lithography ia

Lithography

Lithography definitions Resist tone Introduction to the lithography

process Surface Preparation Photoresist Application Soft Bake Align & Expose Develop Hard Bake Inspection Etch Layer or Add Layer Resist Strip Final Inspection Clean- Room, Wafer Cleaning

Content CD and Tg

Making a Mask Moore’s ‘Law’

Photolithography -- Definitions

Photolithography is used to produce 2 1/2-D images using light sensitive photoresist and controlled exposure to light.

Microlithography is the technique used to print ultra-miniature patterns -- used primarily in the semiconductor industry.

Photolithography is at the Center of the Wafer Fabrication Process

*

Thin Films

Implant

Diffusion Etch

Test/Sort

Polish

PhotoPatterned

wafer

Photolithography -- Definitions

Resist Tone

Negative: Prints a pattern that is opposite of the pattern that is on the mask.

Positive: Prints a pattern that is the same as the pattern on the mask.

Negative Lithography

Island

silicon substrate

oxide

photoresist

Window

Areas exposed to light become polymerized and resist the develop chemical.

Resulting pattern after the resist is developed.

photoresistoxide

silicon substrate

Ultraviolet Light

Exposed area of photoresist

Shadow on photoresist

Chrome island on glass mask

Resist Tone

silicon substrate

oxide

photoresist

Positive Lithography

Island

Window

Areas exposed to light become photosoluble.

Resulting pattern after the resist is developed.

Shadow on photoresist

Exposed area of photoresist

Chrome island on glass mask

photoresist

silicon substrate

oxide

Ultraviolet Light

Resist Tone

Resist Tone

Photoresist profiles

– Overcut (LIFT-OFF)

– Vertical

– Undercut

Resist Tone

Photoresist profiles

– Overcut (LIFT-OFF)

– Vertical

– UndercutDose : High

Developer: Low

Dose : Medium

Developer: Moderate

Dose : Low

Developer: Dominant

Resist Tone

Ten Basic Steps of

Photolithography

1. Surface Preparation

2. Photoresist Application

3. Soft Bake

4. Align & Expose*

5. Develop

6. Hard Bake

7. Inspection

8. Etch

9. Resist Strip

10. Final Inspection* Some processes may include a Post-exposure Bake

Introduction to the Lithography Process

1. Surface Preparation (HMDS vapor prime)

Dehydration bake in enclosed chamber with exhaust

Clean and dry wafer surface (hydrophobic)

Hexamethyldisilazane (HMDS)

Temp ~ 200 - 250C Time ~ 60 sec.

HMDS

1. Surface Preparation (HMDS vapor prime)

1. Surface Preparation (HMDS vapor prime)

2. Photoresist Application

Wafer held onto vacuum chuck

Dispense ~5ml of photoresist

Slow spin ~ 500 rpm Ramp up to ~ 3000 - 5000

rpm Quality measures:

– time– speed– thickness– uniformity– particles & defects

vacuum chuck

spindleto vacuum

pump

photoresist dispenser

Resist spinning thickness T depends on:– Spin speed– Solution concentration– Molecular weight (measured by intrinsic

viscosity) In the equation for T, K is a calibration

constant, C the polymer concentration in grams per 100 ml solution, the intrinsic viscosity, and the number of rotations per minute (rpm)

Once the various exponential factors (, and ) have been determined the equation can be used to predict the thickness of the film that can be spun for various molecular weights and solution concentrations of a given polymer and solvent system

2. Photoresist Application

3. Soft Bake

Partial evaporation of photo-resist solvents

Improves adhesion Improves uniformity Improves etch resistance Improves linewidth control Optimizes light absorbance

characteristics of photoresist

4. Alignment and Exposure

Transfers the mask image to the resist-coated wafer

Activates photo-sensitive components of photoresist

Quality measures: – linewidth resolution– overlay accuracy– particles & defects

UV Light Source

Mask

ResistResistResistResist

Alignment errors (many different types)

Mask aligner equipment Double sided alignment

especially important in micromachines

4. Alignment and Exposure

4. Alignment and Exposure

4. Alignment and Exposure

Contact printing Proximity printing Self-aligned (see next) Projection printing : R = 2bmin =

0.6/NA

R = 2bmin 3 (s z

2)~

R = 2bmin 3 z

2)~

4. Alignment and Exposure

4. Alignment and Exposure

5. Develop

Soluble areas of photoresist are dissolved by developer chemical

Visible patterns appear on wafer– windows– islands

Quality measures:– line resolution– uniformity– particles & defects

to vacuum pump

vacuum chuck

spindle

developerdispenser

6. Hard Bake

Evaporate remaining photoresist

Improve adhesion

Higher temperature than soft bake

7. Development Inspection

Optical or SEM metrology Quality issues:

– particles

– defects

– critical dimensions

– linewidth resolution

– overlay accuracy

8. Plasma Etch-Or Add Layer

Selective removal of upper layer of wafer through windows in photoresist: subtractive

Two basic methods:– wet acid etch– dry plasma etch

Quality measures:– defects and particles– step height– selectivity– critical dimensions

Adding materials (additive) Two main techniques:

– Sputtering– evaporation

PlasmaPlasma

CF4CF4

8. Plasma Etch-Or Add Layer

9. Photoresist Removal (strip)

No need for photoresist following etch process

Two common methods:– wet acid strip– dry plasma strip

Followed by wet clean to remove remaining resist and strip byproducts

O2O2

PlasmaPlasma

10. Final Inspection

Photoresist has been completely removed

Pattern on wafer matches mask pattern (positive resist)

Quality issues:– defects– particles– step height– critical dimensions

Clean-rooms, Wafer Cleaning

Yellow light and low particle size/density curves

Cleaning steps

– RCA1-peroxides and NH3-removes organics

– RCA2-peroxide and HCl-removes metals

Dry vs. wet cleaning Supercritical cleaning-no liquid phase

Clean-rooms, Wafer Cleaning

Clean-rooms, Wafer Cleaning

Clean-rooms, Wafer Cleaning

Clean-rooms, Wafer cleaning

Yield is the reason for the clean-rooms-the smaller the features the more important the cleanroom

In the future people will work outside the cleanroom and only wafers will be inside the clean environment

At universities, modularity (many different materials and processes) is more important than yield

CD and Tg

CD (e.g. 90 nm) i.e. critical dimension (the smallest feature made in a certain process)

Glass transition temperature, above Tg the resist picks up dirt quite readily and the profile might get degraded

Making a Mask

Software Mask

Moore’s ‘Law’ Observation and self

fulfilling prophecy --not a physical law

Is it running out of steam?