Lithography

About: Lithography is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 23507 publications have been published within this topic receiving 348321 citations.

Introduction to microlithography

Abstract: An Introduction to Lithography The Lithographic Process: The Physics Organic Resist Materials Resist Processing Plasma Etching

Printing meets lithography: soft approaches to high-resolution patterning

Abstract: We are developing a high-resolution printing technique based on transferring a pattern from an elastomeric stamp to a solid substrate by conformal contact. This is an attempt to enhance the accuracy of classical printing to a precision comparable with optical lithography, creating a low-cost, large-area, high-resolution patterning process. First, we introduce the components of this technique, called soft lithography, and review its evolution. Topics described in detail are the stamp material, stamp architecture, pattern design rules, and printing tools. The accuracy of the prints made by thin patterned elastomeric layers supported on a stiff and flexible backplane is then assessed, and defects are characterized using a new electrical metrology approach. This is followed by a discussion of various printing processes used in our laboratory: 1) thiol printing for high-resolution patterns of noble metals that may also be used as sacrificial masks; 2) confined contact processing with liquids in cavities or channels to chemically convert a substrate or deposit layers of materials or biomolecules; 3) printing of catalysts to mediate patterned deposition of metals; and 4) structured, light-guiding stamps for transferring high-resolution patterns into photoresists. Finally, we compare classical and high-resolution printing approaches, and describe their potential for emerging micro-and nano-scale patterning technologies.

Three-dimensional optical laser lithography beyond the diffraction limit

Abstract: Direct laser writing has become a versatile and routine tool for the mask-free fabrication of polymer structures with lateral linewidths down to less than 100 nm. In contrast to its planar counterpart, electron-beam lithography, direct laser writing also allows for the making of three-dimensional structures. However, its spatial resolution has been restricted by diffraction. Clearly, linewidths and resolutions on the scale of few tens of nanometers and below are highly desirable for various applications in nanotechnology. In visible-light far-field fluorescence microscopy, the concept of stimulated emission depletion (STED) introduced in 1994 has led to spectacular record resolutions down to 5.6 nm in 2009. This review addresses approaches aiming at translating this success in optical microscopy to optical lithography. After explaining basic principles and limitations, possible depletion mechanisms and recent lithography experiments by various groups are summarized. Today, Abbe's diffraction barrier as well as the generalized two-photon Sparrow criterion have been broken in far-field optical lithography. For further future progress in resolution, the development of novel tailored photoresists in combination with attractive laser sources is of utmost importance.

Advanced scanning probe lithography

Abstract: The nanoscale control afforded by scanning probe microscopes has prompted the development of a wide variety of scanning-probe-based patterning methods. Some of these methods have demonstrated a high degree of robustness and patterning capabilities that are unmatched by other lithographic techniques. However, the limited throughput of scanning probe lithography has prevented its exploitation in technological applications. Here, we review the fundamentals of scanning probe lithography and its use in materials science and nanotechnology. We focus on robust methods, such as those based on thermal effects, chemical reactions and voltage-induced processes, that demonstrate a potential for applications.

Ultrafast and direct imprint of nanostructures in silicon

Abstract: The fabrication of micrometre- and nanometre-scale devices in silicon typically involves lithography and etching. These processes are costly and tend to be either limited in their resolution or slow in their throughput1. Recent work has demonstrated the possibility of patterning substrates on the nanometre scale by ‘imprinting’2,3 or directed self-assembly4, although an etching step is still required to generate the final structures. We have devised and here demonstrate a rapid technique for patterning nanostructures in silicon that does not require etching. In our technique—which we call ‘laser-assisted direct imprint’ (LADI)—a single excimer laser pulse melts a thin surface layer of silicon, and a mould is embossed into the resulting liquid layer. A variety of structures with resolution better than 10 nm have been imprinted into silicon using LADI, and the embossing time is less than 250 ns. The high resolution and speed of LADI, which we attribute to molten silicon's low viscosity (one-third that of water), could open up a variety of applications and be extended to other materials and processing techniques.