Engineering Commons^™

A Chrome Ar Film For Binary Photomasks, Matthew Lassiter

Journal of the Microelectronic Engineering Conference

A photomask typically consists of a bulk transparent substrate and a thin metallic film with etched pattern on the surface for light absorption. Stray light reflecting off of the top surface of the photomask is especially problematic because it is focused onto the wafer surface, causing unwanted exposure of the photoresist. . Lithographic performance can be significantly improved if this reflection is reduced with an antireflective layer on the top surface of the photomask. There are commercially developed antireflective films for chrome based photomasks. These films were designed to meet certain specifications for optical density and reflectivity. The goal of …