Tooling configuration for electric/magnetic field guided acid profile control in a photoresist layer

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9733579-B2
Application number	US-201414581632-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 23, 2014
Priority date	Oct 15, 2014
Publication date	Aug 15, 2017
Grant date	Aug 15, 2017

Abstract

A method of processing a substrate is disclosed herein. The method includes applying a photoresist layer comprising a photoacid generator to a substrate, wherein a first portion of the photoresist layer has been exposed unprotected by a photomask to a radiation light in a lithographic exposure process. The method also includes applying an electric field to alter movement of photoacid generated from the photoacid generator substantially in a vertical direction, wherein the electric field is applied by a first alternating pair of a positive voltage electrode and a negative voltage electrode and a second alternating pair of a positive voltage electrode and a negative voltage electrode.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method of processing a substrate, the method comprising:
applying a photoresist layer comprising a photoacid generator to a substrate, wherein a first portion of the photoresist layer has been exposed unprotected by a photomask to a radiation light in a lithographic exposure process; and
applying an electric field to alter movement of photoacid generated from the photoacid generator substantially in a vertical direction, wherein the electric field is applied by a first alternating pair of a positive voltage electrode and a negative voltage electrode and a second alternating pair of a positive voltage electrode and a negative voltage electrode, and wherein applying the electric field further comprises:
charging a first antenna with a first voltage and a second antenna with a second voltage, the first antenna and the second antenna being disposed above the photoresist layer, and the first and the second voltages having opposite polarities; and
charging a third antenna with a third voltage and a fourth antenna with a fourth voltage, the third antenna and the fourth antenna being disposed below the photoresist layer, and the third and the fourth voltages having opposite polarities.

2. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
electrically floating the substrate.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the electric field is applied to the photoresist layer during a post-exposure bake process performed after the lithographic exposure process.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein applying the electric field further comprises:
controlling photoacid generated in the first portion of the photoresist layer in a longitudinal direction defined in a plane interfaced with a second portion of the photoresist layer protected by the photomask during the lithographic exposure process.

5. The method of claim 1 further comprising:
moving the substrate via a conveyor.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first voltage and the second voltage each comprises one of a direct current voltage, an alternating current voltage, or a pulse.

7. The method of claim 1 further comprising:
heating the photoresist layer.

8. The method of claim 1 further comprising:
placing the substrate in a holder with walls having a substantially similar dielectric constant to a dielectric constant of the substrate.

9. A processing chamber for processing a substrate, the processing chamber comprising:
a supporting assembly with a surface for supporting a substrate;
a first electrode assembly comprising a first antenna and a second antenna positioned above the surface of the supporting assembly;
a second electrode assembly comprising a third antenna and a fourth antenna positioned below the surface of the supporting assembly;
a first power source coupled to the first electrode assembly and configured to provide the first antenna with a first voltage and the second antenna with a second voltage, the first and second voltages having opposite polarities; and
a second power source coupled to the second electrode assembly and configured to provide the third antenna with a third voltage and the fourth antenna with a fourth voltage, the third and fourth voltages having opposite polarities.

10. The processing chamber of claim 9 , further comprising:
an insulating layer disposed on the supporting assembly for electrically floating the substrate.

11. The processing chamber of claim 9 , wherein first power source and second power source are configured to provide the positive voltage and negative voltage during a post-exposure bake process performed after the lithographic exposure process.

12. The processing chamber of claim 9 , wherein the supporting assembly comprises a conveyor operable to position a substrate relative to the first antenna, the second antenna, the third antenna, and the fourth antenna.

13. The processing chamber of claim 9 further comprising:
a heating mechanism for applying heat to the photoresist layer.

14. The processing chamber of claim 9 further comprising:
a holder configured to support the substrate, wherein the holder has walls, the walls having a substantially similar dielectric constant to a dielectric constant of the substrate.

15. The processing chamber of claim 9 , wherein the first antenna and the second antenna are interleaved, and the third antenna and the fourth antenna are interleaved.

Assignees

• Applied Materials Inc

Inventors

• Nam Sang Ki
• Xie Peng
• Liang Qiwei
• Godet Ludovic

Classifications

• G03F7/38

  Treatment before imagewise removal, e.g. prebaking {(G03F7/265 takes precedence)} · CPC title

• G03F7/40

  Treatment after imagewise removal, e.g. baking · CPC title

• G03F7/70733 Primary

  Handling masks and workpieces, e.g. exchange of workpiece or mask, transport of workpiece or mask · CPC title

• G03F7/70325 Primary

  Resolution enhancement techniques not otherwise provided for, e.g. darkfield imaging, interfering beams, spatial frequency multiplication, nearfield lenses or solid immersion lenses · CPC title