General Electric Company

Microsi, Inc.

Bruce F Griffing

Paul R West

Manjin J Kim

Daniel R Olson

Mario Ghezzo

Roger Neal Johnson

Peter D Johnson

David William Skelly

Ronald H Wilson

Paul Andrew Frank

Robert W Stoll

James F Norton

Arlene G Williams

The image of an object with opaque and transparent regions having a contrast less than the contrast threshold of a layer of photoresist when light of a predetermined wavelength to which the photoresist is sensitive is passed through the object and onto the layer of photoresist is enhanced in contrast by the provision of a contrast enhancing layer contiguous to the surface of the photoresist to a value above the contrast threshold of the photoresist. The contrast enhancing layer is constituted of an aryl nitrone compound mixed with a suitable binder.

Composite useful in photolithography

Diaryinitrones are provided which are useful for near UV photolithography.

Diarylnitrones

Diarylnitrones are provided which are useful for near UV photolithography.

Molybdenum gate electrode material is provided with an upper layer of molybdenum nitride which acts to prevent deposition of source and drain contact metal by selective chemical vapor deposition (CVD). The nitride layer also provides an improved mask for ion implantation process steps. This results in an FET structure exhibiting a high degree of planarity which is desirable for multilevel device fabrication.

Active area planarization with self-aligned contacts

A layer of aluminum oxide or other insulative metal oxide is employed as an etch stop in the fabrication of very large scale integrated circuit devices. The use of such etch stops permits fabrication of unframed or borderless via openings and correspondingly permits greater metallization line pitch, smaller circuit features, and more reliable interlayer electrical contact. A method for insulative metal oxide deposition is also described.

Unframed via interconnection with dielectric etch stop

The image of an object with opaque and transparent regions having a contrast lens than the contrast threshold of a layer of photoresist when light of a predetermined wavelength to which the photoresist is sensitive is passed through the object and onto the layer of photoresist is enhanced in contrast by the provision of a contrast enhancing layer contiguous to the surface of the photoresist to a value above the contrast threshold of the photoresist. The contrast enhancing layer is constituted of an aryl nitrone compound mixed with a suitable binder.

Method of enhancing the contrast of images and materials therefor

Spin castable mixtures having aryl nitrones are provided which are useful in making photobleachable layers for use in contrast enhanced photolithography.

Spin castable photobleachable layer forming compositions

Spin castable polymethylmethacrylate photoresist compositions are provided utilizing certain cinnamic acid derivatives as dyes capable of absorbing light at about 436 nm and substantially transparent to light at about 220-250 nm. The spin castable polymethylmethacrylate resist compositions are used in making semiconductor devices by multilayer photoresist methods.

Spin castable resist composition and use

A photobleachable layer has been found to improve the resolution limits of two-layer photoresists for making integrated circuits.

Photolithographic method using a two-layer photoresist and

Multilayer photoresist process utilizing cinnamic acid derivatives as

Apparatus is disclosed for uniform exposure of a plurality of objects such as semiconductor wafers to radiation utilizing sources of radiation of linear configuration. The apparatus includes a baffle assembly of particular construction and constitution situated between the linear sources and the region to be irradiated.

Irradiation apparatus utilizing linear radiation sources

A method of defining in a substrate of silicon an active region, a region of field oxide and an isolating wall of silicon dioxide therebetween in a single masking step. The substrate is covered in succession with a thin layer of silicon dioxide, a thick layer of silicon nitride and a first film of titanium. The first film of titanium is covered with a layer of photoresist which has a removed portion and a retained portion in registry with the active region. The first film of titanium and the layer of silicon nitride are etched through the removed portions of the layer of photoresist to form an opening extending to the thin layer of silicon dioxide and partially underlying the retained portion of the photoresist layer by a predetermined lateral distance. A second film of titanium is deposited on the retained portion of the photoresist layer and the exposed portion of the thin layer of silicon dioxide. The retained portion of the photoresist layer with the portion of the second film of titanium thereon is removed. Thus, an edge of the retained portion of said first film of titanium is laterally spaced from an adjacent edge of the retained portion of the second film of titanium deposited on the thin layer of silicon dioxide by approximately the aforementioned predetermined lateral distance. Using the first and second thin layers of titanium, a trench is etched into the substrate. The trench is thereafter filled with silicon dioxide.

Method of forming an isolation trench in a semiconductor substrate

A method for producing high resolution pattern in a thick layer of polymeric plastic resist is described. The method uses a thin top layer of photo resist in which the desired pattern is formed. The pattern is transferred to a thin metallic inter-layer by wet etching the metallic layer and is subsequently transferred to the thick layer of polymeric plastic by reactive ion etching in oxygen.

Method of patterning a thick resist layer of polymeric plastic

A method is described for forming a desired pattern in a layer of polymethyl methacrylate resist formed on a substrate by irradiating the layer with a pattern of radiation substantially identical to the desired pattern and thereafter immersing the layer of polymethyl methacrylate in a solution of acetone to remove the irradiated portion of the layer of polymethyl methacrylate.

Method of etching polymethyl methacrylate

A method of enhancing the adhesion of polymethyl methacrylate to a surface of silicon dioxide utilizing a solution of carboxylic acid is described.

Growing community of inventors

Schenectady, NY, United States of America

Bruce F Griffing