Figure 8.1 Basic patterning process.

• Photolithography
• Photomasking
• Key:
Resolution (feature size, image size)
Correct placement (alignment,
registration)
Defect control
Figure 8.2 Five mask set silicon gate transistor.
0.18μm

0.5μm
Figure 8.3 First pattern transfer—mask/reticle to resist layer.
Figure 8.4 Second pattern transfer—resist layer to surface layer.
Figure 8.5 Mast-reticle polarities.
Figure 8.6 Photomasking hole and island.
 Figure 8.7-(1)
Image transfer from a light-field mask with a positive photoresist to create
an island.

• Photosolubility: When exposed

to light, resist more soluble.
 Figure 8.7-(2)
Image transfer from a light-field mask with a positive photoresist to create
an island.
Figure 8.8 Mask and photoresist polarity results.
 Figure 8.9-(1)
Ten-step photomasking process.
 Figure 8.9-(2)
Ten-step photomasking process.
Figure 8.10 Photoresist components.

• Eastman, Kodak, Shipley

Company: first introduce
photoresist to semiconductor
industry in 1950.
• Photoresist type: optical, X-ray,
e-beam
 Photoresist composition

• (Polymer) consists of large and heavy polymer containing

C-H-O
• (Solvent) Negative PR: xylene (aromatic type); Positive
PR: ethoxyethyl acetate or 2-methoxyethyl
• (Sensitizers) added to broaden or narrow the response
range to a specific wavelength.
Positive PR: O-naphthaquihonediazide
Negative PR: bis-aryldiazide
• (Additives) to increase the chemical reaction (chemically
amplified resists) or inhibit the dissolution of the
nonexposed portion.
Figure 8.11 Negative resist chemistry.-(1)
Figure 8.11 Negative resist chemistry.-(2)

• Polyisoprene polymer (first

founded by HUNT Corp.)

etch resistant
Figure 8.12 Phenol-formaldehyde novolak resin structure.

<positive photoresist→become soluble after exposure

(photosolubilization)>

• Light source:
UV. DUV.
G.I.

• Usually, clean room is in

yellow light or yellow filer to
prevent accident exposure.
Figure 8.13 Resist comparison table.
Figure 8.14 Aspect ratio.

• Photoresist performance factor:

Dimension requirement
etch barrier
Adhere to the surface
step coverage
pinhole free
• Resolution capability: smallest
opening can be produced.
• Must be thick enough to resist
etching.
• Positive PR can be thicker and of
better resolution than negative PR;
Negative PR: better adhesion
Figure 8.15 Electromagnetic spectrum.

• Sensitivity: amount of energy

required to cause
polymerization or
photosolubilization, related to
specific wavelength.
Figure 8.15
Figure 8.16 Ultraviolet and visible spectrum. (After Elliott. 1)
Figure 8.17 Exposure response curve. (Source: Shipley Megaposit XP-
89131 Photo Resist)

• spectral response characteristics

• Resist sensitivity unit:

milijoules per square centimeter
(mJ/cm2)
Figure 8.18 Mercury (Hg) spectrum. (From Silicon Processing for the
VLSI Era by Wolfe and Tauber.)

• Step coverage: PR must maintain

an adequate thickness over
different layer steps.
• Thermal flow for PR: Soft bake:
evaporate solvent for PR.
• Hard bake: after develop the image
need hard bake to increase the
adhesion.
• PR must be stable after various
bake.
• Should avoid pinhole: Pin holes are
detrimental for etching process.
• Pin hole caused by: Particulate
contamination spin process,
structural voids.
 Figure 8.19-(1)
Changes in image size with: (a) image size reduction with light-field mask
and negative resist

• Historical: Negative PR’s are

used due to their better
adhesion up to 1970’s.
Figure 8.19-(1)

• Not until 1980, process with

positive PR is used. Positive
and negative PR has completely
different process.
 Figure 8.19-(2)
Changes in image size with: (b) image size enlargement with dark-field
mask and positive photoresist
 Figure 8.20-(1)
(a) Clear-field mask with dirt particle and glass crack

• Most industry use “Hole” with

positive photoresist and dark
field.

• Dark field can reduce glass

damages caused by particle and
glass cracks.
 Figure 8.20-(2)
(b) result in negative resist after develop

• Negative PR can have

“oxygenation” problem,
thickness may be reduced due
to oxygen reaction in
atmosphere (up to 20%)

• PR removal include:
(1) chemical removal
(2) O2 plasma
Figure 8.21 Comparison of negative and positive results.
Figure 8.22 Surface tension→effect coverage on the surface

• solid content: 20 ~ 40% in PR.

Including polymers, sensitizer
and additive, effect PR
thickness after spin.

• Viscosity: a measure of
molecular friction in the liquid
after poured. Closely related to
solid content. Higher solid
content, higher viscosity,
thicker PR after spin.
 Figure 8.23
Idex of refraction→a measure of speed of light in a material
(a) 90° incident light
(b) angled light is refracted in the transparent film
 Photoresist Storage

• PR needs to be stored in refrigerator.

• Storage conditions are important for the life of the PR.
• Usually stored in yellow room with Brown Bottle.
• Also need to be sealed before and after use to prevent evaporation of
solvent, which may cause viscosity change.
• Each PR has its lifetime depending on self-polymerization and
photosolabilization.
• Cleanness of the PR is also important.
(1) Prevent particulate in solvent
(2) Compatibility between cleaning solution and PR (may cause bubble)
Figure 8.24 Prespin wafer cleaning methods.

• Surface cleaning: to ensure

good PR adhesion
(1)particle removal
(2)dehydration
(3)priming

• Wet chemical cleaning~acid

cleaning, rinse, drying
Figure 8.25 Hydrophilic versus hydrophobic surfaces.

• Dehydration baking: For dry

surface to promote adhesion.
• Dry surface: hydrophobic
• To maintain hydrophobic:
(1) keep room humidity <50%
(2) process ASAP after receiving
wafer
(3) store wafer in SMIF Box and in
Dry-N2
(4) dehydration baking
(5) priming with chemical
Figure 8.25

• Hydrophilic~When PR’s are

exposed to moisture (Hydrated
surface)

• Poor PR adhesion
Figure 8.25

• Good PR adhesion
Figure 8.26 Spin dispense of primer.
 Figure 8.26
• Dehydration: 150 ~ 200℃ surface water evaporation
• 400℃: water molecules loosed attached will leave
• 750℃:surface is chemically restored to hydrated condition.
• Usually in photolithography only low temperature “soft bake” ~ 200℃ are
used (Do not need a long cooling time and compatible with other process)
• High T bake: not used in the IC process : Reason :
• (1) Need furnace
• (2) Destroy junctions in IC
• Primer chemically ties up molecular water on wafer surface to improve
adhesion property
• HMDS (Hexamethyl disilazare) is widely used for priming.
• HMDS contains 10 ~ 100% xylene, only a few molecule layer is sufficient to
provide good adhesion promotion. (invented by R.H. Collins and F.T. Diverse
of IBM in 1920)
• HMDS : (CH3)3Si)2NH react with surface water molecules to form NH3
+H2O
 Figure 8.27-(1)
Vapor prime methods. (a) Atmospheric

• Carrier Gas~N2
 Figure 8.27-(2)
Vapor prime methods.(b) vacuum bake-vapor prime

Heated to 150℃, then switched to vacuum, after

vacuum is achieved, HMDS are drawn to the
chamber.

Heated to vapor point

• *Good adhesion longevity

 Figure 8.27

• Priming method:
• 1. Spin priming: sequence process with PR spin
• 2. Immersion priming: manual, expose to contamination in wafer.
• 3. Vapor priming: free from liquid contact with wafer
free from contaminant from liquid
Need only a few layer (HMDS is expensive too) to improve surface
adhesion
Figure 8.28 Static spin process.

• PR ~ 0.5 - 1.5μm thick ±

0.01μm (100Å ) Flatness

Must prevent edge bead (difficult part)

Figure 8.29 Example of resist coverage.
Figure 8.29

• too thin
Figure 8.29

• too much. pile up at edge and

backside
Figure 8.30 Resist thickness versus spin speed. (Courtesy of KTI
Chemicals.)

• Thickness depends on viscosity,

spin speed, surface tensions,
drying characteristics.
Figure 8.31 Dynamic spin dispense.

• low RPM=500 rpm, for

spreading the resist

• high RPM ~ High speed for

uniform film. For large wafers
with uniform resist
Figure 8.32 Moving-arm dispense.
Figure 8.32

• More uniform-save resist

material for large diameter
wafer
Figure 8.33 Automated spinner diagram.

• Manual spinner

Negative pressure draws the resist bark

up into the dispenser tube.
Figure 8.34 Automatic dispense with drawback.

• Original use N2 pressurized

vessel, but this causes voids in
the film.

Negative pressure draws PR back to

prevent Resist Ball.
Figure 8.35 Roller coating.

• In some cases, backside oxide

of the wafer remains in place
through the masking process.
One way is coated with PR.

Front side coated with PR. Back side

coated with a roll coating machine
Need to be thick enough to prevent
etching.
Figure 8.36 Convection oven.

• Hot plate bake→Heat

conduction

• Convention oven→Convection

• Radiation→Heat Lamp

• Need Hepa for air filter

 Wafer soft bake
• After spin, the solvent needs to
be removed.
• Reason:
(1) Solvent can absorb radiation,
interfering with the chemical
change in the photosensing
polymer.
(2) Improve resist adhesion.
Temperature & time are
determining factors.
Figure 8.37 Crusting effect of ovens.

Trapping solvent in the photoresist

 Convention Oven Drawback

• Drawback:
(1) Batch to batch temperature variation due to poor wafer
loading time control,batch size, different temperature rise
time for different parts.
(2) Different locations in the oven heat up at different rates
due to convention flow.
(3) Top layer crust.
 Vacuum Oven

• Vacuum (reduced pressure) aids the evaporation of the solvents.

• Reduces the reliance of the bake on temperature.
• Poor temperature uniformity in the chamber due to radiation from the
heated chamber walls to the wafers. ( wafer must have line of sight to
the heat source)
 Figure 8.38-(1)
(a) Manual hot plate
 Figure 8.38-(2)
(b) in-line continuous hot plate

• Heating 20 - 40 Sec.

steel belt
 Figure 8.38-(3)
(c) in-line single-wafer hot plate

• Advantage: Heat up from the

back. No crust on surface.
Figure 8.39 Moving-belt infrared (IR) heating.

• fast, uniform, no crust, infrared

waves pass through the PR
without heating it (like sun lit
through window)

• The wafer absorbs the energy,

get hot, and heat the resist from
the bottom.
Figure 8.40 Microwave heating.

• Soft bake heating source

• faster heat rate due to high
energy carried in microwave
• heat up in 1 min.
Figure 8.41 Soft bake chart.
Figure 8.42 Aligner selection criteria.

• wafer spend 60% time in

lithography

• Alignment (positioning) is a
critical step,advanced processes
require up to 15-20 steps
• Alignment Equipment has two
important subsystems:
(1) Correct position in the pattern
on the wafer (alignment system)
(2) Exposure subsystem
 Dimensional control

• Dimensional control:
1. Resolution Capability/Limit→most important
2. Alignment Accuracy (Registration capability)
Figure 8.43 Table of aligner types.
Figure 8.44 Diffraction reduction of image in resist.

• Exposure source:
DUV: Mercury light
X-Ray
E-Beam

• Alignment

first layer:
Major flat//X-axis
Figure 8.45 Types of alignment marks.

• position a mark on the mask to

a corresponding mark in the
wafer pattern.
 Figure 8.46-(1)
Misalignment types. (a) χ direction
 Figure 8.46-(2)
Misalignment types. (b) rotational
 Figure 8.46-(3)
Misalignment types. (c) run-out

• → Stepper chip patterns are not

on the mask center.
 Figure 8.47-(1)
Contact aligner system. (a) Alignment stage

• workforce at 70’s:
• Full wafer size mask
• rotate wafer
• chuck
• left/right or rotate
• for alignment
 Figure 8.47-(2)
Contact aligner system. (b) contact stage

• Now used for discrete and SSI,

MSI
Figure 8.47-(2)

• collimated light

in close contact
 Contact Aligner Weakness

• weakness: mask wear; contaminant on the mask.

• Large diameter wafers need uniform light source.
• Proximity aligner: soft-contact machine with worsen resolution but
free from wear and contaminants.
Figure 8.48 Concept of projection exposure.

• 1970’s introduced by Perkin-

Elmers
Figure 8.48

mask projection
slit
light source
Figure 8.48

wafer
Figure 8.49 Perkin Elmer light projection system. (Courtesy of Perkin
Elmer Corp.)
Figure 8.50 Step and repeat reduction system (From Wolf and Tauber,
Silicon Processing for the VLSI Era.)
• Stepper
• a reticle steps and repeats (one or
several chips)
1. Reticle is of higher quality than a
full mask with less defects.
2. Better alignment due to each rectile
is individually aligned.
3. Can be used for larger wafers.
4. Better resolution,less
contaminants,usually 5:1 or 10:1.
5. 5:1 is preferred because it is smaller
and easy to make, also it has a
larger field resulting in a faster
throughput

• field size 25x32㎜

• moves into 25x50㎜
Figure 8.51 5X mask pattern transfer.

• Effect of dirt and glass

distortions are minimized in
stepper
Figure 8.52 Step and repeat die alignment and exposure.

• Alignment is
accomplished by passing
low energy laser beam
through alignment mark
and reflecting then off
corresponding alignment
mark on the wafer surface.
Signal is analyzed and fed
to x,y,z wafer chuck
control by a computer
which moves the wafer
around until the wafer and
reticle are aligned.
• Sequentially expose each
die pattern across and
down the wafer.
 Figure 8.53-(1)
Step and scan comparison. (a) Step and repeat requires 42.4 mm diameter
lens field for 9 cm2 die
Larger die size needs lens
with larger fields of
version. Can use step and
scan aligner with smaller
lens and scan over the
required area.
 Figure 8.53-(2)
Step and scan comparison. (b) step and scan for same die requires 23.7
mm lens field.
Figure 8.54 X-ray exposure system.

• X-ray

• High energy with small

wavelengths

• Drawback: mask must be gold

on other materials capable of
blocking the high energy rays.

• Also need special PR

Figure 8.55 Electron beam exposure system.
 Figure 8.56-(1)
Electron beam scanning. (a) Raster scan

• side to side
up to down
(too slow)
 Figure 8.56-(2)
Electron beam scanning. (b) vector scanning

• move to areas
need to be exposed
• small square or rectangular size

• can use E-Beam / stepper

combination to reduce cost.
Figure 8.57 Aligner tool comparison table. (Source: Solid State
Technology, April 1993, p. 26.)