Nanolithography and Device Fabrication

Module number NSE-845

Module title Nanolithography and Device Fabrication (Core- 3CHs)
Academic Semester Fall
Academic Year 2020/2021
Pre-requisites: Nil

Course Instructor: Dr Amna Safdar

Email: amna.safdar@scme.nust.edu.pk
Office Location: SCME Building, Top Floor, Room#325
Office hours: Available to students anytime I'm in my office, or email for an appointment
Research expertise:
Solar energy Materials (Si,CZTS, Perovskites), Crystalline silicon solar technology, PV technology,
Nanotechnology, Nano-thin films, Nanophotonics for light trapping in solar cell application,
Nanostructuring and texturing, Optoelectrical characterization techniques, Random laser Devices
Solar cell Devices
 In Last Lecture
Week # Lecture # Content to be taught Related Book text
( followed in Lecture)

22/10/2020 1 1st Chapter[Zheng Cui]

Introduction to Lithography Class Notes

2 Class notes

How can we create nano-structures

that are 10,000 times smaller than
the diameter of a human hair?
How can we “see” at the nano-scale?
 3-D Micromachined Structures Sandia National Laboratory

Gear extreme diameter is approximately 50 micrometers and gear thickness is 2.5 micrometers.

Triple-Piston Microsteam Engine

h

The driving microengine and the driven gears are fabricated of

polysilicon on a single wafer using surface-micromachining
batch-fabrication techniques
Lecture#1
https://www.sandia.gov/mstc/_assets/documents/bibliography/4_11Surface.pdf 04/11/2020 3
 3-D Micromachined Structures

A MEMS silicon motor together with a strand of human hair.

Lecture#1 04/11/2020 4
 What structures should be for light trapping?

State of Art
Micron-sized structures

Geometric optics limit

2n2 ≈ 40 times gain in optical pathlength

 Transferred Patterns (SiO2/Si)

SEM micrographs of dry etched QR structures at different dose factors of 1.0 and 1.1 for a feature size of 200 nm.

http://etheses.whiterose.ac.uk/20561/1/AmnaSafdar.Thesis-PhD-Final-24-05-18.pdf
Transferred Pattern (SiO2/Si)

SEM micrographs of dry etched QR structures at different dose factors of 0.9, 1.0, 1.1 and 1.2 for a feature size of
200 nm. The 0.9 dose factor resembles the design pattern most closely.

http://etheses.whiterose.ac.uk/20561/1/AmnaSafdar.Thesis-PhD-Final-24-05-18.pdf
 • Nanophotonics,

Integration of QR nanostructures onto silicon devices

 What’s for today?
Week # Lecture # Content to be taught Related Book text
( followed in Lecture)

22/10/2020 3 Introduction to Lithography and classification of 1st Chapter[Zheng Cui]

Nanolithography Class Notes

4 Basics of PL, Fabrication flow process in nanolithography Class notes

for pattern Transfer
Chapter 1
 Creating and transferring patterns— Photolithography

Lecture#13-14 04/11/2020

11
Lithography Basics
 Photolithography
 Identify the basic steps of a photolithographic process
 Describe the differences between positive and negative photoresist
 Explain why photolithography requires a clean environment
 Classify cleanrooms using both ISO and US FED standards
 Describe the process of a RCA clean
 Describe the process of applying resist via spinning and calculate the resulting resist thicknesses
 Describe, compare and contrast the exposure processes of
 Contact printing
 Proximity printing
 Projection printing

 Calculate the resolutions of the above processes and explain what they depend on and why
 Define and calculate depth of focus and explain how it is related to resolution in projection printing
 Define the terms
 Dose and dose to clear,
 Light intensity,
 Resist sensitivity, and
 Contrast

Lecture#13-14 04/11/2020 13
 Photolithography

 Calculate sensitivity and contrast for both positive and negative resist
 Explain the shape of resist profiles and calculate the slopes of resist layer
 Explain the need for and use of alignment marks
 Explain how photo masks are produced

Lecture#13-14 04/11/2020 14
h
 Photolithography steps in General
Unexposed photoresist removed
by developer
Exposed photoresist becomes less
soluble
Mask
SiO2

Opaque
Silicon wafer region
Glass Spin on photoresist
plate

Lecture#13-14 04/11/2020 16
 Photolithography

Photolithography, also termed Optical lithography or UV lithography,

is a process used in microfabrication to pattern parts of a thin film or the bulk of a
substrate.

• It uses light to transfer a geometric pattern from a photomask to a light-sensitive

chemical "photoresist", or simply "resist," on the substrate.

• A series of chemical (Etching) treatments then either engraves the exposure pattern
into, or enables deposition of a new material in the desired pattern upon, the material
underneath is the photo resist.
Photolithography steps in the μ-machining process

Note the pattern is the opposite of

that on the mask. This is true for
negative photoresist.

04/11/2020 Lecture#13-14 18
 Photoresists

Photoresist is a light sensitive material used in the process of

photolithography to form a patterned coating on a surface.

Photoresist is dispensed in a liquid form onto the wafer as it undergoes

rotation. This rotation is called “spinning.”

The speed and acceleration of this rotation are important parameters in

determining the resulting thickness of the applied photoresist.
 Spinning Parameters

Therefore, if any one of the parameters

are changed
• the photoresist,
• the rotation speed, or
• the rotation time
You will change the photoresist
thickness.
 Examples of Spinning Parameters

All photoresists from a series have the same formula but will have different viscosities
due to the amount of solvent present.
Let’s look at the 1800 series of photoresists by Rohm-Haas. When spinning each formula
at 4000 RPM for 30 seconds, you will have the following thicknesses after baking:

1805 0.5 um more solvent, thinner spin

1813 1.2 um
1827 2.5 um less solvent, thicker spin
 Spinning Parameters
Here’s another example.
Rohm-Haas STR 1045 positive photoresist will spin to thicknesses between 4 – 8 µm depending on the
rotation speed.

Spin Speed Curves of STR1045

5000
Spin Speed (rpm)

4000
Resist Thickness (um)
3000
Spin Speed (RPM)

2000

500
8 7 6 5 4
Resist Thickness (um)

In other words, change one parameter – spin speed – and you change the photoresist thickness.
Types of Photoresists
 Soft Bake
The photoresist-coated wafer is then transferred to a hot plate
or oven, where a "soft bake" is applied to drive off excess
solvent before the wafer is introduced into the aligner
exposure system.

• The soft bake oven is set at 90C for 30 minutes

• The hotplate is set at 115 C for 1 minutes

These temperatures and times vary according to the

photoresist being used.
Photolithography steps in the μ-machining process

Note the pattern is the opposite of

that on the mask. This is true for
negative photoresist.

04/11/2020 Lecture#13-14 25
Exposure

 A mask of the pattern to be transferred is made

on a glass plate with chrome. The glass
mask is placed directly in contact with the
substrate and a UV light source is used to expose
the photoresist.

 The ability to project a clear pattern of a very

small feature onto the wafer is limited by the
wavelength of the light that is used and the ability
of the reduction lens system to capture enough
diffraction orders off of the illuminated mask.
Exposure Process

Photoresists are developed to have not only a particular thickness for

spinning but will be optimized for a particular range of wavelengths.

Photolithography types based on photons wavelength used in exposing the patterns.

Mask alignment using Mask Aligner

Karl Suess MJB-3 mask aligner

 Choosing An Aligner

“New” MJB-3 MA6/BA6 “Old” MJB-3

 Choosing An Aligner

“New” MJB-3 MA6/BA6 “Old” MJB-3

Resolution:
Mask size:
Wavelength:
Wafer pieces:
3 inch wafer:
4 inch wafer:
6 inch wafer:
 Choosing An Aligner

“New” MJB-3 MA6/BA6 “Old” MJB-3

Resolution:  1um  1.5 um  1.5 um
Mask size: 4 inch 4, 5, 7 inch 4 inch
Wavelength: 321nm  365nm  & 405nm  365nm  & 405nm 
Wafer pieces: Yes Yes Yes
3 inch wafer: Yes Yes Yes
4 inch wafer: Probably Yes Probably
6 inch wafer: No Yes No
 Developing
 Select the chemical developer to

match the type of photoresist being

used.

 Each manufacturer of photoresists

will have matching developers.

 For example, use the MF-321 developer

for the Rohm-Haas 1813 photoresist.

 Set up your developing station to have –

• A petri dish for the developing solution. Size the dish for the substrates. Larger dishes for full-sized wafers and smaller

dishes for wafer pieces.

Inspection of Substrate

Before a wafer is “hardbaked” after development, the lithography is inspected.

If lithography is “good” and successful, the patterns are clear, with no artifacts. The
substrate is able to continue to the next process of etching or ion implantation.

If lithography is “bad” and unsuccessful, the substrate should not continue to the
next process of.

With positive photoresist, the substrate can be cleaned and lithography tried again.
 What is “Good” Lithography?

Lithography patterns can be: Top down view Side view

Good
PR

The features are straight, corners are even. Good exposure

and development time.
 What is “Good” Lithography?

Lithography patterns can be: Top down view Side view

Good
PR

Over exposed or
Over developed
The features are uneven and smaller. Too long of
exposure or development time.
 What is “Good” Lithography?

Lithography patterns can be: Top down view Side view

Good
PR

Over exposed or
Over developed

Under exposed or open

Under developed

The features are straight, but not all the PR has been cleared
from the exposed areas. Too short of exposure or
development time.
Hard Bake

After the substrate has been inspected and is ready for the next process,
the substrate is “hard baked.”

Hard baking is done at high temperature in order to solidify the remaining

photoresist, to better serve as a protecting layer in future ion implantation,
wet chemical etching, or dry plasma etching.

• The soft bake oven is set at 125C for 30 minutes

• The hotplate is set at 115 C for 1 minutes
These temperatures and times vary according to the photoresist being
used.
Lithography Troubles

Substrate has particles, “dirty”

Photoresist will collect around particles
Lithography Troubles

Substrate has particles, “dirty”

Photoresist will collect around particles
Substrate not round
Photoresist will not be uniform across wafer.
There will be a large edge bead.
Lithography Troubles

Substrate has particles, “dirty”

Photoresist will collect around particles
Substrate not round
Photoresist will not be uniform across wafer.
There will be a large edge bead.

Poor adhesion of the photoresist

Due to moisture or surface of the substrate,
the photoresist will float off or reposition
on substrate.