Building 1X NIL Templates: Challenges and Requirements

摘要

Recent interest and inclusion to the ITRS roadmap for the investigation of NIL (Nano Imprint Lithography) has brought back to life 1X mask making. Not only does NIL require 1X pattering, it also requires physical contact with the patterning media, which, for obvious reasons, raises defectivity concerns. NIL is capable of reproducing features in the 50-10nm range, and possibly below, creating extensive manufacturing challenges for NIL tooling. KLA-Tencor has partnered with Molecular Imprints Inc. of Austin, Texas to study the eventual implementation and commercialization of NIL, especially as it pertains to the 1C segment of the market. Photronics Labs Inc. is also involved in the NIL effort by developing and understanding the issues required for successfully producing commercially available tooling for this new lithography technique. Much of this work supported by NIST project #00-00-5853.