Conference

With each technology generation, device dimensions continue to shrink, driven by ongoing advances in lithography. Extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography at a 13.4 nm wavelength is now in high‑volume manufacturing, while high‑numerical‑aperture (high‑NA) EUV is under active development. The introduction of high‑NA EUV with the TWINSCAN EXE:5000 enables feature scaling below 28 nm pitch using a single EUV exposure, placing new demands on photoresist materials and patterning processes. Realizing the full benefits of high‑NA EUV requires innovations that extend beyond conventional solution‑processed EUV resists.

All‑dry EUV resist technologies provide differentiated process knobs that enable enhanced performance relative to traditional resist systems. Lam’s Aether® dry resist technology has been adopted in high‑volume manufacturing, overcoming long‑standing trade‑offs among resolution, sensitivity, line‑edge roughness and defectivity while delivering full productivity entitlement for 0.33 NA EUV lithography. In this work, we demonstrate continued progress in dry resist development to address the specific challenges of high‑NA EUV. In particular, expanding depth of focus (DoF) while maintaining high pattern fidelity at low dose is critical at 0.55 NA. We present 3D engineered dry resist films that enable through‑thickness composition tuning and profile modulation, providing scalable benefits as pattern pitch continues to shrink. Validation of 3D engineered resist concept through high NA patterning at pitch 20nm and below will be demonstrated.