A capability for patterning beyond-CMOS devices at atomic scale

在原子尺度上对超越 CMOS 器件进行图案化的能力

• 批准号: EP/V054120/1
• 负责人: Martin Charlton
• 金额: $ 400.23万
• 依托单位: University of Southampton
• 依托单位国家: 英国
• 项目类别: Research Grant
• 财政年份: 2021
• 资助国家: 英国
• 起止时间: 2021 至 无数据
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://gtr.ukri.org/projects?ref=EP%2FV054120%2F1
• 关键词: capability; patterning; beyond; CMOS; devices

The twentieth century has witnessed an exceptional technological progress in consumer electronics that has utterly shaped modern societies and economies. This ICT evolution was mainly driven by the invention of the transistor and integrated circuits, with chemistry and materials science playing a pivotal role in manufacturing active devices with distinct and reliable properties that over the past 70 years have been following Moore's scaling trend. The need for continuing advancing the performance of devices and systems is thus driving research efforts in prototyping and demonstrating novel nano-scale concepts at extreme dimensions - towards the single nanometre scale. This is not only important both for commercially available CMOS technologies as well as "beyond-CMOS" technologies that promise to disrupt the current electronics landscape by delivering unprecedented computational at extreme low-power. At the same time, emerging techniques for deep-subwavelength optical imaging based upon AI-enabled analysis of diffracted/scattered light fields are also constrained by current nanoscale precision and accuracy with which training samples can be fabricated.Electron Beam Lithography has so far supported such developments in the deep-submicron regime by directly patterning resists with a focused beam of electrons. A high acceleration voltage can facilitate the writing of fine and more vertical (better defined) lines, minimise proximity issues, achieve a better pattern fidelity and allow for a wider dose optimisation window. Existing electron beam lithography (EBL) systems in the UK operate at voltages up to 100 kV and can in principle reach writing resolutions down to 5nm. This programme aims at procuring the world's highest acceleration voltage EBL system that can be flexible operated from 25 kV to 150 kV for writing efficiently and fast a wide range of feature sizes (sub-5nm) across large areas, sample substrates (up to 8") and resist thicknesses. This new capability will provide a unique platform (first one in the UK and Europe) for innovation via manufacturing a wide-range of beyond-CMOS devices and nanostructures at unprecedented scales. The knowledge gained with this new instrument will not only contribute to an in-depth understanding of nanodevice physics but also advance developments in disruptive ICT concepts across emerging memory, computing, plasmonics, photonics and sensory architectures. Hosting this unique capability within Southampton's nanofabrication suite brings unique opportunities for usage along other state-of-art tools, including an EPSRC funded DUV Stepper/Scanner, that will support industry compatible wafer scale processing that allows mimicking the manufacturing capability of EUV tools (costing in excess of 100M£) and are used for production at industrial foundries for advanced technological nodes (3, 5 and 7 nm). Finally, the tool will support a diverse, inclusive and collaborative research community, fostering interactions between academia and industry, and enabling innovative research projects and directions.

二十世纪见证了消费电子产品的非凡技术进步，彻底塑造了现代社会和经济。这种ICT的发展主要是由晶体管和集成电路的发明推动的，化学和材料科学在制造具有独特和可靠性能的有源器件方面发挥了关键作用，在过去的70年里，这些有源器件一直遵循摩尔的缩放趋势。因此，不断提高设备和系统性能的需求推动了在极端维度上的原型设计和展示新颖纳米尺度概念的研究工作——向单纳米尺度发展。这不仅对商用CMOS技术和“超越CMOS”技术都很重要，这些技术有望通过在极低功耗下提供前所未有的计算能力来颠覆当前的电子领域。与此同时，基于人工智能的衍射/散射光场分析的深亚波长光学成像新技术也受到当前纳米级精度和准确度的限制，而这些精度和准确度可以用来制作训练样本。到目前为止，电子束光刻技术通过用聚焦的电子束直接对电阻进行图形化，支持了深亚微米领域的这种发展。高加速电压可以促进精细和更垂直（更好定义）线的书写，最大限度地减少接近问题，实现更好的模式保真度，并允许更宽的剂量优化窗口。英国现有的电子束光刻（EBL）系统在高达100千伏的电压下工作，原则上可以达到5nm的书写分辨率。该计划旨在采购世界上最高的加速电压EBL系统，该系统可以灵活地在25千伏至150千伏范围内运行，以便在大面积、样品基板（高达8英寸）和电阻厚度上高效、快速地写入各种特征尺寸（低于5nm）。这种新能力将提供一个独特的创新平台（在英国和欧洲是第一个），通过制造范围广泛的超越cmos器件和纳米结构，以前所未有的规模。从这台新仪器中获得的知识不仅有助于深入了解纳米器件物理学，而且还将推动新兴存储、计算、等离子体、光子学和传感体系结构中颠覆性ICT概念的发展。在南安普顿的纳米制造套件中托管这种独特的能力，为其他最先进的工具带来了独特的使用机会，包括EPSRC资助的DUV步进/扫描仪，它将支持行业兼容的晶圆规模处理，允许模仿EUV工具的制造能力（成本超过1亿英镑），并用于工业代工厂生产先进的技术节点（3,5和7nm）。最后，该工具将支持一个多样化、包容性和合作性的研究社区，促进学术界和工业界之间的互动，并使创新的研究项目和方向成为可能。