Infineon Technologies Ag

Eberhard Kühn

Jörg Rottstegge

Michael Sebald

Christian Eschbaumer

Waltraud Herbst

Gertrud Falk

Christoph Hohle

A photoresist includes a polymer having a main chain composed of alternating silicon and oxygen atoms and a polymer chain segment which linked as a side chain to the main chain and whose chain is composed of carbon atoms. The chain composed of carbon atoms includes acid-labile groups, so that the photoresist according to the invention can be constructed as a chemically amplified photoresist.

Silicon-containing resist for photolithography

The invention relates to a process for amplifying structured resists. The process permits a subsequent increase in the etch resistance and a change in the structure size of the resist even in the case of ultrathin layers. The chemical amplification is carried out in a solvent that is so nonpolar that it does not dissolve the structured resist or dissolves it only to an insignificant extent. Because of the lower surface tension of these solvents, the danger of a collapse of these structures is additionally avoided.

Process for increasing the etch resistance and for reducing the hole and trench width of a photoresist structure using solvent systems of low polarity

The invention relates to a process for producing amplified negative resist structures in which, following exposure and contrasting of the resist, the resist structure is simultaneously developed and aromatized. This substantially simplifies the production of amplified resist structures. Amplifying agents include compounds having not only a reactive group for attachment to an anchor group of the polymer, but also at least one aromatic group.

Negative resist process with simultaneous development and aromatization of resist structures

The novel process lends itself to the production of highly resolved resist structures. A resist structure having webs is produced from a photoresist on a substrate and then the sidewalls of the webs are selectively chemically amplified so that chemically amplified sidewall structures are obtained. After the removal of the chemically unamplified sections, the amplified sidewall structures are transferred to the substrate. The process permits a resolution of structures that are not producible using the currently customary exposure wavelengths.

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Hemhofen, Germany

Eberhard Kühn