U.S.-U.K. Cooperative Research: Inorganic Resist Materials for All-Vacuum Lithography

该奖项将支持亚利桑那州立大学电气与计算机工程系Michael N. Kozicki博士和苏格兰爱丁堡大学Alan Owen教授之间的合作研究。本课题旨在研究全真空光刻用无机抗蚀剂材料。集成电路制造仍然广泛地通过在“洁净室”环境中在单个设备部件之间运输基板来进行。由于不可能完全控制空气中的污染物含量，因此颗粒或蒸汽有充分的机会冲击正在加工的材料，从而改变设备特性并降低产品产量。在真空相容条件下进行的完整制造过程将导致基材污染的显著减少。许多工艺步骤可能已经在真空下进行，但是光刻，一种使用具有挥发性成分的有机材料的工艺，与这个概念不兼容。这是目前实现全真空加工的一个障碍。该计划的目的是研究As-S/Ag无机抗蚀剂体系，以期将其应用于所有真空加工。这项工作将与爱丁堡大学合作完成，爱丁堡大学在As-S硫属化合物方面拥有丰富的经验，目前正在进行As-S/Ag系统的优化研究，用于微光刻。该合作项目将涉及爱丁堡大学的基础材料科学和物理化学研究，亚利桑那州立大学将进行全真空应用研究和全平版印刷工艺的开发。本研究结果可能对硅和化合物半导体器件制造技术的发展产生重大影响。

This award will support collaborative research between Dr. Michael N. Kozicki, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Arizona State University and Professor Alan Owen, University of Edinburgh, Scotland. The goal of the research is to study inorganic resist materials for all-vacuum lithography. Integrated circuit fabrication is still widely carried out by transporting the substrates between individual pieces of equipment in a "cleanroom" environment. Since it is impossible to control fully the contaminant content of the air, there is ample opportunity for particulates or vapors to impinge on the materials being processed, thereby altering device characteristics and reducing product yield. A complete fabrication process carried out under vacuum compatible conditions would result in a significant reduction in substrate contamination. Many process steps may already be carried out under vacuum, but lithography, a process which uses organic materials with volatile components, is not compatible with this concept. This is currently a barrier to the realization of all-vacuum processing. The objective of this program is to investigate the As-S/Ag inorganic resist system with a view to applying it to all vacuum-processing. This will be done in conjunction with the University of Edinburgh, which has considerable experience with the As-S chalcogenides and is currently performing research on the optimization of the As-S/Ag system for applications in microlithography. The cooperative program will involve fundamental materials science and physical chemistry research being done at Edinburgh, with an investigation of all-vacuum applications and the development of a full lithographical process being carried out at Arizona State University. Results of this research may have a significant impact on the development of silicon and compound semiconductor device fabrication technology.