Shin-etsu Chemical Co., Ltd.

Takao Yoshihara

Jun Hatakeyama

Koji Hasegawa

Yuji Harada

Wataru Kusaki

Yoshio Kawai

Katsuya Takemura

Takeshi Kinsho

Takeru Watanabe

Tsutomu Ogihara

Toshinobu Ishihara

Seiichiro Tachibana

Youichi Ohsawa

Motoaki Iwabuchi

Tomohiro Kobayashi

Masayoshi Sagehashi

Kazuhiro Katayama

Kazunori Maeda

Katsuhiro Kobayashi

Toshihiko Fujii

Taku Morisawa

The invention provides a method for forming a silicon-containing resist underlayer film, the method for coating and forming a silicon-containing resist underlayer film by spin coating method comprising: feeding an aqueous alkaline solution in a pipe of an apparatus for coating and forming a film by spin coating method to clean therein; supplying a silicon-containing resist underlayer film composition via the pipe; and coating the silicon-containing resist underlayer film on a substrate to form a film. There can be provided a method for forming a silicon-containing resist underlayer film capable of reducing coating defects after forming a film by cleaning and removing a precipitate derived from silicon-containing resist underlayer film composition that precipitates and adheres in a pipe of an apparatus for coating and forming a film.

Method for forming silicon-containing resist underlayer film

A fluorinated monomer has formula (1) wherein Ris H, F, methyl or trifluoromethyl, Ris a monovalent hydrocarbon group which may have halogen or oxygen, A is a divalent hydrocarbon group, and kis 0, 1 or 2. A polymer derived from the fluorinated monomer may be endowed with appropriate water repellency, water slip, acid lability and hydrolysis and is useful as an additive polymer in formulating a resist composition. 

Fluorinated monomer, fluorinated polymer, resist composition, and patterning process

A pattern is formed by applying a first positive resist composition onto a substrate, heat treatment, exposure, heat treatment and development to form a first resist pattern; causing the first resist pattern to crosslink and cure by irradiation of high-energy radiation of up to 180 nm wavelength or EB; further applying a second positive resist composition onto the substrate, heat treatment, exposure, heat treatment and development to form a second resist pattern. The double patterning process reduces the pitch between patterns to one half.

Patterning process

A pattern is formed by coating a chemically amplified positive resist composition comprising a resin comprising acid labile group-containing recurring units and a photoacid generator onto a substrate, drying to form a resist film, exposing the resist film to high-energy radiation through a phase shift mask having a lattice-like array of shifters, PEB, developing to form a positive pattern, illuminating or heating the positive pattern to eliminate acid labile groups for increasing alkaline solubility and to induce crosslinking for imparting solvent resistance, coating a reversal film, and dissolving away the positive pattern in an alkaline wet etchant to form a pattern by way of positive/negative reversal.

A pattern is formed through positive/negative reversal by coating a chemically amplified positive resist composition comprising an acid labile group-bearing resin, a photoacid generator, and an organic solvent onto a substrate, prebaking the resist composition, exposing the resist film to high-energy radiation, post-exposure heating, and developing the exposed resist film with an alkaline developer to form a positive pattern; irradiating or heating the positive pattern to facilitate elimination of acid labile groups and crosslinking for improving alkali solubility and imparting solvent resistance; coating a reversal film-forming composition thereon to form a reversal film; and applying an alkaline wet etchant thereto for dissolving away the positive pattern.

A resist composition comprises a polymer comprising recurring units having formula (1) wherein R, R, R, and Rare H or methyl, R, R, R, and Rare H, alkyl or fluoroalkyl, R is F or H, Ris alkylene, Ris fluorinated alkyl, Ris a single bond or alkylene, Rand Rare H, F, methyl or trifluoromethyl, Rand Rare a single bond, &#x2014;O&#x2014; or &#x2014;CRR&#x2014;, R, R, and Rare H, F, methyl or trifluoromethyl, Ris alkylene, X, Xand Xare &#x2014;C(&#x2550;O)&#x2014;O&#x2014;, &#x2014;O&#x2014;, or &#x2014;C(&#x2550;O)&#x2014;R&#x2014;C(&#x2550;O)&#x2014;O&#x2014; wherein Ris alkylene, 0&#x2266;(a-1)&#x3c;1, 0&#x2266;(a-2)&#x3c;1, 0&#x2266;(a-3)&#x3c;1, 0&#x3c;(a-1)+(a-2)+(a-3)&#x3c;1, 0&#x3c;b&#x3c;1, and 0&#x3c;(a-1)+(a-2)+(a-3)+b&#x2266;1. 

Resist composition and patterning process

A pattern is formed by applying a positive resist composition comprising a polymer comprising 7-oxanorbornane ring-bearing recurring units and acid labile group-bearing recurring units and an acid generator onto a substrate to form a resist film, heat treating and exposing the resist film to radiation, heat treating and developing the resist film with a developer, and causing the resist film to crosslink and cure with the aid of acid and/or heat. A second resist pattern is then formed in the space area of the first resist pattern. The double patterning process reduces the pitch between patterns to one half.

Patterning process and resist composition

A polymer of which dissolution rate in an alkaline developer increases under the action of acid comprises recurring units having formulae (1) and (2) wherein R, R, and Rare H or methyl, Ris difluoromethyl or trifluoromethyl, and X is tertiary alkyl. A resist composition comprising the polymer has a high sensitivity and resolution, decreased pattern collapse during development, and minimized MEF and is best suited as micropatterning material for the VLSI manufacture. 

Polymer, resist composition and patterning process

To a resist composition, an alkali-soluble polymer having fluorinated ester-containing lactone units incorporated therein is included as an additive. The resist composition forms a resist film having a reduced contact angle after development. The resist film prevents water penetration during immersion lithography.

Polymer, resist composition, and patterning process

A resist composition comprises a polymer which increases its alkali solubility under the action of an acid as a base resin, and a copolymer comprising recurring units containing a sulfonic acid amine salt and recurring units containing at least one fluorine atom as an additive. The composition is suited for immersion lithography.

Sulfonyldiazomethane compounds containing a long-chain alkylcyclohexyl group are novel and useful as photoacid generators. Chemical amplification type resist compositions comprising the same are suited for microfabrication because of many advantages including improved resolution, improved focus latitude, minimized line width variation or shape degradation even on long-term PED, minimized debris left after coating, development and peeling, and improved pattern profile after development.

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Joetsu, Japan

Takao Yoshihara