Next Generation 'Spin-on-carbon hard masks' for the semiconductor industry

不可抗拒材料公司（IM）正在为半导体行业开发下一代“自旋式碳硬掩模”。自20世纪70年代以来，在著名的摩尔定律的推动下，计算能力每18个月翻一番。摩尔定律的终结已被预言，但微加工技术的创新使其得以进一步发展。计算机和数字通信现在无处不在，导致了一个全球性的“信息时代”，并在许多方面改变了生活。工业界通过晶体管小型化来应对这一挑战。在给定区域内以给定成本“印刷”的晶体管数量呈指数增长。晶体管是用一种叫做光刻的技术印刷成硅的，而光刻技术的不断改进使其持续进步。然而，随着器件的缩小，保持平面晶体管（最常见的类型）的性能变得越来越困难，因为绝缘层变得薄，电子会漏过它。泄漏电流是限制进一步改进的主要因素——它增加了功耗（已经占世界用电量的3%），并导致过热和芯片故障。2011年，英特尔宣布将从平面晶体管转向“三栅极”三维架构。2012年4月，第一批三栅极芯片上市销售，每瓦性能提高了一倍。成本效益和可制造性仍然是一个关键问题。不可抗拒的材料是专门解决材料的成本效益制造下一代器件（如三栅极）的要求。这种器件的长宽比（高度除以宽度）与效率成正比——为了有效，晶体管必须又高又薄。现有的解决方案既成本过高，又不容易扩展以实现未来的收缩。我们已经发明了一种新材料，以低成本制造这种高纵横比设备，并有能力扩展到未来几代微芯片。

Irresistible Materials (IM) is developing next generation ‘spin-on carbon hard masks’ for thesemiconductor industry.Since the 1970s computational capacity has doubled every 18 months, driven by the famousMoore's Law. The end of Moore’s law is predicted but innovations in microfabrication haveallowed further progress. Computing and digital communications are now pervasive, leadingto a global ‘information age’ and changing lives in many ways.Industry met this challenge by transistor miniaturization. The number of transistors ‘printed’in a given area at a given cost has increased exponentially. Transistors are printed into siliconusing a technique called lithography, and continual lithographic improvements have sustainedprogress. However, as devices have shrunk it is increasingly difficult to maintain theperformance of planar transistors (the most common type), as the insulating layer becomes sothin that electrons leak across it. Leakage current is the primary factor constraining furtherimprovement – it increases power consumption (already 3% of the world’s electricity usage),and leads to overheating and chip failure. In 2011 Intel announced that it would move awayfrom planar transistors, to the ‘tri-gate’ three-dimensional architecture. In April 2012 the firsttri-gate chips went on sale delivering twice the performance per watt. Cost-effectivemanufacturability remains a key concern.Irresistible Materials is specifically addressing materials requirements for cost effectivemanufacture of next generation devices (such as tri-gate). The aspect ratio (height divided bywidth) of such devices is directly proportional to efficiency – in order to be effective thetransistor must be tall and thin. Existing solutions are both cost-prohibitive and not easilyextended to enable future shrinkage. We have invented a new material to enable this highaspect ratio device manufacture at low cost and with the capacity to extend to futuregenerations of microchips.