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Solutions To Resist Pattern Collapse For 45nm Lithography, Jonathan Reese

Journal of the Microelectronic Engineering Conference

Two approaches to prevent pattern collapse of 45 nm photoresist features were explored to create a process which minimizes the forces attributed to collapse while increasing adhesion forces. Two different bottom anti-reflective coatings (BARC), a first and second reflectance minimum were examined in conjunction with the experimental approaches. An initial characterization of pattern collapse was performed to act as a control to gauge the effectiveness of the experimental approaches using an exposure matrix. The first approach implemented a surfactant added to the de-ionized (DI) water rinse after develop to decrease the capillary forces between the features. The second approach created …