A new 2 nm rated Nylon filter was developed to have features required for lithography filtration process such as finer pore size, extended contact time for adsorption enhancement and updated cleanliness for faster start-up. The contact time is extended by 1.6 times of the 10 nm rated product in the same sized capsule filter. Finer pore size is achieved and demonstrated by the removal performance of gold nanoparticles. For start-up performance, particles and metal cleanliness were improved.
To validate the features applied for the new 2 nm Nylon filter, on-wafer tests are conducted in comparison to conventional product such as 5 nm Nylon filter. Filter start up performance is tested with KLA Tencor Surfscan SP5XP inspection on solvent spin coated Si wafer. For bridge defects, 40 nm half pitch after development pattern defectivity with ArF immersion lithography is tested. The new 2 nm rated Nylon 6,6 filter performed best for all the tests. Cleanliness probably played a role in start-up performance. Sieving, which is related to filter pore size was effective in resist coating defectivity. And both the finer pore size and hydrophilic adsorption are effective in after development inspection at 40 nm half pitch L/S pattern, which is nearly the theoretical limit of the ArF immersion lithography.
Negative tone development is being employed widely because of its superior resolution. Pall is developing filtration products specially targeted for these high resolution applications. High particle retention and low extractables are key aspects of filtration products known to improve on-wafer defectivity. In the current study, we have found that filtration efficiency of the various filter types towards palladium-heptylamine nanoparticles correlates strongly to actual particle removal determined by on-wafer inspection metrology. Furthermore, using the afore mentioned nanoparticle testing metrology, high retention membranes with low extractables were selected. Particle challenge testing is much simpler than on-wafer defectivity inspection and enables faster and effective filtration membrane selection. Based on these results, the selected filtration membrane is expected to perform effective real particle removal in negative tone developer.
OK73 thinner and cyclohexanone, both of which were spiked with metals were passed through Nylon 6,6 filter, varying flow rate, which include the conditions of both point-of-use and bulk filtrations. The influent and effluent metal concentrations were measured using ICP-MS for metal removal efficiency of the filtration. As a result, removal efficiency for some metals descended depending on the flow rate, while others maintained. Slower flow rate is recommended to maintain low metal concentration in bulk filtration based on the result. Metals in cyclohexanone were reduced at higher efficiency than in OK73 thinner, agrees with a metal removal model of hydrophilic adsorbent in organic solvent, evidenced in our previous paper. Further, metal reduction on 300 mm φ Si wafer after coating organic solvents with Nylon 6,6 filtration was evidenced with TREX analysis.
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