In this paper, we proposed a new design of the test mask to measure the amount of the out-of-band (OOB) light from an extreme-ultraviolet (EUV) light source by detuning the period of the multilayer (ML), rather than changing the material of the absorber, to suppress reflection of EUV light. The new OOB test mask also reflects essentially the same OOB light as that of the production mask at each wavelength in the whole OOB spectral range. With the help of the new OOB test mask, the contributions to the background intensity from in-band flare and OOB light can be correctly separated and an accurate optical-proximity-correction (OPC) model can be established.
We investigated the effect of quencher type and loading concentration in OoB-insensitive EUV resists via actual
exposure on the latest EUV scanner and stochastic simulation using Prolith. Model resist samples with two quencher
types, conventional base type and photo-decomposable base type, at variant loading concentrations were prepared and tested. Basic indicators of lithographic performance, such as depth of focus, energy latitude, and line-width roughness were significantly improved by 80 nm, 8.4% and 25%, respectively along with a moderate increase of sensitivity (ca. 5mJ/cm2) under the optimized quencher condition. Meanwhile, we further quantitatively analysis the outgassing-induced contamination growth to realize the quencher distribution engineering effect on outgassing issue in EUV lithography. In addition, stochastic simulation for EUV resist featuring various types of quenchers provides certain correlation with the experimental results.
Resolution (R), line-width roughness (L), and sensitivity (S) are three key indices describing the performance of a resist. When optimizing a resist to compromise the RLS trade-off in extreme-ultraviolet lithography, outgassing of the resist also needs to be considered, because it will cause deposition of cleanable and non-cleanable contaminants on the surface of the projection optics and reduce the throughput of the exposure tool. In this paper, the dependence of outgassing of a resist on its compositions, such as types of photo-acid generator, quencher, and acid liable group as well as their loadings are investigated systematically through a set of specially prepared resist samples. The outgassing of these samples is tested on EUVOM-9000 from Litho Tech Japan. The lithographic performances of these samples are also characterized on the ASML NXE3100. Directions for optimizing resist lithographic performance under the constraint of resist outgassing are proposed.
Access to the requested content is limited to institutions that have purchased or subscribe to SPIE eBooks.
You are receiving this notice because your organization may not have SPIE eBooks access.*
*Shibboleth/Open Athens users─please
sign in
to access your institution's subscriptions.
To obtain this item, you may purchase the complete book in print or electronic format on
SPIE.org.
INSTITUTIONAL Select your institution to access the SPIE Digital Library.
PERSONAL Sign in with your SPIE account to access your personal subscriptions or to use specific features such as save to my library, sign up for alerts, save searches, etc.