Molecular Glass Resists for High-Resolution Patterning

TLDR: In this paper, a series of photoresists constructed from glass-forming, low-molecular-weight organic compounds, also known as molecular glasses, were designed and synthesized for study in advanced lithography.

Abstract: This paper describes a series of photoresists constructed from glass-forming, low-molecular-weight organic compounds, also known as molecular glasses Compared with traditional polymeric resists, molecular glass resists are composed of smaller and more-uniform molecular building blocks In this work, both positive-tone and negative-tone molecular glass photoresists with a range of core structures were designed and synthesized for study in advanced lithography These molecular glass resists have asymmetric, rigid cores, which is important for producing glassy materials with glass transition temperatures substantially above room temperature For positive-tone molecular glass photoresists, amorphous films could be obtained by partial protection of the core structure Images were produced using photoacid-generator-catalyzed deprotection chemistry Amorphous negative-tone resists were obtained by mixing molecular glass core structures with another minor resist component such as a photo cross-linker It was sho