Enhancing the sensitivity of a high resolution negative-tone metal organic photoresist for extreme ultra violet lithography

Scott M. Lewis; Hayden R. Alty; Michaela Vockenhuber; Guy A. DeRose; Dimitrios Kazazis; Grigore A. Timco; James A. Mann; Paul Winpenny; Axel Scherer; Yasin Ekinci; Richard Winpenny

doi:10.1117/12.2658324

30 April 2023 Enhancing the sensitivity of a high resolution negative-tone metal organic photoresist for extreme ultra violet lithography

Scott M. Lewis, Hayden R. Alty, Michaela Vockenhuber, Guy A. DeRose, Dimitrios Kazazis, Grigore A. Timco, James A. Mann, Paul Winpenny, Axel Scherer, Yasin Ekinci, Richard Winpenny

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 12498, Advances in Patterning Materials and Processes XL; 124980X (2023) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2658324
Event: SPIE Advanced Lithography + Patterning, 2023, San Jose, California, United States

Abstract

In this paper, we report on a novel metal organic photoresist based on heterometallic rings that was designed for electron beam and extreme ultraviolet lithography. From initial electron beam lithography studies, the resist performance demonstrated excellent resolution of 15 nm half-pitch (HP) and a silicon dry etch selectivity of 100:1 but at the expense of sensitivity. To improve sensitivity, a 3D Monte Carlo simulation was employed that utilizes a secondary electron generation model. The simulation suggested that the sensitivity could be dramatically improved while maintaining high resolution by incorporating HgCl₂ species into the resist molecular design. This considerably improved the resist sensitivity without losing the high resolution, where it was determined that the resist sensitivity was increased by a factor of 1.6 and 1.94 while demonstrating a resolution of 15 nm and 16 nm HP when exposed with electrons and EUV radiation respectively. Using x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy measurements, we show that after exposure to the electron beam the resist materials are transformed into a metal oxyfluoride and this is why the resist demonstrates high resistance to silicon dry etch conditions achieving a selectivity of 60:1 at a resolution of 15 nm HP.

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Scott M. Lewis, Hayden R. Alty, Michaela Vockenhuber, Guy A. DeRose, Dimitrios Kazazis, Grigore A. Timco, James A. Mann, Paul Winpenny, Axel Scherer, Yasin Ekinci, and Richard Winpenny "Enhancing the sensitivity of a high resolution negative-tone metal organic photoresist for extreme ultra violet lithography", Proc. SPIE 12498, Advances in Patterning Materials and Processes XL, 124980X (30 April 2023); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2658324

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