements for manufacturing high performance, cost-effective μLED displays are discussed.

The end of Moore’s law scaling represents a major paradigm change for the semiconductor industry. Value-add will no longer defined simply by technology but by custom design and architecture solutions for specific applications. This represents a shift in business model to a larger number of more custom designs fabricated in lower volumes. This shift will be discussed together with potential new applications for such low volume chips.

Imprint lithography is an effective and well-known technique for replication of nano-scale features. Nanoimprint lithography (NIL) manufacturing equipment utilizes a patterning technology that involves the field-by-field deposition and exposure of a low viscosity resist deposited by jetting technology onto the substrate. The patterned mask is lowered into the fluid which then quickly flows into the relief patterns in the mask by capillary action. Following this filling step, the resist is crosslinked under UV radiation, and then the mask is removed, leaving a patterned resist on the substrate. The technology faithfully reproduces patterns with a higher resolution and greater uniformity compared to those produced by photolithography equipment. Additionally, as this technology does not require an array of wide-diameter lenses and the expensive light sources necessary for advanced photolithography equipment, NIL equipment achieves a simpler, more compact design, allowing for multiple units to be clustered together for increased productivity. Previous studies have demonstrated NIL resolution better than 10nm, making the technology suitable for the printing of several generations of critical memory levels with a single mask. In addition, resist is applied only where necessary, thereby eliminating material waste. Given that there are no complicated optics in the imprint system, the reduction in the cost of the tool, when combined with simple single level processing and zero waste leads to a cost model that is very compelling for semiconductor memory applications. DRAM memory is challenging, because the roadmap for DRAM calls for continued scaling, eventually reaching half pitches of 14nm and beyond. For DRAM, overlay on some critical layers is much tighter than NAND Flash, with an error budget of 15-20% of the minimum half pitch. For 14nm, this means 2.1-2.8nm. DRAM device design is also challenging, and layouts are not always conducive to pitch dividing methods such as SADP and SAQP. This makes a direct printing process, such as NIL and attractive solution. The purpose of this paper is to review the performance improvements related to overlay, resolution and pattern transfer. Improvements in overlay include control methods such as imprint force, mask to wafer tip/tilt and pneumatic controls at the wafer edge. We also introduce the pattern transfer scheme used to etch features with half pitches below 20nm.

The integration of a NIL into production for advanced memory devices will require compatibility with existing high-end optical lithography processes in order to meet the aggressive overlay performance specifications. To deliver such a demanding overlay specification, it is necessary for NIL to achieve reliable alignment and to expand its overlay error budget to include as many as higher-order error components along with their countermeasure options. In this paper, NIL overlay models have been developed to address alignment of full fields and partial fields.

Imprint lithography is an effective and well-known technique for replication of nano-scale features. Nanoimprint lithography (NIL) manufacturing equipment utilizes a patterning technology that involves the field-by-field deposition and exposure of a low viscosity resist deposited by jetting technology onto the substrate. The patterned mask is lowered into the fluid which then quickly flows into the relief patterns in the mask by capillary action. Following this filling step, the resist is crosslinked under UV radiation, and then the mask is removed, leaving a patterned resist on the substrate. The technology faithfully reproduces patterns with a higher resolution and greater uniformity compared to those produced by photolithography equipment. Additionally, as this technology does not require an array of wide-diameter lenses and the expensive light sources necessary for advanced photolithography equipment, NIL equipment achieves a simpler, more compact design, allowing for multiple units to be clustered together for increased productivity. Previous studies have demonstrated NIL resolution better than 10nm, making the technology suitable for the printing of several generations of critical memory levels with a single mask. In addition, resist is applied only where necessary, thereby eliminating material waste. Given that there are no complicated optics in the imprint system, the reduction in the cost of the tool, when combined with simple single level processing and zero waste leads to a cost model that is very compelling for semiconductor memory applications. All lithographic approaches must establish an ecosystem in order to meet the stringent demands for device manufacturing. The table below shows the performance requirements for each category. Throughput is a basic requirement for cost of ownership. Defectivity addresses device yield. Overlay is also needed to enhance device yield. Each device generation places stricter demands on the overlay budget. An infrastructure is required in order to successfully yield advanced devices. In addition, today’s solutions require computational methods and machine learning to meet the requirements described above. The purpose of this paper is to describe the NIL integration requirements, review some of the key solutions for total integration.

We have developed Multi-Field Imprint (MFI) technology to improve the productivity of for nano-imprint lithography (NIL). Using the template having the imprinting size of 46 mm x 28 mm for MFI and the latest NIL system NZ2C (Canon Corp.), we successfully achieved multi-field imprinting on a 300 mm wafer. The throughput being equivalent to 160 wafers per hour was demonstrated using throughput enhancement solutions, such as gas permeable spin-on-carbon and multi field dispense. The overlay accuracy around 7 nm was also obtained. In this report, we’ll report about the performance of MFI technology: patterning ability, throughput, and overlay accuracy and discuss the future outlook.

Substrate Conformal Imprint Lithography (SCIL) solves the limitations of PDMS soft-stamp based NIL techniques (resolution, pattern deformation, overlay) and allows low-pressure wafer scale conformal contact and sub-10 nm resolution using a novel silicone rubber stamp. SCIL demonstrated direct replication of sub-50nm patterns in silica over 200mm wafers with stamp lifetimes over 500 imprints. (Moxtek, NNT 2019) The evaluation of patterns on wafer scale is usually done by SEM or AFM, and not amendable to inline inspection. We will demonstrate a novel compact optical quality inspection method for nanophotonic components, based on Fourier microscopy (imaging the back-focal plane of objective lens). In combination with inverse modeling, we reach few-nanometer precision for periodic structures.

Nanoimprint lithography (NIL) has been received attention as an alternative lithographic technology, which can fabricate fine patterns of semiconductor devices at low cost, by transferring fine pattern of a template on to a resist layer by physical contact of template and resist followed by the resist curing. For more than a decade, we have been developing Jet and Flash Imprint Lithography (J-FIL) technology and challenging critical issues such as defect density, overlay, and throughput. J-FIL is an efficient process for transferring template pattern having large variations in pattern density. However, it has the intrinsic limitation of lower throughput due to resist dispensing time prior to imprinting of every single field on the wafer and the spreading process of resist drops, slow diffusion of bubble trapped at the resist drop-boundaries. To eliminate the above mentioned steps and improve throughput, we have developed a spin coating NIL (SCN) process in which a uniform resist layer is spin coated on the entire wafer. Identification of defect generation mechanism assuming Washburn’s model of capillary flow, has led us to optimize SCN process and thus achieving a higher throughput with lower defect density as compared to that of the J-FIL process. We will show the defect density and throughput performance of SCN process, and the possibility of introducing SCN in device production.

Nanoimprint lithography, NIL, has been developed for semiconductor lithography technology. Recently three dimensional imprint such as dual damascene pattern fabrication by NIL is proposed. For fine feature templates, double patterning process is proposed for template fabrication. For both application, two or more E-beam writing is required in the template fabrication and the overlay of second writing against first layer is important. In the presentation, we will discuss overlay of E-beam writing in NIL template fabrication.

The NanoImprint Lithography (NIL) technology by using a soft stamp is today ready for high volume manufacturing (HVM) with the global solution proposed by EVG¹. This UV-based imprint, using a transparent stamp is now a standard technology and the most common option for the full wafer imprint, meaning the size of the stamp correspond to the size of the wafer to print. Previous work has shown promising results with strong repeatability and uniformity in terms of critical dimension (CD⁾². In 2017, larges features, bigger than 500 nm period, and shallow aspect ratio were qualified³. Latter in 2019⁴, lithography and etching through a Si/SiO₂ stack were demonstrated for 25 wafers imprinted in a single run: - Depending on several diameters contact (from 100 to 50 nm) and densities (from 1:3 to 1:15). - For line and space arrays with a density of 1:4 and variable spaces widths (from 100 to 50 nm). In this paper we demonstrate that the limit of the patterns dimension can be pushed to sub-50 nm features thanks to EVG SmartNIL technology, the optimized EVGNIL-UV/AS2 soft stamp material with matching resist as well as the improvement of pattern transfer by dry etching. Based on CDSEM metrology, and SEM cross-sections, high fidelity and reproducibility were demonstrated, with 25 replications in a single run using the same soft stamp. Transfer compatibility of the imprint material was validated until 45 nm line, with 1:4 density. Furthermore, the process window of this NIL technology and its compatibility with applications as photonics and 3D patterning are discussed. The specific developments achieved around stripping of the substrates and the perspectives for low defectivity process are pointed out.

We aim to develop the capability to rapidly sort, place, and orient micro objects into custom positions and transfer them to a final substrate eventually at costs similar to laser printers assembling toner particles onto paper. We are using programmable directed electrostatic parallel control to move particles from random to ordered patterns. Such a process could enable significantly more heterogeneity, complexity and customizability in material and device integration. We summarize experimental results including assembly and transfer microchip and microbeads at the 1um to 250um size scale, combined with transfer (including roll-roll based) to a final substrate.

The rapid production of three-dimensional microstructures across areas of many square centimeters, such as in a roll-to-roll printing system, is needed for many applications such as microfluidic channels in diagnostic chips, filters with precisely controlled pore size, and surfaces with self-cleaning properties or structural color. Most current methods for transferring 3D microstructures to large substrates involve either multiple sequential deposition and imprinting steps with sacrificial materials to define voids, or lamination of a series of two-dimensionally patterned layers. These techniques have limited throughput and present significant layer-to-layer registration challenges. We introduce a design for an optical patterning system that has the potential to create 3D microstructures in a photopolymer film with a single patterning step on a roll-to-roll web. The technique builds on the process of Computed Axial Lithography that we have recently introduced. In the proposed technique, time-evolving, projected patterns of collimated light illuminate a photopolymer film on a web where it rotates around a backing cylinder. The rotational motion of the web allows each point in the film to be illuminated from many angles sequentially. During the rotation, therefore, a 3D light dose distribution can be synthesized tomographically, with the ability to define 3D polymerized structures which may include re-entrant and encapsulated features. Here, we describe computational modeling of the expected spatial resolution, geometrical fidelity, and patterning speed with this method for relevant photopolymer materials.

Roll-to-roll and other high-speed printing manufacturing processes are increasingly being extended to micro- and nano-electronics and photonics due to cost and throughput advantages as compared with traditional wafer-scale manufacturing. The extra degrees of freedom associated with a moving web require high speed, in-line metrology to control the manufacturing process. Many state-of-the-art metrology approaches have sub-10 nm resolution but cannot be implemented during real-time fabrication processes because of environmental constraints or contact/cross sectional requirements. Optical angular scatterometry is a non-contact metrology approach that can be implemented at high speed. We demonstrate a system that uses 45° off-axis parabolic mirrors and an 8kHz resonant scanner to vary the incident/reflected angle from ~17° to ~67°, suitable for nanoscale metrology at web speeds of up to 350 cm/s, well-beyond the speed of current manufacturing tools. Scatterometry is sensitive not only to gross defects (missing pattern sections) but also to variations in nanoscale pattern details, offering a pathway to feedback control of the manufacturing process.

UpNano has enhanced the 2PP process in 3D printing to increase the throughput by factor of up to 100, and enables for the first time batch and small series production of high-resolution micro parts. An optimized optical system, a powerful 1-Watt femtosecond laser and the patented writing mode “Adaptive Resolution” are the key innovations of the NanoOne system. This system provides a writing speed of up to 1500 mm/s in combination with a low-magnifying 4x objective, resulting in a throughput of over 200 mm3/h.

The present work use direct laser writing (DLW) system for fabrication of large area patterning of microstructures. Micro sized square pattern of 1μm size with 2μm spacing were successfully fabricated on 1500 x 1500 μm² large area Si substrate. The developed microstructures found potential application in colloidal nanotweezers manipulation of plasmonic devices. The results shows precision in large scale micro patterning using DLW system and claimed a faster and simple process in patterning microstructure compared to electron beam (e-beam) lithography process. The developed micro patterning are dry etched using RIE to convert SiO₂ pillar of 500 nm height with tip diameter of 250 nm to fabricate the helical structures which found potential applications in nanoplasmonic devices.

As feature sizes shrink, state-of-the-art patterning has to meet three critical challenges: The ability to print patterns at tight pitch, the ability to accurately place patterns with respect to each other (edge placement error or EPE control) and the ability to deal with pattern variations induced by photon and resist stochastics. While extreme-UV lithography (EUV) with NA 0.33 can now routinely print sub 30 nm pitch line and space patterns and improve pattern placement by reducing the number of required overlay steps, the industry needs to invent complementary patterning techniques for continued pitch scaling with EUV. Complementary patterning methods like spacer-based pitch division have allowed the industry to break the Rayleigh resolution limit of 193 nm wavelength immersion lithography and pitch division of EUV patterns will allow the industry to scale pitch well below 20 nm. However, as the target pitch scales, variations in the critical dimensions (CD) of line and space patterns caused by photon and resist stochastics will absorb a significant portion of the EPE budget. Directed self-assembly (DSA) is a powerful patterning technique to pattern dense, periodic features with low number of defects and with pattern uniformity not readily achieved by optical lithography alone. DSA offers a fundamental EPE advantage over spacer-based pitch division since the line and space CDs are chemically encoded into each molecule with unprecedented accuracy. Additionally, ease of pitch scaling and low process complexity are well-documented features of DSA processing. However, since the pitch of the DSA-defined line/space pattern is determined by the molecular weight of the polymer, we have been unable to deploy DSA to flexible design rule applications that require multiple pitches and multiple CDs. In this paper we will report on process flows that use DSA to rectify a complex, multi-pitch and multi-CD pre-patterns printed with EUV. We will describe how material selection, EUV exposure, and processing conditions impact the type of complex patterns that can be rectified and highlight opportunities for materials development to make this powerful complementary patterning technology become a reality.

Design rules for block copolymer (BCP) materials used in directed self-assembly (DSA) to meet the constraints for manufacturing were defined in a combined experimental and theoretical approach to quantitative three-dimensional characterization of nanoscale structure and analysis of defect annihilation kinetics and mechanisms. Subsequently we developed a materials platform based on (A-block-(B-random-C) architectures to satisfy those design rules to enable current and future patterning resolution requirements. We realize feature size-specific BCPs (18 to 8 nm full pitch) with balanced block surface energies between blocks for thermal annealing, controllable segregation strength for simultaneous optimization of defectivity and dimensional uniformity, and etch selectivity.

Directed self-assembly (DSA) of block copolymer thin films remains a promising alternative to achieve the resolution gains needed to enable dense patterning with sub-10 nm critical dimensions (CD). Yet, some significant challenges remain. Among others, two challenges stand out: one relating to the thermodynamic and kinetic conditions that lead to finite defect densities while the second relates to a scalability challenge to harness simultaneous gains in both resolution metrics: minimum line width and minimum pitch. Here we present a self-registered self-assembly process that employs a two-step DSA to address both the energetics of defect formation and the scalability limitations to achieve simultaneous gains in both pitch and line width when compared to the guiding patterns.

Improvements in ordering kinetics and pattern diversity are needed to make block copolymer directed self-assembly (BCP DSA) a route to cost-effective, large-area nanomanufacturing. This talk will highlight recent research in BCP DSA with these goals in mind. First, I will describe how self-templating in layered BCP thin films produces new 3D pattern symmetries. Second I will show how chemical patterning can be used to locally select between coexisting cylinder and lamellae morphologies in BCP blends. Finally, I will discuss the use of homopolymer plasticizers to accelerate ordering, enabling self-assembly at the > ~100 nm scale relevant for optical dielectric metasurfaces.

Direct Self-Assembly (DSA) is expected to be applied to patterns below 20 nm, and many applications have been proposed along with several lithography techniques. The advantage of DSA is that the molecular weight of the polymer can control the pattern size and achieve a fixed pattern pitch. On the other hand, the DSA process faces the technical challenges of pattern defects, line edge roughness (LER), and pattern transfer to the underlying layer. Tokyo Electron has reported the results of these improvements in the past SPIE. This report introduces each optimization method and shows you the next steps.

Directed self-assembly (DSA) has emerged as one of the most promising, cost-effective paths to continue scaling semiconductor devices down to the sub-10nm regime. While the lithographic guidelines and thermodynamic properties of the block co-polymers ultimately dictate the pitch (typically 20nm+), for full realization of the potential within high volume manufacturing (HVM), all of the nanometer-level resolution requirements still need to be met by dry etch. This talk will summarize the current impediments faced regarding critical dimensions (CDs), line roughness, and defectivity as well as ongoing work to overcome these obstacles.

Block copolymer self-assembly is showing great promise for extending the resolution limits of established, high-throughput photolithography techniques. This technology has the potential to broadly enhance device capabilities ranging from magnetic data storage media to photovoltaic cells to semiconductors. This talk will highlight the journey towards the development of new materials, including synthesis and characterization, and new processing protocols for controlling their thin film structures. Finally, perspectives for their future implementation into commercial lithographic patterning processes will be given.

EUV lithography requirements continue to present new challenges and opportunities for multi-beam mask writer. Driven by sub-10nm node mask requirements for higher resolution, CD uniformity, pattern placement accuracy, lower line edge roughness (LER), and zero writer-induced defects, the multi-beam mask patterning technology must keep the pace, continue to innovate, and work hand-in-hand with mask makers to overcome these challenges to meet the mask and wafer manufacturing metrics and requirements. In this paper we will review some of these challenges from the mask maker point of view. Also, we will shed light on a bigger challenge of transitioning to curvilinear mask ILT (Inverse Lithography Technology) data structure and the support needed from multi-beam writer to handle large data volume. Processing and managing this large growth of data helps the mask industry speed up the process of adapting to this technology and enabling EUV mask and wafer manufacturing reach its ultimate goals.

Extreme ultraviolet lithography (EUVL) is introducing for manufacturing of advanced semiconductor devices in last year to re-accelerate “More Moore”. EUVL for 7nm logic node process has begun at the starting point and is expected to spread to cutting-edge processes for 5nm node and beyond down to 2nm node or so. One of key technologies of EUVL is photomask manufacturing technologies that requires higher resolution, more precise accuracy and better productivity. To get the solution, DNP has installed a Multi-Beam Mask Writer (MBMW). The MBMW tool is equipped with 262-thousand programmable beams, a 120-Gbps data-path, and an air-bearing stage, with sub-nm precision. With this system, DNP has developed the EUV mask process with the low-sensitivity and high resolution resist for EUV lithography capable of 5nm node processes and beyond. MBMW also proves that its writing strategy is useful for patterning the very complex features, such as the curvilinear patterns, with 1x nm resolution and reasonable throughput. In this presentation, we will discuss MBMW and its process capability of EUV mask application, e.g. local CD uniformity, minimum resolution, image placement accuracy and other applications for nanoimprint template and the curvilinear patterns.

Multi-beam mask writers (MBMW) offer the potential to enable the use of ideal curvilinear shapes for ILT masks, but current layout formats are not sufficient to represent complex ILT designs efficiently from OPC through mask making. In the 2019 BACUS conference, we proposed the formation of a data format working group to address the need for curvilinear data representation for MBMW. The Curvilinear data format working group was first initiated in October 2019 with participation from EDA companies and advanced mask makers. In this paper, the necessity of a new curvilinear data format and our working group will be introduced. We will discuss the progress and the plan of the working group.

EUV Lithography makes substantial progress in optimizing (i) tool, (ii) mask blanks, and (iii) resist materials to support the next generation EUV imaging performance. Novel EUV masks use a variety of absorbers and capping layers fabricated on mirroring multilayer stacks coated on ULE substrate. 50 keV electron multi-beams are used to write high-resolution patterns in an appropriate resist coated over the absorber layer stack. The main goal of multi-beam mask writing (MBMW) has been the precise geometry control and faithful reproduction of the intended pattern on the substrate. The highly conform MBMW resist-patterning process needs to understand the absorbed intensity distribution from the electron scattering in the resist/substrate stack, as well as the consecutive radiation-chemical effects induced by the electron energy spread together with the nonlinear dissolution behavior of the resist. It is difficult to exactly calculate the relative contribution of these factors separately, but their overall effect can be modeled by the analytic 'point spread' response function (PSF) for the resist. The ultimate resolution is determined by the amount of laterally- and back-scattered electrons from specific target compositions. These interaction events cause proximity, fogging, local heating, and surface charging effects, defining the accurate pattern. Simulations have shown alterations in the absorbed energy distributions of EUV masks with different stacks, and the experiments approved the results from the calculations. We present results of resist response to the electron multi-beam exposure based on statistical numerical simulation on different EUV-stacks directly compared with the corresponding numerical lithographic parameters extracted from the experimental resist screening. Consequently, all input parameters for MBMW writing corrections were precisely specified to the corresponding absorbed energy distribution signature of the concrete EUV mask. The experiments were performed with the IMS MBMW-101 ALPHA tool in a high dose positive-tone chemically amplified resist (pCAR), provided by FUJIFILM, and coated on experimental EUV masks containing different novel stack compositions as prepared at HOYA Corporation.

Plasmonic lithography breaks the diffraction limit by utilizing the otherwise lost evanescent fields produced by light sources with wavelengths close to or within the visible spectrum. With the lower cost of high-power femtosecond laser systems, plasmonic lithography opens a new approach towards the next generation semiconductor manufacturing. In the past years, we have demonstrated different types of plasmonic lithography, ranging from Superlens, Flying plasmonic lens, to Hyperlens, and successfully achieved 22nm half-pitch resolution. Hyperlens, made of hyperbolic metamaterials, stands out for its capability of exposing a large field of view while maintaining a good resolution. Although the resolution of the Hyperlens is inversely proportional to the unit cell thickness of metamaterial, fabrication of thin metal layers has long been a challenge. We report in this study an ultrathin Hyperlens that permits the propagation of unprecedented high spatial frequencies, 12ko, through the metamaterial. This hyperbolic metamaterial consists of alternating metal and dielectric materials with thickness as thin as 2nm, which potentially leads to patterning with sub-10 nm resolution.

Axial cosinoidal structured illumination that the intensity along the axis presents a cosinoidal distribution plays important role in many fields, such as optical tweezers, optical micromanipulation and optical modulation. However, the generation of axial cosinoidal structured illumination with controllable phase and period is a challenge. Here, we propose a novel method for generating axial cosinoidal structured illumination by using phase-only spatial light modulator. We implemented axial cosinoidal structured illumination using holographic technique. The computer generates two concentric circular slits with different radius, a prism phase is applied on the slits to tilts the beam that incidents on the slits away from the optical axis. Different annular beam produce Bessel beams with different axial wave vectors, axial cosinoidal structured illumination can be obtained from the interference between two Bessel beams. We theoretically and experimentally verify that the method can effectively generate axial cosinoidal structured illumination.

High performance, high speed processing, and miniaturization of electronic devices are advancing, due to the rapid development of highly advanced information society in recent years. Semiconductors continue to be highly integrated according to Moore's law, and semiconductor package substrates are also required to be miniaturized and highly densified. The build-up method is one of the methods for miniaturization and high density of semiconductor package substrates. The build-up method is method of alternately forming insulation layers and conductor layers on both sides of a glass epoxy substrate. In general, an organic build-up film is used for the insulation layers, and a via is formed in the insulation layers by laser processing. However, the miniaturization of the organic build-up film process by the commonly used 355 nm UV laser has almost reached the limit due to its long wavelength. Therefore, to miniaturize the build-up film process, it is necessary to use excimer laser with shorter wavelength than the UV laser. We are developing the processing of organic build-up film by 248 nm excimer laser with free spectrum operation. The organic build-up films are processed directly by the irradiation using the mask by 248 nm excimer laser. We processed using Ajinomoto build-up films (ABF) as organic material. The type of ABF was GY50. We confirmed that it is possible to process via of 3 μm in build-up film and the DOF can be increased depending on the process conditions. We will report on the processability of build-up film using 248 nm excimer laser.

Origami has gained attention in the microfabrication community as it has enabled applications including micromirrors, encapsulation devices, and microgrippers. Yet, fabrication methods for origami systems available at millimeter and sub-millimeter scales are of narrow scope with product-specific synthesis strategies. Therefore, generalized fabrication methods for origami at these scales emulating additive manufacturing are of great interest. The small length scales of these systems require the implementation of self-folding or assisted folding methods as the fabrication approaches. In this work, a self-folding method and an assisted folding method are demonstrated as origami fabrication strategies. Single-layer films of photopolymer with patterned properties along their in-plane domain are used to create the planar precursors of the origami structures. The properties of the films are patterned by controlling their crosslinking density via a double-exposure photolithography process. For the assisted folding method, surface tension of a droplet is used as the actuation mechanism. Compliant fold regions made of less-crosslinked photopolymer connect relatively stiffer face regions. Upon depositing a droplet on the films, bending deformation localized at the compliant folds is enabled. For the self-folding method, the photolithography process is devised such that developer solution is inhomogeneously absorbed throughout the cross-section of the fold regions. This inhomogeneity in concentration leads to local bending when the developer is released via heating. This diffusion-based self-folding method allows for programming of the folds to attain targeted fold angles. Both methods, enabled by patterned films produced using double-exposure photolithography, show promise for freeform fabrication of millimeter and submillimeter origami systems.

A multi-beam mask writer MBM-2000 is developed for the 3 nm technology node. It is designed to expose EUV blanks with beamlets of total current 1.6 uA at high throughput. It also supports writing leading-edge photomasks by equipping a correction function for glass thermal expansion and high-speed data path. Fast writing modes are provided for middle-grade photomask writing. Inline function of pixel level dose correction (PLDC) is implemented to reduce mask turnaround time by replacing offline corrections with PLDC, with additional benefit of fidelity improvement by dose enhancement. In this paper, writing results of MBM-2000 are reported and discussed.

Imec’s AttoLab is the first industrial laboratory capable of watching the ultrafast dynamics of photoresists following 13.5 nm, EUV exposure, and for emulating high-numerical-aperture (high-NA) exposure on 300-mm wafers using two-beam EUV interference. The two respective beamlines are powered by a laser-based high-harmonic generation EUV source. Its capabilities have recently been proven by imaging 20 nm pitch lines and spaces using Lloyd’s Mirror interference lithography. In parallel, time-averaged and time-resolved techniques for studying the ultrafast dynamics of photoresists after EUV exposure, coherent diffractive imaging to study resist interfaces, and more sophisticated interference lithography techniques for printing sub-22 nm pitches on full 300-mm wafers are being developed. Taking advantage of the bright and short EUV pulses now available at imec, we will be able to contribute to a smooth transition towards next generation high-NA lithography.

Recently, imec has installed and commissioned an industrial, ultrafast EUV materials characterization and lithography lab, imec’s AttoLab, with a primary aim to explore limits of photoresist performance and their associated ultrafast chemistries. Here, we demonstrate, for the first time, the use of a table-top, high-harmonic EUV system (KM Labs, XUUS4) to perform interference lithography of sub-22-nm pitch patterns in an Inpria MOx resist via a Lloyd’s mirror interference lithography (IL) tool. Analysis of SEM images enables us to identify potential sources of image blur, which we attribute to out-of-sync vibrations, flare, spectral purity, and laser stability. Nevertheless, these results confirm the ability of table-top, high-harmonic EUV sources to print lithographic patterns below a 22-nm pitch. In future work, we plan to investigate sub-20-nm patterning in different resist formulations, as well as expand the lithographic capabilities in AttoLab to perform IL on full 300-mm wafers.

DNA offers a high degree of programmability that enables the synthesis of highly structured 2D and 3D materials on the 10-100 nanometer scale using the technical approach called DNA origami. These materials can also be scaled to fabricate micron- and millimeter-scale hierarchical materials that preserve their nanometer-scale structural features. Either form of DNA-based material can be converted to inorganic materials including silica, or used to spatially organize secondary molecules including chromophores, quantum dots, peptides, and proteins for a diverse array of applications in patterning, photonics, excitonics, and medicine. In the first part of my talk I will present work in our group to enable the facile design and scaleable synthesis of structured 2D and 3D materials using DNA origami. In the second part of my talk I will present applications of these structured nanoscale materials to program multiplexed optical barcodes, quantum logic gates, and vaccines using quantum dots, chromophores, and proteins, respectively, organized spatially on the nanometer-scale.

Conventional top-down nanofabrication, over the last six decades, has enabled almost all the complex electronic, optical and micro-fluidic devices that form the foundation of our society. Parallel efforts, exploring bottom-up self-assembly processes, have also enabled design and synthesis of structures like quantum dots, carbon nanotubes and unique bio-molecules that possess technologically relevant proper- ties unachievable top-down. While both these approaches have independently matured, ongoing efforts to create “hybrid nanostructures” combining both strategies, has been fraught with technical challenges. The main roadblock is the absence of a scalable method to deterministically organize components built bottom-up within top-down nanofabricated structures. In this talk, I will first introduce a directed self-assembly technique that utilizes DNA origami as a molecular adaptor to modularly position, and orient, bottom-up nano-components (like quantum dots, light emitters and proteins) within top-down nanofabricated devices. I will then present experimental results demonstrating the utility of the technique to achieved absolute, arbitrarily scalable, control over the integration of discrete emitters inside optical devices. Finally, I conclude by presenting my vision of how a DNA origami based bridge between top-down and bottom-up nanofabrication can enable a range of highly transformative, and functional, devices. Specifically, I will present data demonstrating arrays of single-photon sources, method for extremely economical nanotexturing as well as a modular molecular interface between biology and solid-state.

The ability to organize nano-components into the desired architectures with targeted properties can enable a broad range of nanotechnological applications, from energy materials to information processing. However, we are currently lacking an adaptable and broadly applicable methodology for the bottom-up 3D nanofabrication of desired nanoscale structures. I will discuss our efforts on establishing a versatile fabrication platform based on the molecularly programmable assembly for the formation of targeted architectures from inorganic and biomolecular nano-components. The recent advances on building periodic and hierarchical organizations, frameworks and arbitrary designed architectures using DNA-encoded interactions and DNA topologies will be presented. I will demonstrate how these assembly approaches can be used for a fabrication of nanomaterials with novel optical, mechanical, and catalytic functions.

Nucleic acid self-assembly is a nanofabrication technology that exists at the intersection between conventional silicon fabrication, enzymes, small molecule synthesis, and polymer manufacturing. While it cannot compete directly with any one of these incumbent technologies, its combination of attributes is unique and opens up space for a host of novel applications. We discuss its strengths, limitations, and applications.

This paper focuses on a new Nano Fabrication Machine 100 (NFM-100) with a working range up to 100 mm in diameter and its integrated tip-based system, which can be used as an Atomic Force Microscope (AFM) as well as for Field-Emission-Scanning-Probe-Lithography (FESPL). The combination of both systems offers the possibility to fabricate and analyze micro- and nanostructures with high resolution and precision down to a single nanometer over a large area in one single configuration without tool or sensor change. After the description of the basic machine structure of the NFM-100, the demonstration of long range and large area AFM scans in combination with the NFM-100 will be shown. Additionally, the basic functionality of the FESPL manufacturing process is presented.

NIST is using atomically precise fabrication to develop electronic devices for use in quantum information processing and novel quantum materials. We are using hydrogen-based scanning probe lithography to enable deterministic placement of individual dopant atoms with atomically aligned contacts and gates to fabricate single atom transistors, devices for single electron spin manipulation, and arrayed devices for analog quantum simulation research. Atomic precision devices, where individual atoms or electrons fundamentally affect device performance, bring about a variety of new manufacturing and metrology challenges. Single atom defects and charge instability deeply change device performance, affecting reliable manipulation and sensing of individual electrons. Conventional metrology methods such as transmission electron and scanning electron microscopy often prove inadequate at this length scale and new, challenging electrical test methods are needed.

Two-dimensional (2D) materials are attracting significant interests in the nanoelectronics community due to their various electrical properties, atomic-scale thickness, and mechanical flexibility. The current challenge to fabricate high performance 2D materials-based electronic devices is the poor quality of the metal contacts, the difficulty to pattern dopants, and the high fabrication cost. To overcome these challenges, here, we show that using thermal scanning probe lithography (t-SPL), record performing high-quality metal contacts can be fabricated cost-effectively on 2D materials, resulting in high performance 2D materials-based field effect transistors. Moreover, we show that by integrating t-SPL with a gas flow chamber, t-SPL can be used to achieve nanoscale bipolar doping of 2D materials. This t-SPL method opens a new way to cost-effectively fabricate high performance 2D materials-based nanoelectronic devices and can be easily scaled up using parallel probe arrays.

In this paper, we describe approaches for the fabrication of single atom devices and spin-based qubits for quantum computing. Addressing of single dopant atoms has the potential to enable precise tunable control over all key electronic properties of basic devices needed for solid-state quantum computing. A new challenge which arises for a variety of qubits is the ability to locate deterministically individual atoms below the surface of the three-dimensional structure to build single or few-atom atom transistors single electron transistors, or diverse quantum sensing devices. Comprehensive applications can be considered for complex donor/acceptor arrangements and this kind of dopant engineering technique has the character of a lithographic method. Scanning Probe Methods are used not only for surface analysis and nanofabrication. We demonstrated in 2004 an integration of a scanning probe with an ion beam similar to the use of a “high resolution dynamic nano-stencil” which enabled the nondestructive imaging of a target together with alignment of an ion beam to device features with a few nanometer accuracy.