Applications of Tabletop Extreme Ultraviolet Laser Sources in Nanotechnology and Advanced Manufacturing

Background:

ICALEO's all virtual event was held on October 19 - 20, 2020.  KMLabs co-founder and CTO, Henry Kapteyn, gave an update on the imec attolab project.  Attolab is a joint collaboration amongst imec, KMLabs, and SPECS aimed at the fundamental studies of EUV photoresists using high harmonic generation coherent light sources at 13.5 - 30 nm with femto- to atto-second time resolution to help understand EUV lithography fundamentals that will be used to manufacture next generation semiconductor chips.

Abstract:

The “AttoLab” project developed by KMLabs, imec (Leuven, BE), and SPECS Surface Nano Analysis GmbH seeks to employ coherent 13.5 nm EUV light, generated through the high-order harmonic generation process, to study the issue of stochastics of photoresist exposure process using time-averaged and time-resolved infrared and electron spectroscopy, EUV radiometry, and coherent diffractive imaging. High-angle interference lithography allow for small-area exposures with line patterning as dense as ~8 nm pitch, while other beamlines study exposure dynamics using photoelectron spectroscopy and time-resolved IR absorption. The goals of this project include developing a better understanding of the fundamentals of the EUV resist exposure process using high angle interference lithography. Coherent EUV light can also be applied to nanoscopy using coherent diffraction imaging techniques, which allow for unprecedented diffraction-limited resolution in the EUV, which can also be used for EUVL mask review as well as for broader nanotechnology applications.