The onset of lithographic technology involving extreme numerical aperture (NA) values introduces critical technical issues that are now receiving particular attention. Projection lithography with NA values above 0.90 is necessary for future generation devices. The introduction of immersion lithography enables even larger angles, resulting in NA values of 1.2 and above. The imaging effects from oblique angles, electric field polarization, optical interference, optical reflection, and aberration can be significant. This paper addresses polarization considerations at critical locations in the optical path of a projection system, namely in the illuminator, at the mask, and in the photoresist. Several issues are addressed including TE and azimuthal polarized illumination, wire grid polarization effects for real thin film mask materials, and multilayer resist AR coatings for high NA and polarization.
New applications of evanescent imaging for microlithography are introduced. The use of evanescent wave lithography (EWL) has been employed for 26nm resolution at 1.85NA using a 193nm ArF excimer laser wavelength to record images in a photoresist with a refractive index of 1.71. Additionally, a photomask enhancement effect is described using evanescent wave assist features (EWAF) to take advantage of the coupling of the evanescent energy bound at the substrate-absorber surface, enhancing the transmission of a mask opening through coupled interference.
The objective of this paper is to study the polarization induced by mask structures. Rigorous coupled-wave analysis (RCWA) was used to study the interaction of electromagnetic waves with mask features. RCWA allows the dependence of polarization effects of various wavelengths of radiation on grating pitch, profile, material, and thickness to be studied. The results show that for the five different mask materials examined, the material properties, mask pitch, and illumination all have a large influence on how the photomask polarizes radiation.
Extending optics to 50 nm and beyond with immersion lithography Immersion lithography can allow for theoretical imaging to /4n (where n is the refractive index of imaging fluid). As 193 nm and 248 nm technology is pushed toward this limit, experimental data becomes increasingly important. This paper describes research carried out to explore the limitations of water immersion lithography and its extension to higher numerical aperture values using modifications to the imaging fluid. Resist imaging to 38 nm is demonstrated using water as an imaging fluid. Several alternative fluids are presented including phosphates, sulfates, and halides, which are shown to increase the refractive index of water.
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