Shin-etsu Chemical Co., Ltd.

Teppei Adachi

Jun Hatakeyama

Masaki Ohashi

Koji Hasegawa

Masayoshi Sagehashi

Tomohiro Kobayashi

Takayuki Fujiwara

Masahiro Fukushima

Kenichi Oikawa

Kazuhiro Katayama

Shinya Yamashita

Ryosuke Taniguchi

Kenji Funatsu

Satoshi Watanabe

Keiichi Masunaga

Daisuke Domon

Kenji Yamada

A resist composition containing: (A) a resin containing a repeating unit having an acid-labile group; (B) a photo-acid generator shown by a general formula (B-1); and (C) a solvent, where Wrepresents a cyclic divalent hydrocarbon group having 4 to 12 carbon atoms and containing a heteroatom; Wrepresents a cyclic monovalent hydrocarbon group having 4 to 14 carbon atoms and not containing a heteroatom; Rf represents a divalent organic group shown by the following general formula; and Mrepresents an onium cation. This provides a resist composition and a patterning process that uses the resist composition that show a particularly favorable mask dimension dependency (mask error factor: MEF), LWR, and critical dimension uniformity (CDU) particularly in photolithography where a high-energy beam such as an ArF excimer laser beam is used as a light source.

Resist composition and patterning process

A resist composition containing: (A) a resin containing a repeating unit having an acid-labile group and further containing at least one repeating unit having an aromatic substituent; (B) a photo-acid generator shown by a general formula (B-1); and (C) a solvent, where Wrepresents a cyclic divalent hydrocarbon group having 4 to 12 carbon atoms with a heteroatom; Wrepresents a cyclic monovalent hydrocarbon group having 4 to 14 carbon atoms without a heteroatom; Rf represents a divalent organic group shown by the following general formula; and Mrepresents an onium cation. This provides a resist composition and a patterning process of using it that show a particularly favorable mask dimension dependency and CDU in photolithography where a light source is a high-energy beam such as a KrF excimer laser beam, an electron beam, or an extreme ultraviolet ray.

A composition comprising (A) a polymer comprising recurring units (a1) having a carboxyl group protected with an acid labile group and recurring units (a2) having a cyclic ester, cyclic carbonate or cyclic sulfonate structure, (B) a thermal acid generator, and (C) an organic solvent is suited to form a protective film between a substrate and a resist film. Even when a metal-containing resist film is used, the protective film is effective for preventing the substrate from metal contamination.

Substrate protective film-forming composition and pattern forming process

A resist composition containing: (A) a resin containing a repeating unit having an acid-labile group and not containing a repeating unit having an aromatic substituent; (B) a photo-acid generator shown by a general formula (B-1); and (C) a solvent, where Wrepresents a cyclic divalent hydrocarbon group having 4 to 12 carbon atoms and containing a heteroatom; Wrepresents a cyclic monovalent hydrocarbon group having 4 to 14 carbon atoms and not containing a heteroatom; Rf represents a divalent organic group shown by the following general formula; and Mrepresents an onium cation. This provides a resist composition and a patterning process that uses the resist composition that show a particularly favorable mask dimension dependency (mask error factor: MEF), LWR, and critical dimension uniformity (CDU) particularly in photolithography where a high-energy beam such as an ArF excimer laser beam is used as a light source. 

A polymer comprising recurring units derived from a sulfonium salt of specific structure having a polymerizable group is coated to form a resist film which is amenable to precise micropatterning because of improved LWR, CDU and resolution.

Sulfonium salt, polymer, resist composition, and patterning process

A monomer and polymer having a substituent group capable of polarity switch under the action of acid are provided. A resist composition comprising the polymer forms at a high resolution a negative pattern insoluble in alkaline developer and having high etch resistance.

Monomer, polymer, resist composition, and patterning process

A polymer comprising units having a highly fused homoadamantane skeleton at side chain end bonded to the polymer backbone via a linking group has an appropriate solvent solubility and is capable of suppressing acid diffusion. A resist composition comprising the polymer and a specific photoacid generator exhibits a good DOF margin, CD uniformity, and a minimal CD change during PPD, and is quite effective in precise micropatterning.

Resist composition and pattern forming process

A polymer comprising recurring units having an acid generator bound to the backbone, and recurring units having an optionally acid labile group-substituted carboxyl group and/or recurring units having an optionally acid labile group-substituted hydroxyl group is obtained by polymerizing corresponding monomers under such illumination that the quantity of light of wavelength up to 400 nm is up to 0.05 mW/cm. The polymer avoids photo-decomposition of the acid generator during polymerization and concomitant deprotection reaction of the acid labile group when used in positive resist compositions. A pattern with high dissolution contrast and rectangularity is formed after development.

Polymer, resist composition, and pattern forming process

A polymer comprising recurring units containing a specific lactone ring and having an alkyl group on &#x3b3;-butyrolactone skeleton of fused ring lactone and an alkyl ester substituent group intervening between the lactone structure and the polymer backbone is provided. A resist composition comprising the polymer as base resin is improved in such properties as DOF margin and MEF and quite effective for precise micropatterning.

Resist composition, pattern forming process, polymer, and monomer

A polymer comprising recurring units having an acid generator bound to the backbone, and recurring units having an optionally acid labile group-substituted carboxyl group and/or recurring units having an optionally acid labile group-substituted hydroxyl group is obtained by polymerizing corresponding monomers in a solution of a non-polymerizable compound containing a nitrogen atom to which an acid labile group is bound. This prevents deprotection reaction of the acid labile group in the case of positive resist-forming polymer or crosslinking reaction in the case of negative resist-forming polymer.

Method for producing polymer

A monomer having a substituent group capable of polarity switch under the action of acid is provided. A useful polymer is obtained by polymerizing the monomer. A resist composition comprising the polymer has improved development properties and is processed to form a negative pattern having high resolution and etch resistance which is insoluble in alkaline developer.

A non-chemically-amplified positive resist composition comprising a polymer comprising both recurring units derived from a sulfonium salt capable of generating a fluorinated acid and recurring units containing an amino group as a base resin exhibits a high resolution and a low edge roughness and forms a pattern of good profile after exposure and organic solvent development.

Positive resist composition and pattern forming process

A photomask blank has a chemically amplified negative resist film comprising (A) a polymer comprising recurring units of specific structure and recurring units having fluorine, (B) a base resin adapted to reduce its solubility in alkaline developer under the action of acid, (C) an acid generator, and (D) a basic compound. The resist film is improved in receptivity to antistatic film.

Photomask blank, resist pattern forming process, and method for making photomask

A resist composition is provided comprising (A) a fluorine-containing polymer, (B) a base resin, (C) an acid generator, and (D) a solvent mixture of a first solvent which is a C-Cketone, C-Calcohol, C-Cether or C-Cester and a second solvent which is a lactone ring-containing C-Ccompound. A pattern is formed by coating the resist composition, prebake, exposure, and development. In immersion lithography, the resist film is improved in water slip. In EB or EUV lithography, outgassing is suppressed and edge roughness is reduced.

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Teppei Adachi