This technology uses thermal control to spin-coat resists with less molecular segregation for improved roughness and defectivity.
Background: A resist (also called a photoresist) is a type of photosensitive material that undergoes chemical change when exposed to light. They are widely used in the manufacture of microcircuits. One problem with resist manufacture is the unwanted segregation of molecular components in the resist. Any non-random organization of the molecules leads to variation in photoresist responses across the wafers, leading to defects and roughness during lithography. A faster manufacturing process would give the molecules less time to segregate; unfortunately speeding up the process has proven challenging. As a result, researchers have been exploring the possibility of controlling the viscosity of the resist material during manufacture, to control molecular motion during spin-coating and reduce segregation.
Technology Overview: This technology is a method for reducing molecular segregation during the manufacture of resists. This is done by controlling the viscosity of the solution via thermal control. To do this, our process carefully controls the solution temperature, reducing the temperature as needed. The cooler temperature increases viscosity during the critical part of the spin coating process when molecular segregation is the most likely to occur. This in turn slows molecular motion, resulting in lower segregation of the molecules. Reducing molecular motion in resists to lower the amount of segregation will impact the manufacturing yield in lithography, especially for extreme ultraviolet (EUV) photoresists and other leading-edge applications
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Advantages: The primary advantage of this technology is that it produces resists with less molecular segregation, and therefore more consistent performance. For example, resists produced by this process could improve the yield of EUV lithography and other applications that rely on high-performance resists.
Applications: The primary application for this technology is the manufacture of resists, for example extreme ultraviolet (EUV) resists.
Intellectual Property Summary: Patent application filed – 63/558,949 on 02/28/2024
Stage of Development: TRL 3 - Experimental proof of concept
Licensing Status: This technology is available for licensing.
Licensing Potential: This technology would be of interest to anyone involved in the manufacture of electronic components and devices, including: • Electronic component manufacturers. • Electronic devices manufacturers. • Research institutions.