Fed Corporation

Digital Equipment Corporation

Duke University

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Shipley Company LLC

The University of North Carolina at Charlotte

Mcnc

Microelectronics Center of N.c.

Mcnc and University of Nc at Charlotte

Susan K Jones

Gary W Jones

Stephen M Bobbio

Farid M Tranjan

Thomas D DuBois

Steven M Zimmerman

Jeffrey A Silvernail

Bruce W Dudley

Rudolf G Frieser

Amalkumar P Ghosh

Edward K Pavelchek

Arnold Reisman

Eugene De Juan, Jr

Jeffrey R Marino

Mark D Kellam

Yachin Liu

Michael J Costa

John F Bohland

Joseph K Ho

Jon Van Winkle

R Mark Boysel

Peter W Freeman

A mask structure may be formed on a field emitter substrate for use in forming emitter wells on and in the substrate. The mask structure may be formed from a multilayered structure on the surface of the substrate using a laser lithography process. From the substrate up, the multilayered structure may include an antireflective coating, a photoresistive layer, an optional etch resistant layer between the antireflective coating and the photoresistive layer, and an optional second antireflective coating between the optional etch resistant layer and the photoresistive layer. The pattern of the mask structure may be transferred to the multilayer structure by exposing the photoresistive layer to laser light. The antireflective coatings may reduce the amount of stray laser light that reflects off the substrate and onto the back of the photoresistive layer. Development of the photoresistive layer following exposure to laser light may be monitored and selectively arrested to form a mask structure with a selective pitch. The antireflective coating may be etched optionally so that it is undercut beneath the overlying etch resistant layer or photoresistive layer to aid in the formation of emitters using a veil field emitter process or an etched gate process.

Lithographic structure and method for making field emitters

A field emitter device formed by a veil process wherein a protective layer comprising a release layer is deposited on the gate electrode layer for the device, with the protective layer overlying the circumscribing peripheral edge of the opening of the gate electrode layer, to protect the edge of the gate electrode layer during etching of the field emitter cavity in the dielectric material layer on a substrate, and during the formation of a field emitter element in the cavity by depositing a field emitter material through the opening. The protective layer is readily removed subsequent to completion of the cavity etching and emitter formation steps, to yield the field emitter device. Also disclosed are various planarizing structures and methods, and current limiter compositions permitting high efficiency emission of electrons from the field emitter elements at low turn-on voltages.

Field emitter device, and veil process for THR fabrication thereof

A field emitter device includes a column conductor, an insulator, and a resistor structure for advantageously limiting current in a field emitter array. A wide column conductor is deposited on an insulating substrate. An insulator is laid over the column conductor. A high resistance layer is placed on the insulator and is physically isolated from the column conductor. The high resistance material may be chromium oxide or 10%-50% wt % Cr+SiO. A group of microtip electron emitters is placed over the high resistance layer. A low resistance strap interconnects the column conductor with the high resistance layer to connect in an electrical series circuit the column conductor, the high resistance layer, and the group of electron emitters. One or more layers of insulator and a gate electrode, all with cavities for the electron emitters, are laid over the high resistance material. One layer of insulator is selected from a group of materials including SiC, SiO, and Si.sub.3 N.sub.4. An anode plate is attached with intermediate space between the anode plate and the microtip electron emitters being evacuated.

Field emitter device with a current limiter structure

An electrically and mechanically robust microelectromechanical transducer is formed of a pleated dielectric sheet having patterned electrical conductors on the opposing faces thereof. The pleats define a plurality of spaced apart walls, with each wall including an electrically conductive portion at one side thereof. Positive and negative voltages, applied to opposite faces of the pleated sheet, cause the walls to move towards one another by electrostatic attraction. The walls can also move away from one another by electrostatic repulsion upon application of appropriate voltages. The microelectromechanical transducer may be fabricated by fabricating a sheet with integral pleats or by forming a 'self-pleating' flat sheet which forms pleats after conductor fabrication thereon.

Pleated sheet microelectromechanical transducer

The present invention comprises methods for treating photoresists and forming photoresist relief images, including a method comprising providing a photoresist coating having a crosslinked surface layer, treating the photoresist coating with an organometallic material, and developing the photoresist coating to provide a relief image comprising an etch resistant effective amount of organometallic material.

Methods for treating photoresists

A method of making a microsurgical cutter from a flat planar substrate having a top surface and a bottom surface comprises the steps of (a) forming a photoresist mask layer on the top surface in the pattern of the microsurgical instrument, the mask layer having an edge portion formed in a predetermined pattern therein; and then (b) etching isotropically the top surface of the substrate through the top surface to the bottom surface so that the top surface and bottom surface meet at a cutting edge portion, with the cutting edge portion having a configuration corresponding to the edge portion of the mask layer. The substrates may be formed from semiconductor materials such as silicon, silicon carbide, sapphire and diamond.

Method for making microstructural surgical instruments

The invention is a modified organic photoresist which is resistant to etching in oxygen-containing plasmas and therefore particularly useful for masking and etching organic polymer materials in VLSI and advanced packaging applications. The invention comprises adding a phosphorous-containing compound to a conventional photoresist. The phosphorous-containing compound is of a type and in an amount effective to substantially prevent etching of the modified photoresist in an oxygen-containing plasma without substantially adversely affecting the photosensitivity of the photoresist or the elasticity or the adhesion of the etch resistant film formed during oxygen-containing plasma exposure to an underlying material to be patterned and etched.

Photoresists resistant to oxygen plasmas

Growing community of inventors

Raleigh, NC, United States of America

Susan K Jones