Developer composition for metal-containing photoresist, and method of forming patterns including developing step using the composition

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2026064911-A1
Application number	US-202519319522-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Sep 4, 2025
Priority date	Sep 5, 2024
Publication date	Mar 5, 2026
Grant date	—

Abstract

A developer composition for a metal-containing photoresist and a method of forming patterns including a developing step (e.g., act or task) utilizing the developer composition are disclosed. The developer composition for a metal-containing photoresist may be applied to a metal-containing photoresist having an exposed portion and an unexposed portion and include an organic solvent and an additive, wherein the exposed portion includes a metal oxide including a metal-oxygen-metal bond, and a metal oxide is substituted with a hydroxyl group at the terminal end, in an exposed portion, a ratio of the number of hydrogen bonds between the metal oxide including the metal-oxygen-metal bond and the organic solvent to the number of hydrogen bonds between the metal oxide including the metal-oxygen-metal bond and the additive is greater than 0 and less than or equal to about 4.5.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A developer composition, comprising:
an organic solvent; and an additive, wherein: the developer composition is to be applied to a metal-containing photoresist having an exposed portion and an unexposed portion; the exposed portion comprises a metal oxide, the metal oxide comprising a metal-oxygen-metal bond; and a metal oxide unit at the terminal end of the metal oxide is substituted with a hydroxyl group, wherein, in the exposed portion: a ratio of the number of hydrogen bonds between the metal oxide comprising the metal-oxygen-metal bond and the organic solvent to the number of hydrogen bonds between the metal oxide comprising the metal-oxygen-metal bond and the additive is greater than 0 and less than or equal to 4.5; a maximum probability distribution of the additive whose center of mass is within 5 Å from the hydroxyl group of the metal oxide at the terminal end is greater than 0 and less than or equal to 4; and the number of hydrogen bonds is determined by averaging the number of hydrogen bonds per frame over the course of a molecular dynamics simulation, and wherein the developer composition is a developer composition for a metal-containing photoresist.

2 . The developer composition as claimed in claim 1 , wherein:
the ratio of the number of hydrogen bonds between the metal oxide comprising the metal-oxygen-metal bond and the organic solvent to the number of hydrogen bonds between the metal oxide comprising the metal-oxygen-metal bond and the additive is 0.1 to 4.5.

3 . The developer composition as claimed in claim 1 , wherein:
the ratio of the number of hydrogen bonds between the metal oxide comprising the metal-oxygen-metal bond and the organic solvent to the number of hydrogen bonds between the metal oxide comprising the metal-oxygen-metal bond and the additive is 0.3 to 4.5.

4 . The developer composition as claimed in claim 1 , wherein:
the maximum probability distribution of the additive whose center of mass is within 5 Å from the hydroxyl group of the metal oxide at the terminal end is 0.5 to 3.

5 . The developer composition as claimed in claim 1 , wherein:
the metal oxide comprises at least one metal selected from among Sn, Te, Sb, and combinations thereof.

6 . The developer composition as claimed in claim 1 , wherein:
the metal oxide comprises a network comprising SnO x , x being an integer of greater than 0.

7 . The developer composition as claimed in claim 1 , wherein:
the organic solvent comprises at least one selected from among an ether, an alcohol, a glycol ether, an aromatic hydrocarbon compound, a ketone, an ester, and combinations thereof.

8 . The developer composition as claimed in claim 1 , wherein:
the organic solvent comprises at least one selected from among n-butyl acetate, propylene glycol methyl ether acetate (PGMEA), methyl isobutyl carbinol (MIBC), and combinations thereof.

9 . The developer composition as claimed in claim 1 , wherein:
the additive comprises at least one selected from among an organic acid, phosphoric acid, phosphorous acid, a diol compound, a diketone compound, and combinations thereof.

10 . The developer composition as claimed in claim 1 , wherein:
the additive comprises at least one selected from among propionic acid, succinic acid, fumaric acid, acetyl acetone, trifluoroacetylacetone, methylphosphonic acid, maltol, phosphorous acid, tropolone, catechol, and combinations thereof.

11 . The developer composition as claimed in claim 1 , further comprising at least one other additive selected from among a surfactant, a dispersant, a hygroscopic agent, a coupling agent, and combinations thereof.

12 . The developer composition as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the number of hydrogen bonds is determined based on the molecular dynamics simulation performed with:
a molecular dynamics program comprising the Desmond module of the Materials Science Suite; a force field comprising OPLS3e; and a simulation conditions comprising an NPT ensemble, a simulation time of 100 nanoseconds, a temperature of 500 K, and a pressure of 1 atm.

13 . A method comprising:
coating a metal-containing photoresist composition on a substrate; performing heat treatment in which a metal-containing photoresist film is on the substrate by drying and heating; exposing the metal-containing photoresist film; and developing utilizing the developer composition as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the method is a method of forming patterns.

14 . The method as claimed in claim 13 , further comprising performing a second heat treatment after the exposing of the metal-containing photoresist film and before the developing of the exposed metal-containing photoresist film utilizing the developer composition, wherein the second heat treatment is performed at a temperature in a range of 90° C. to 200° C.

15 . The method as claimed in claim 13 , wherein:
the performing of the heat treatment is performed at a temperature in a range of 80° C. to 120° C.

16 . The method as claimed in claim 13 , wherein the metal-containing photoresist composition comprises at least one tin-based compound selected from the group consisting of an alkyl tin oxo group, an alkyl tin carboxyl group, an alkyl tin hydroxyl group, and combinations thereof.

17 . The method as claimed in claim 13 , wherein:
the patterns have a pitch having a half-pitch of less than or equal to 50 nm and a line width roughness of less than or equal to 10 nm.

18 . The method as claimed in claim 13 , wherein:
the patterns have a thickness width in a range of 5 nm to 100 nm.

19 . The method as claimed in claim 13 , wherein:
the exposing of the metal-containing photoresist film is exposing the metal-containing photoresist film to light having a wavelength range of 5 nm to 150 nm.

20 . The method as claimed in claim 13 , wherein the number of hydrogen bonds utilized to evaluate the developer composition is determined based on molecular dynamics simulation performed with:
a molecular dynamics program comprising the Desmond module of the Materials Science Suite; a force field comprising OPLS3e; and simulation conditions comprising an NPT ensemble, a simulation time of 100 nanoseconds, a temperature of 500 K, and a pressure of 1 atm.

Assignees

• Samsung Sdi Co Ltd

Inventors

• Shin Rosa
• Moon Hyungrang
• Han Seung
• Ho Jongpil
• Kim Taeho
• Kwak Taeksoo
• Park Gyeonghun
• Park Si-Kyun
• Lim Eunyoung
• Ku Jamin

Classifications

• G03F7/325

  Non-aqueous compositions · CPC title

• G03F7/0043

  Chalcogenides; Silicon, germanium, arsenic or derivatives thereof; Metals, oxides or alloys thereof (G03F7/0044 takes precedence) · CPC title

• G03F7/0042

  with inorganic or organometallic light-sensitive compounds not otherwise provided for, e.g. inorganic resists (G03F7/075 takes precedence) · CPC title

• G03F7/168

  Finishing the coated layer, e.g. drying, baking, soaking · CPC title

• G06F30/25 Primary

  using particle-based methods · CPC title