AUSTIN, Texas -- International Sematech, the research consortium formed of the world's leading semiconductor companies, held a 'workshop' on immersion lithography technology recently and undertook to perform a feasibility study on six-month time-frame. As part of the workshop researchers drew up a top 10 list of challenges facing the promising technology.
In total more than 100 lithography experts attend the workshop held to review the state of immersion lithography technology and they urged the consortium to coordinate and accelerate a feasibility study on the technology, International Sematech (IMST) said.
The participants want to know within the next six months if the potential benefits of immersion hold up to scrutiny as a cost-effective extension of existing optical lithography technology.
"If 193 nanometer immersion lithography can be implemented in time and with competitive cost of ownership figures, it could be a very attractive technology to semiconductor manufacturers," said Walt Trybula, ISMT senior fellow and chair of the workshop, in a statement.
In immersion lithography, the space between the projection lens and the wafer is filled with a liquid. For the 193-nm exposure wavelength, water turns out to be the preferred transparent medium. Immersion technology could offer better resolution enhancement over conventional projection lithography because when it is to be in contact with a liquid the lens can be designed with numerical apertures higher than one, which results in being able to produce smaller images.
"Our role at International Sematech is to address a few critical areas that bring about an improved understanding of fundamental characteristics and properties of materials involved in immersion lithography, and to determine if new materials such as photo-resists need to be developed," said Tony Yen, co-director of lithography at ISMT, and an assignee from Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Ltd.
The participants at the workshop drew up a list of 50 issues facing immersion lithography and refined it to a top ten.
The key issues are: 1. Determination of fluid properties, absolute value of n, k, etc., to sufficient accuracy and precision
2. Timing versus infrastructure versus competing technologies
3. Strategy for NA versus field size, working distance, etc.
4. Formation, control and removal of micro-bubbles
5. Chemical contamination of fluid and resist
6. Out-gassing
7. Determination of changing properties due to thermal and mechanical influences
8. Determination of bubble effects (scattering, defects)
9. Polarization strategy and the impact on the tool
10. Coupling of lens to stage -- vibration coupled through fluid
ISMT said it would put in place working groups to study optical properties of fluids, resist-fluid interaction and micro-bubble formation, presence and control.
"International Sematech is heeding the call of our member companies to put this feasibility study on a fast track and deliver answers soon in these key areas," said Giang Dao, co-director of lithography and an assignee from Intel Corp.
ISMT plans to hold the 2nd Immersion Technology workshop in June of 2003.
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