In this paper a first Critical Dimension (CD) uniformity assessment onto 200 mm wafers printed with the SmartNIL^TM technology available in the HERCULES® NIL equipment platform is proposed. The work brings focus on sub micrometer resolution features with a depth between 220 and 433 nm. The silicon masters were manufactured with 193 optical lithography and dry etching. A complete Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) characterizations were performed over the full masters surface prior to the imprint process. Repeatability tests were performed over 25 wafers first and then on 100 wafers to collect statistics and the CD distribution within a wafer and also wafer to wafer. The data revealed that the CD is evolving imprint after imprint and an explanation based on polymer shrinkage is proposed.

Date Published: 20 October 2016
PDF: 7 pages
Proc. SPIE 10032, 32nd European Mask and Lithography Conference, 100320M (20 October 2016); doi: 10.1117/12.2250194

Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 10032:
32nd European Mask and Lithography Conference
Uwe F.W. Behringer; Jo Finders, Editor(s)