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Materials

JSR And IBM Claim Photolithography Advance

Firms say they can extend current chip-making technique

by JEAN-FRAN??OIS TREMBLAY
February 23, 2006

JSR Corp. and IBM say they have demonstrated the feasibility of producing semiconductor patterns less than 30 nm in width with the immersion technique of photolithography. They used a new argon fluoride photoresist produced by JSR in combination with IBM???s own deep-ultraviolet-light-based lithography tool, nicknamed NEMO.

The announcement appears to confirm that semiconductor makers will be able to continue to increase the density of circuits without an expensive switch to a new generation of manufacturing equipment based on soft X-rays and exotic mirrors. ???Our goal is to push optical lithography as far as we can so the industry does not have to move to any expensive alternatives until absolutely necessary,??? says Robert D. Allen, manager of lithography materials at IBM???s Almaden Research Center.

Immersion photolithography involves inserting a liquid, currently water, between the lithography lens and the silicon wafer where circuit lines are being patterned. The IBM-JSR team used a proprietary JSR high-refractive-index fluid. Most advanced chips today have circuit widths of 90 nm, although several chipmakers are currently producing semiconductors with circuit widths of 65 nm.

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