Paper
19 May 1995 Effect of the high-contrast-mask sidewall slope on deep x-ray lithography
Zheng Chen, Azalia A. Krasnoperova, Yueqi Zhu, Franco Cerrina
Author Affiliations +
Abstract
Deep X-ray lithography is a fabrication process for the production of a broad variety of microstructures with large structural heights. These can reach several hundred micrometers, with minimum lateral dimensions on the order of several microns. The main difference between ULSI and micromachining XRL is in the use of high-contrast masks (HCMs), with contrast in excess of 100. We fabricate these HCMs using a negative-tone resist to yield a coy of an original e-beam-made thin X-ray mask. Thus, we have fabricated HCMs with 6- micrometers -thick gold absorbers on SiN membranes using X-ray lithography replication. In our HCM fabrication process, it is possible to control the absorber sidewall by adjusting the exposure dose and development time. In this way, it is possible to generate absorbers sidewalls with slopes as large as 70 degrees. We have observed that when using HCM with sidewall slopes the exposed resist structures display sloping sidewalls as well. This opens the possibility of generating tapered structures and other complex shapes. This approach becomes even more interesting when combined with multilevel lithography, where different levels may be formed in the same resist layer by multiple exposures. We will present both experimental results and an image formation study that includes in detail the effect absorber topology, and the relation between mask sidewall slopes and resist sidewall slopes.
© (1995) COPYRIGHT Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE). Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Zheng Chen, Azalia A. Krasnoperova, Yueqi Zhu, and Franco Cerrina "Effect of the high-contrast-mask sidewall slope on deep x-ray lithography", Proc. SPIE 2437, Electron-Beam, X-Ray, EUV, and Ion-Beam Submicrometer Lithographies for Manufacturing V, (19 May 1995); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.209171
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KEYWORDS
Photomasks

X-ray lithography

Polymethylmethacrylate

Gold

Image processing

X-rays

Photoresist processing

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