FEP-171 resist thickness optimization and dry etch screening on NTAR7 chrome substrates for Sigma7300 DUV laser pattern generator

Karlsson, Johan; Xing, Kezhao; Bajramovic, Adisa; Dahlberg, Henrik; Björnberg, Charles; Hogfeldt, Peter; Kjellberg, Lars; Fosshaug, Hans; Dahlberg, Anna; Lundvall, Axel

doi:10.1117/12.569653

Cited by 5 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 0 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…HOYA provided pre-coated blanks with resist thicknesses from 2900Å to 3300Å in 50Å increments. This range covers the standard resist thickness for 50 keV VSB, 3000Å, and the optimized thickness on binary NTAR7 blanks for the Sigma7300 [2], 3200Å.…”

Section: Optimization Of Ntar5/fep-171 Mask Blanks For Sigma7300mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…NTAR7/FEP-171(3200Å), the optimized binary mask blank for Sigma7300 [2], was used for the DOE experiments for the development tuning. A DOE with 7 factors, 9 runs, and 5 responses was formed and carried out.…”

Section: Part One: Development Fine Tuning-doementioning

confidence: 99%

“…The recent introduction of high-productivity DUV laser mask writers has been facilitated by a relatively straight forward adaptability to the standard materials and processes used for 50 keV VSB. This adaptation has been described for binary masks in a series of papers [1][2][3] for the SLM-based DUV (248 nm) Sigma7300 mask writer [4][5], papers that have also suggested possible optimizations of the materials and processes for the Sigma7300. An overview of the Sigma7300 process papers is found in Table 1.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

See 2 more Smart Citations

High performance FEP-171 resist process in combination with NTAR7 and NTAR5 chrome and the Sigma7300 DUV mask writer

et al. 2005

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

FEP-171 resist is commonly used both together with 50 keV VSB and DUV laser mask writers. To improve resolution and other lithographic parameters, the industry has strived towards thinner resist and absorber films on the mask blank. The chrome thickness and etch resistance limit how thin the resist can be. The NTAR7 (730Å) chrome was optimized for binary masks for 193 nm lithography, while NTAR5 (590Å) chrome is used for attenuated PSM blanks with a MoSi absorber beneath the chrome film.Resolution and lithographic performance can be improved further by integrating improved processes, including PEB, development and dry-etch. Micronic has in a series of papers described improvements to the FEP-171 process in combination with different chrome films and the SLM-based DUV (248 nm) Sigma7300 mask writer. The thickness of FEP-171 for Sigma7300 has been optimized for NTAR7 chrome and improvements have been described for the PEB and dry-etch process of the FEP-171/NTAR7 blanks.In this paper we describe the FEP-171 process development further. We have investigated improvements to the develop process for FEP-171/NTAR7 blanks using Design of Experiments (DOE) and a Steag Hamatech ASP-5000. Improved performance on mask, especially for CD linearity and clear-field/dark-field deviation, was achieved using the resulting development recipe together with the Sigma7300. Better than 5 nm (range) CD linearity in chrome was demonstrated for isolated spaces in the range 200-1400 nm.This work also covers a process study of FEP-171 on NTAR5 chrome. The resist thickness was optimized to 3200Å for the Sigma7300 and the performance was tested in terms of resolution, resist profile, CD linearity and CD uniformity. Resolution of 120 nm isolated lines and 140 nm isolated spaces was demonstrated, as well as 4 nm (range/2) global CD uniformity.

show abstract

Section: Optimization Of Ntar5/fep-171 Mask Blanks For Sigma7300mentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Part One: Development Fine Tuning-doementioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

See 1 more Smart Citation

High performance FEP-171 resist process in combination with NTAR7 and NTAR5 chrome and the Sigma7300 DUV mask writer

et al. 2005

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…The Sigma7300 was used for all experiments together with mask blanks from HOYA with NTAR7 chrome and 3200Å FEP-171 positive CAR resist 15 . A complete list of process and metrology tools used is found in Table 1.…”

Section: Materials and Toolsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Second level exposure for advanced phase shift mask applications using the SLM-based Sigma7300 DUV mask writer

et al. 2005

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Phase shifting mask (PSM) development activity is increasing as 193nm optical lithography is extended beyond the 90nm technology node. The requirements on second level mask patterning of advanced PSM have for many applications exceeded the capability of i-line pattern generators, and it is natural for deep-ultraviolet (DUV) pattern generators to be employed for this task. The Sigma7300 DUV mask writer has the attributes required for advanced PSM applications: high resolution, tight CD uniformity and pattern placement, an accurate alignment system, and grid matching to first level exposures. The paper reports system performance for the parameters that constitute the error budget for second level patterning and shows that the mask writer is suitable for second level patterning of advanced PSMs. The alignment system employs the same laser and optics that are used for system calibration and exposure, including a CCD camera that links system calibration to alignment. As a result overlay performance is stable, and is shown to be independent of alignment mark image contrast changes due to different mask materials or resist thicknesses. The mask process uses a conventional chemically amplified resist, and does not require the use of charge dissipating top layers. Combined with throughput that is essentially independent of pattern complexity, DUV pattern generation provides a high yield solution for second level patterning of advanced PSMs for the 65nm and 45nm nodes.

show abstract

“…At Micronic, DUV mask process development has included advances in mask blanks [3][4][5][6] , from binary AR8, to NTAR7, to att-PSM NTAR5 and now TF11 chrome blanks, while in parallel the Sigma laser pattern generator was developed from the 90 nm node towards the 45 nm node. As a continuation of this mask process development, this paper reports on an experimental evaluation of the use of TF11 chrome and FEP-171 resist together with the Sigma7500 laser pattern generator.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evaluation of attenuated PSM photomask blanks with TF11 chrome and FEP-171 resist on a 248 nm DUV laser pattern generator

et al. 2007

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Tighter requirements on mask resolution, CD and image positioning accuracy at and beyond the 45 nm technology node push the development of improved photomask blanks. One such blank for attenuated phase-shift masks (att-PSM) provides a thinner chrome film, named TF11, with higher chrome etch rate compared to the previous generation Att-PSM blank (NTAR5 chrome film) from the same supplier. Reduced stress in the chrome film also results in less image placement error induced by the material. FEP-171 is the positive chemically amplified resist (PCAR) that is most commonly used in advanced mask manufacturing with both 50 keV variable shaped e-beam (VSB) and DUV laser pattern generators. TF11 allows an FEP-171 resist film down to about 2000 Å thickness with sufficient etch resistance, while the standard resist thickness for NTAR5 is around 3000 Å.This work has experimentally evaluated the use of TF11 chrome and FEP-171 resist together with a 248 nm DUV laser pattern generator, the Sigma7500. First, patterning performance in resist with thicknesses from 2000 Å to 2600 Å, in steps of 100 Å, was tested with respect to swing curve and basic lithographic parameters including resolution, CD linearity, CD iso-dense bias and dose sensitivity. Patterning results on mask showed a swing minimum at around 2200 Å and a swing maximum at around 2500 Å, which correspond to reflectivity measurements for 248 nm wavelength performed by the blank supplier. It was concluded that the overall patterning performance was best close to the swing maximum. Thereafter the patterning performance using TF11 at two resist thicknesses, 2000 Å and 2550 Å, was studied in more detail and compared to performance using NTAR5 with 3200 Å resist. The evaluation showed that the Sigma7500-II offers good compatibility with TF11, especially using the optimized FEP-171 resist thickness of 2550 Å. It also showed that the patterning capability of the Sigma7500-II using TF11 and 2550 Å resist is improved compared to using NTAR5 and 3200 Å resist.

show abstract

FEP-171 resist thickness optimization and dry etch screening on NTAR7 chrome substrates for Sigma7300 DUV laser pattern generator

Cited by 5 publications

References 0 publications

High performance FEP-171 resist process in combination with NTAR7 and NTAR5 chrome and the Sigma7300 DUV mask writer

High performance FEP-171 resist process in combination with NTAR7 and NTAR5 chrome and the Sigma7300 DUV mask writer

Second level exposure for advanced phase shift mask applications using the SLM-based Sigma7300 DUV mask writer

Evaluation of attenuated PSM photomask blanks with TF11 chrome and FEP-171 resist on a 248 nm DUV laser pattern generator

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About