Thinner composition for removing photosensitive resin and Anti-reflective coating, and method for removing photosensitive resin and Anti-reflective coating using the same

Abstract

The present invention provides a diluent composition comprising a cyclic ketone compound and a cyclic hydrocarbon compound, and a method for using the same to remove photosensitive resin and an antireflective coating.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a diluent composition for removing photosensitive resin and antireflective coating used in the manufacturing process of semiconductor devices and thin-film transistor liquid crystal display devices, and a method for removing photosensitive resin and antireflective coating using the same. [Previous Technology]

[0002] In the semiconductor device manufacturing process, the photolithography process is a process in which a photosensitive resin composition is coated on a wafer, a pre-designed pattern is transferred, and then an electronic circuit is formed along the transferred pattern through an appropriate etching process. It is one of the most important processes.

[0003] The execution steps of this photolithography process include: (1) a coating process in which a photosensitive resin composition is uniformly coated on the wafer surface; (2) a soft baking process in which a solvent is evaporated from the coated photosensitive film to allow the photosensitive film to adhere to the wafer surface; (3) an exposure process in which a circuit pattern on a mask is repeatedly and sequentially reduced and projected using a light source such as ultraviolet light to expose the photosensitive film to transfer the mask pattern onto the photosensitive film; (4) a development process in which a developing solution is used to selectively remove parts with different physical properties such as solubility caused by photosensitization due to exposure to the light source; (5) a hard baking process in which the photosensitive film remaining on the wafer after the development process is more tightly fixed to the wafer; (6) an etching process in which a specific part is etched along the developed photosensitive film pattern; and (7) a stripping process in which unnecessary photosensitive film is removed after the above processes.

[0004] In the photolithography process, the spin coating process, in which a photosensitive film is supplied to a wafer and the substrate is rotated to uniformly spread the surface through centrifugal force, causes the photosensitive film to be driven to the edge and back of the substrate by centrifugal force, forming tiny spherical materials. These spherical materials peel off during substrate transfer after the baking process, resulting in particles in the device and causing focus misalignment during exposure. These unwanted photosensitive materials can cause equipment contamination and reduce the yield of semiconductor device manufacturing processes. Therefore, in order to remove these unwanted photosensitive materials, nozzles are installed above and below the edge and back portions of the substrate, and a diluent composition formed by an organic solvent component is sprayed through the nozzles onto the edge and back portions to remove the unwanted photosensitive materials.

[0005] Factors determining the performance of a diluent composition include dissolution rate and volatility. The dissolution rate of the diluent composition is crucial in determining its effectiveness and speed in dissolving and removing photosensitive resin. Specifically, during edge rinsing, an appropriate dissolution rate is required to obtain a smooth processing cross-section; if the dissolution rate is too high, photosensitive film erosion may occur during rinsing of the photosensitive film coated on the substrate. Conversely, if the dissolution rate is too low, a partially dissolved photosensitive film tailing phenomenon, known as tailing, may occur during rinsing of the photosensitive film coated on the substrate. In particular, when using a spin coater for the rinsing process, due to the recent high integration and density of semiconductor integrated circuits leading to increased substrate diameters, reducing the rotation speed to a low rpm is unavoidable.

[0006] Korean Patent Publication No. 10-2005-0080603 discloses a composition comprising propylene glycol monomethyl ether acetate (PGMEA), ethyl lactate (EL), methyl 2-hydroxy-2-methyl propionate (HBM), etc. However, existing diluent compositions (such as the diluent composition described above) contain highly polar compositions to improve the solubility of high-polarity photoresist and edge bead removal (EBR) performance. When the polarity is too high, the rate at which the photoresist expands from the EBR edge towards the wafer center increases, leading to increased hump height and reduced film uniformity. Furthermore, high hump height reduces usable area and increases defects caused by hump in subsequent processes, resulting in reduced yield. Therefore, solutions to these problems have been needed.

[0007] [Previous Technical Documents]

[0008] [Patent Documents]

[0009] [Patent Document 1] Korean Patent Publication No. 10-2005-0080603 [Summary of the Invention]

[0010] Technical Issues

[0011] This disclosure is made in view of the above-mentioned problems and aims to provide a diluent composition that has the ability to uniformly remove unwanted photosensitive film generated at the edge or back of the substrate due to the increased diameter of the substrate used in the manufacture of semiconductor devices and thin-film transistor liquid crystal display devices.

[0012] In particular, this disclosure aims to provide a diluent composition that, while having excellent solubility and EBR properties for KrF, ArF and EUV photoresist and antireflective coatings, can reduce hump height.

[0013] Technical Solution

[0014] One embodiment of this disclosure provides a diluent composition comprising a cyclic ketone compound and a cyclic hydrocarbon compound, and a method for removing photosensitive resin and an antireflective coating using the diluent composition.

[0015] One embodiment of this disclosure includes a method for removing photosensitive resin, the method comprising using the diluent composition to remove photosensitive resin on a substrate.

[0016] One embodiment of this disclosure includes a method for removing an anti-reflective coating, the method comprising using the diluent composition to remove the anti-reflective coating on a substrate.

Implementation Method

[0018] Beneficial effects

[0019] The diluent composition disclosed herein is used for the edge and back portion of a substrate in a method for manufacturing a semiconductor device and a thin-film transistor liquid crystal display device, and provides an effect that can efficiently remove unwanted photosensitive film in a short time.

[0020] In particular, this disclosure provides a diluent composition that, while having excellent solubility and edge adhesive removal (EBR) properties for KrF, ArF and EUV (extreme ultraviolet) photoresist and antireflective coatings, can reduce the bulge height.

[0021] In addition, by controlling the polarity of the diluent composition, the rate at which the photoresist expands from the end of the EBR to the center of the wafer can be reduced, thereby reducing the bulge height. As a result, the usable area increases and the defects caused by the bulge in subsequent processes are reduced, thereby improving the yield.

[0022] Best Implementation Method

[0023] One embodiment of this disclosure provides a diluent composition comprising a cyclic ketone compound and a cyclic hydrocarbon compound, and a method for removing photosensitive resin and an antireflective coating using the diluent composition.

[0024] The diluent composition disclosed herein is preferably used to remove photosensitive resins and / or anti-reflective coatings used in the manufacturing processes of semiconductor devices and thin-film transistor liquid crystal display devices. The photosensitive resin may be one or more types of photoresists used for ArF, KrF, and EUV.

[0025] By including both cyclic ketone compounds and cyclic hydrocarbon compounds in the diluent composition disclosed herein, excellent solubility and EBR properties can be achieved for photosensitive resins and / or antireflective coatings containing photoresists (PRs) used in KrF, ArF, and EUV, while reducing hump height. Furthermore, by controlling the polarity of the diluent composition, the rate at which the photoresist expands from the EBR end towards the wafer center via the diluent can be reduced, thereby reducing hump height. Therefore, usable area increases, and defects caused by humps in subsequent processes are reduced, thereby improving yield.

[0026] Specifically, when unnecessary portions of the photosensitive resin and / or anti-reflective coating formed on the substrate (wafer) are removed, the edge portions of the photosensitive resin and / or anti-reflective coating expand, forming a step that is higher than the portion of the photosensitive resin and / or anti-reflective coating outside the edge portions. This is referred to as a "hump," and the height of the step is referred to as the "hump height."

[0027] In addition, the diluent composition disclosed herein has high operational stability because it is non-toxic and odorless to the human body, and because of its low corrosivity, it will not corrode the substrate to be cleaned.

[0028] <Diluent Composition>

[0029] The diluent composition disclosed herein contains cyclic ketone compounds and cyclic hydrocarbon compounds, thus effectively improving the solubility of both polar and nonpolar photoresists simultaneously. Cyclic ketone compounds improve the solubility of highly polar photoresists, while cyclic hydrocarbon compounds improve the solubility of low-polarity photoresists. Furthermore, the diluent composition disclosed herein may further contain organic solvents.

[0030] (a) Cyclic ketone compounds

[0031] In this disclosure, the cyclic ketone compound has a cyclic structure, thus exhibiting good affinity with similar cyclic resins. Furthermore, the cyclic ketone compound of this disclosure is highly polar, thus exhibiting high solubility or dissolution rate for most photoresists and hard masks. In addition, the cyclic ketone compound has high volatility, thus reducing the downward flow of dissolved photoresist ends during the drying process of the EBR process.

[0032] More specifically, the cyclic ketone compounds disclosed herein may comprise one or more types of compounds selected from the following chemical formulas 1-1 to 1-3.

[0033] [Chemical Formula 1-1]

[0034] [Chemical Formula 1-2]

[0035] [Chemical Formula 1-3]

[0036] In chemical formulas 1-1 to 1-3, R3 to R17 each independently represent a hydrogen atom, an alkyl group having 1 to 5 carbon atoms, a hydroxyl group, an alkyl ether group, a thiol group, an amino group, a carboxyl group, a ketone group, an alkyl ketone group, or an alkyl ester group.

[0037] In addition, the cyclic ketone compound may comprise one or more types selected from cyclopentanone, cyclohexanone, cycloheptanone, 1,3-cyclopentanedione, 3-hydroxycyclopentanone and 3-oxocyclopentanecarboxylic acid.

[0038] The cyclic ketone compound contained in the diluent composition disclosed herein is preferably contained in an amount from 0.1% to 99.9% by weight of the total weight of the composition, and more preferably in an amount from 1% to 50% by weight of the total weight of the composition. When the above ranges are met, the performance can be further improved when mixed with organic solvents other than the cyclic ketone compound, and in particular, the performance of reducing resist coating (RRC) can be significantly improved in the evaluation when mixed with low-volatility solvents. When the corresponding content ranges are met, excellent EBR images and minimized bulge height can be obtained in the photoresist coating. However, when the content exceeds the above content ranges, it is difficult to expect the straightness of the EBR image, or the bulge height may increase.

[0039] (b) Cyclic hydrocarbons

[0040] Cyclic hydrocarbon compounds have a cyclic structure similar to cyclic ketones, thus exhibiting good affinity for similar cyclic resins, and possessing low polarity due to the absence of functional groups compared to highly polar cyclic ketones. Therefore, cyclic hydrocarbon compounds offer the advantages of achieving excellent EBR images, minimizing bulge height, and further improving film uniformity when coating various types of photoresists, including even highly hydrophobic resins.

[0041] The cyclic hydrocarbon compound may include one or more types of compounds selected from chemical formulas 2-1 and 2-2 below.

[0042] [Chemical Formula 2-1]

[0043] In chemical formula 2-1, R1 and R2 each independently represent a hydrogen atom or an alkyl group having 1 to 12 carbon atoms, and when both R1 and R2 are alkyl groups, the sum of the number of carbon atoms in R1 and R2 is 2 to 12, and n represents an integer from 1 to 3.

[0044] [Chemical Formula 2-2]

[0045] In chemical formula 2-2, Ra is an alkenyl group having 1 to 12 carbon atoms, and n represents an integer from 1 to 3.

[0046] More specifically, the cyclic hydrocarbon compound may include one or more types selected from 1,1-dimethylcyclohexane, 3-methylbutylcyclopentane, ethylenecyclopentane, n-octylcyclopentane and n-dodecylcyclopentane.

[0047] The cyclic hydrocarbon compound may be included in the composition in an amount from 0.01 ppm to 2000 ppm, preferably from 0.1 ppm to 2000 ppm, and more preferably from 0.1 ppm to 100 ppm, and may be mixed and include two or more types of cyclic hydrocarbons. When the corresponding content range is met, excellent EBR images and minimized bulge height can be obtained, and membrane uniformity can be improved. However, when the content is less than 0.01 ppm, membrane uniformity may not be improved, and when the content is greater than 2000 ppm, the EBR image may deteriorate or bulge may increase.

[0048] In addition, the diluent composition disclosed herein may further contain common additives in addition to the above-mentioned components to further improve its effect.

[0049] Furthermore, the diluent composition disclosed herein may be water-free. By being water-free, the solubility of photoresist can be improved, thereby enhancing the photoresist removal capability.

[0050] The diluent composition disclosed herein may be free of acidic and basic compounds. Since acidic and basic compounds do not ionize in organic solvents, it is preferable to exclude acidic and basic compounds to improve EBR process performance.

[0051] The diluent composition disclosed herein may not contain water, alkaline compounds, or acidic compounds.

[0052] (c) Organic solvents

[0053] Furthermore, the diluent composition disclosed herein may further comprise an organic solvent. When an organic solvent is included, the organic solvent may be included in the remainder such that the total weight of the diluent composition is 100%, comprising cyclic ketone compounds and cyclic hydrocarbon compounds, or other additives, which are essential components of the diluent composition.

[0054] The organic solvents disclosed herein can be used without restriction as long as they can mix or dissolve cyclic ketone compounds and cyclic hydrocarbon compounds therein.

[0055] For example, the organic solvent may include 2-heptanone, ethylene glycol methyl ether, ethyl 3-ethoxypropionate, ethanol, ethyl acetate, isobutanol, methyl 2-hydroxyisobutyrate, butylene carbonate, n-butyl acetate, propylene carbonate, propanol, propylene glycol methyl ether, propylene glycol monomethyl ether acetate, propylene glycol butyl ether, hexanol, etc., and these may be used alone or in mixtures of two or more types.

[0056] <Method for removing photosensitive resin and anti-reflective coating>

[0057] This disclosure includes a method for removing photosensitive resin, a method for removing antireflective coating, and a method for removing both photosensitive resin and antireflective coating.

[0058] The method for removing photosensitive resin and / or antireflective coating disclosed herein may use the diluent composition disclosed herein.

[0059] For example, the method for removing photosensitive resin disclosed herein may include: forming a photosensitive resin on a substrate; and removing the photosensitive resin using a diluent composition. In the method for removing photosensitive resin disclosed herein, removing the photosensitive resin includes removing a portion of the photosensitive resin formed on the substrate.

[0060] Furthermore, the method for removing the anti-reflective coating disclosed herein may include: forming an anti-reflective coating on a substrate; and removing the anti-reflective coating using a diluent composition. In the method for removing the anti-reflective coating disclosed herein, removing the anti-reflective coating includes removing a portion of the anti-reflective coating formed on the substrate.

[0061] Furthermore, the method for removing the photosensitive resin and antireflective coating disclosed herein may include: forming a photosensitive resin on a substrate; forming an antireflective coating on the photosensitive resin; and removing the photosensitive resin and antireflective coating using a diluent composition; or it may include: forming an antireflective coating on a substrate; forming a photosensitive resin on the antireflective coating; and removing the photosensitive resin and antireflective coating using a diluent composition. In the method for removing the photosensitive resin and antireflective coating disclosed herein, removing the photosensitive resin and antireflective coating includes removing a portion of the photosensitive resin and antireflective coating formed on the substrate.

[0062] In the method for removing the photosensitive resin and / or antireflective coating, known methods can be used to form the photosensitive resin and / or antireflective coating on the substrate. Furthermore, the description of the diluent composition can also be applied to the method for removing the photosensitive resin and / or antireflective coating.

[0063] The present disclosure will now be described in more detail with reference to embodiments. However, the following embodiments are intended to describe the present disclosure more specifically, and the scope of the present disclosure is not limited to the following embodiments.

[0064] Examples 1 to 25 and Comparative Examples 1 to 20: Preparation of diluent compositions

[0065] The diluent compositions of Examples 1 to 25 and Comparative Examples 1 to 20 were prepared by mixing the components shown in Table 1 below according to their respective contents.

[0066] The specifications of the components used in the following examples and comparative examples are as follows.

[0067] (A) Cyclic ketone compounds

[0068] (A-1) Cyclopentanone

[0069] (A-2) Cyclohexanone

[0070] (A-3) Cycloheptanone

[0071] (A-4) 1,3-Cyclopentanedione

[0072] (A-5) 3-Hydroxycyclopentanone

[0073] (A-6) 3-Oxocyclopentanecarboxylic acid

[0074] (B) Straight-chain ketone compounds

[0075] (B-1) Methyl ethyl ketone

[0076] (B-2) Acetate acetone

[0077] (B-3) 2-Hepanotone

[0078] (C) Cyclic hydrocarbons

[0079] (C-1) 1,1-Dimethylcyclohexane

[0080] (C-2)3-Methylbutylcyclopentane

[0081] (C-3) Ethylenecyclopentane

[0082] (C-4) n-Octylcyclopentane

[0083] (C-5) n-Dodecylcyclopentane

[0084] (D) Straight-chain hydrocarbon compounds

[0085] (D-1) n-Heptane

[0086] (D-2)dodecane

[0087] (D-3)2,4-pentadiene

[0088] (E) Organic solvents

[0089] (E-1) Propylene glycol monomethyl ether acetate

[0090] (E-2) Ethyl 3-ethoxypropionate

[0091] (E-3) methyl 2-hydroxyisobutyrate

[0092] (E-4) Propylene glycol methyl ether

[0093] 〔Table 1〕 (A) Cyclic ketone compounds (wt%) (B) Straight-chain ketone compounds (wt%) (C) Cyclic hydrocarbons (ppm) (D) Straight-chain hydrocarbons (ppm) (E) Organic solvents (wt%) A-1 A-2 A-3 A-4 A-5 A-6 B-1 B-2 B-3 C-1 C-2 C-3 C-4 C-5 D-1 D-2 D-3 E-1 E-2 E-3 E-4 Example 1 25 100 75 Example 2 25 100 75 Example 3 25 100 75 Example 4 25 100 75 Example 5 25 100 75 Example 6 25 100 75 Example 7 25 100 75 Example 8 25 100 75 Example 9 25 100 75 Example 10 25 100 75 Example 11 25 100 75 Example 12 25 100 75 Example 13 25 100 75 Example 14 0.1 100 99.9 Example 15 1 100 99 Example 16 50 100 50 Example 17 99.9 1000 Example 18 99.9 1000 Example 19 99.9 1000 Example 20 99.9 1000 Example 21 99.9 1000 Example 22 25 0.01 75 Example 23 25 0.1 75 Example 24 25 1000 74.9 Example 25 25 2000 74.8 Comparative Example 1 twenty five 100 75 Comparative Example 2 twenty five 100 75 Comparative Example 3 twenty five 100 75 Comparative Example 4 twenty five 100 75 Comparative Example 5 25 100 75 Comparative Example 6 25 100 75 Comparative Example 7 25 100 75 Comparative Example 8 25 100 75 Comparative Example 9 25 100 75 Comparative Example 10 25 100 75 Comparative Example 11 25 100 75 Comparative Example 12 twenty five 100 75 Comparative Example 13 twenty five 100 75 Comparative Example 14 twenty five 100 75 Comparative Example 15 twenty five 100 75 Comparative Example 16 twenty five 75 Comparative Example 17 100 100 Comparative Example 18 99.9 1000 Comparative Example 19 99.9 1000 Comparative Example 20 100

[0094] Test Example: Evaluation of the Properties of Diluent Compositions

[0095] In order to evaluate the properties of the diluent compositions prepared according to the Examples and Comparative Examples, two photoresists shown in Table 2 below were used and evaluated using a 12-inch coating machine (ACT-12, Tokyo Electron Ltd. (TEL)) under the conditions in Table 3.

[0096] (1) Reducing Resist Coating (RRC) Test

[0097] For the two photoresists (PR1, PR2) in Table 2, the RRC performance was tested using the diluent compositions prepared according to the examples and comparative examples. As shown in Table 3, before coating the photoresist, 4.0 cc of each diluent composition was applied to a 12-inch silicon wafer for 3 seconds in a static state, and then the substrate was rotated at 2000 rpm for 5 seconds to distribute the diluent across the entire upper surface of the wafer. Then, 1.0 cc and 0.8 cc of the two photoresists (PR) were coated respectively to perform the RRC process, and the photoresist was measured according to the coating distribution of the diluent and the amount of photoresist consumed. The results are shown in Table 4 below.

[0098] <RRC Assessment Standards>

[0099] X: RRC results show that less than 80% of the photosensitive film is coated on the wafer.

[0100] △: RRC results show that 80% to 95% of the photosensitive film is coated on the wafer.

[0101] ○: RRC results show that 95% or more of the photosensitive film is coated on the wafer, but there are spots or uncoated areas.

[0102] ◎: RRC results show that 95% or more of the photosensitive film is coated on the wafer, and there are no spots.

[0103] (2) Edge Bead Removal (EBR) Test

[0104] The photosensitive resin compositions described in Table 2 were coated onto a 12-inch silicon wafer substrate, such that PR was coated across the entire wafer surface under the evaluation conditions described in Table 3 below. Then, using each diluent composition, an EBR test was performed to remove unnecessary photosensitive film from the edges under the conditions described in step five of Table 3 below. The EBR test was performed for both PR types, and the evaluation conditions were as follows: each diluent composition of the examples and comparative examples was supplied at constant pressure from a pressure vessel equipped with a pressure gauge, and the total amount of each diluent composition sprayed at constant pressure during the EBR process was 2.2 cc. The evaluated substrates were magnified 400x and 1000x using an optical microscope to identify the straightness, uniformity, and tailing of the EBR lines; the results are shown in Table 4 below. In addition, for the evaluation samples demonstrating the straightness and uniformity of the EBR lines, the film thickness at 35 μm inside and 35 μm outside the wafer based on the EBR lines of the photosensitive film was measured using a film thickness measuring device (Dektak, Bruker Corporation) to obtain the maximum film thickness value. Then, the average thickness of the photosensitive film was subtracted to calculate the hump height. The results are shown in Table 4 below.

[0105] <EBR Assessment Standards>

[0106] X: The EBR lines of the photosensitive film are not uniform, and a trailing phenomenon occurs after EBR.

[0107] △: The EBR lines of the photosensitive film are neither straight nor uniform after EBR.

[0108] ○: The EBR lines of the photosensitive film are straight but not uniform after the EBR.

[0109] ◎: The EBR lines of the photosensitive film have constant straightness and uniformity after the EBR.

[0110] <Standard for Elevation Height Results>

[0111] X: The height of the bulge is 1000 Å or higher.

[0112] △: The height of the bulge is 500 Å or higher but less than 1000 Å

[0113] ○: The height of the bulge is 100 Å or higher but less than 500 Å.

[0114] ◎: The height of the bulge is 100 Å or lower.

[0115] (3) Uniformity test

[0116] Using the diluent compositions prepared according to the examples and comparative examples, the film thickness at 61 points on the entire surface of the water was measured when coating the two photoresists (PR 1, PR 2) in Table 2, and the standard deviation was calculated to perform a uniformity evaluation. As shown in Table 3, before coating the photoresist, 4.0 cc of each diluent composition was applied to a 12-inch silicon wafer in a static state for 3 seconds, and then the substrate was rotated at a speed of 2000 rpm for 5 seconds to distribute the diluent across the entire upper surface of the wafer, and 1.0 cc of each of the two PRs was coated.

[0117] <Standard for Uniformity Results>

[0118] X: The standard deviation σ of the PR film thickness at 61 points is 100 Å or higher.

[0119] △: The standard deviation σ of the PR film thickness at 61 points is 50 Å or higher and less than 100 Å.

[0120] ○: The standard deviation σ of the PR film thickness at 61 points is 20 Å or higher and less than 50 Å.

[0121] ◎:The standard deviation σ of the PR film thickness at 61 points is less than 20 Å.

[0122] 〔Table 2〕 Classification PR type PR 1 PRA for EUV PR 2 PRB for ArF

[0123] 〔Table 3〕 Performance evaluation steps Time (seconds) Rotational speed (rpm) detail 1 Apply diluent 3 0 The amount of diluent applied is 4.0 cc. 2 Coating thinner 5 2000 3 Light-blocking spraying conditions 5 500 The amount of photoresist applied is from 0.5 cc to 4 cc. 4 Photoresist coating 20 500 to 2000 Adjust according to film thickness for each PR type application. 5 EBR conditions 9 800 Thinner spraying speed: 15 ml / min 6 Soft roast 50~60 - Temperature 90°C to 130°C, depending on the type of PR.

[0124] 〔Table 4〕 Classification PR 1 PR 2 RRC (1.0cc) RRC (0.8cc) EBR Height of bulge Uniformity RRC (1.0cc) RRC (0.8cc) EBR Height of bulge Uniformity Example 1 ◎ ○ ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ ○ ◎ ◎ ◎ Example 2 ◎ ○ ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ ○ ◎ ◎ ◎ Example 3 ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ Example 4 ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ Example 5 ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ Example 6 ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ Example 7 ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ Example 8 ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ Example 9 ◎ ○ ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ ○ ◎ ◎ ◎ Example 10 ◎ ○ ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ ○ ◎ ◎ ◎ Example 11 ◎ ○ ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ ○ ◎ ◎ ◎ Example 12 ◎ ○ ◎ ◎ ○ ◎ ○ ◎ ◎ ○ Example 13 ◎ ○ ◎ ◎ △ ◎ ○ ◎ ◎ △ Example 14 ◎ ◎ △ △ ◎ ◎ ◎ △ △ ◎ Example 15 ◎ ◎ ○ ○ ◎ ◎ ◎ ○ ○ ◎ Example 16 ○ △ ◎ ◎ ◎ ○ △ ◎ ◎ ◎ Example 17 △ △ ○ ○ ○ - - ○ ○ ○ Example 18 △ △ ○ ○ ○ - - ○ ○ ○ Example 19 △ △ ○ ○ ○ - - ○ ○ ○ Example 20 △ △ ○ ○ ○ - - ○ ○ ○ Example 21 △ △ ○ ○ ○ - - ○ ○ ○ Example 22 ◎ ○ ◎ ◎ △ ◎ ○ ◎ ◎ △ Example 23 ◎ ○ ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ ○ ◎ ◎ ◎ Example 24 ◎ ○ ◎ ◎ ○ ◎ ○ ◎ ◎ ○ Example 25 ◎ ○ ◎ ◎ △ ◎ ○ ◎ ◎ △ Comparative Example 1 ◎ ○ X X X ◎ ○ X △ X Comparative Example 2 ◎ ○ X △ X ◎ ○ X X X Comparative Example 3 ◎ ○ △ X X ◎ ○ X X X Comparative Example 4 ◎ ○ X X X ◎ ○ △ X X Comparative Example 5 ◎ ○ X X X ◎ ○ △ X X Comparative Example 6 ◎ ○ X X X ◎ ○ △ X X Comparative Example 7 ◎ ○ X X X ◎ ○ △ X X Comparative Example 8 ◎ ○ ◎ ◎ X ◎ ○ ◎ ◎ X Comparative Example 9 ◎ ○ ◎ ◎ X ◎ ○ ◎ ◎ X Comparative Example 10 ◎ ○ ◎ ◎ X ◎ ○ ◎ ◎ X Comparative Example 11 ◎ ○ ◎ ◎ X ◎ ○ ◎ ◎ X Comparative Example 12 ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ X ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ X Comparative Example 13 ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ X ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ X Comparative Example 14 ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ X ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ X Comparative Example 15 ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ X ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ X Comparative Example 16 ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ X ◎ ◎ ◎ ◎ X Comparative Example 17 ◎ ○ X X X ◎ ○ X X X Comparative Example 18 - - ○ ○ X - - ○ ○ X Comparative Example 19 - - X X X - - X X X Comparative Example 20 - - ○ ○ X - - ○ ○ X

[0125] Referring to the above test results, it can be confirmed that the photoresist treated with the diluent composition of the disclosed embodiments exhibits excellent uniformity, RRC and EBR characteristics, and has a low bulge height. In particular, the diluent composition containing a cyclic ketone compound in an amount of 1% to 50% by weight of the total weight of the composition exhibits even better results.

[0126] Although the present invention has been disclosed above by way of embodiments, it is not intended to limit the present invention. Those skilled in the art to which this invention pertains can make various modifications and refinements without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Therefore, the scope of protection of this invention shall be determined by the appended claims. [Simplified Explanation of the Diagram]

[0017] None.

Claims

1. A diluent composition comprising: a cyclic ketone compound; and a cyclic hydrocarbon compound, wherein the cyclic ketone compound is contained in an amount from 0.1% by weight to 99.9% by weight of the total weight of the diluent composition, and the cyclic hydrocarbon compound is contained in an amount from 0.01 ppm to 2000 ppm by weight of the total weight of the diluent composition, and wherein the cyclic ketone compound comprises one or more compounds selected from the following chemical formulas 1-1 to 1-3: [Chemical Formula 1-1] [Chemical Formula 1-2] [Chemical Formula 1-3] In chemical formulas 1-1 to 1-3, R3 to R17 each independently represent a hydrogen atom, an alkyl group having 1 to 5 carbon atoms, a hydroxyl group, an alkyl ether group, a thiol group, an amino group, a carboxyl group, a ketone group, an alkyl ketone group, or an alkyl ester group.

2. The diluent composition as claimed in claim 1, wherein the cyclic ketone compound is contained in an amount of 1% to 50% by weight of the total weight of the diluent composition, and the cyclic hydrocarbon compound is contained in an amount of 0.1 ppm to 2000 ppm by weight of the total weight of the diluent composition.

3. The diluent composition as claimed in claim 1, wherein the cycloketyl compound comprises one or more types selected from cyclopentanone, cyclohexanone, cycloheptanone, 1,3-cyclopentanedione, 3-hydroxycyclopentanone, and 3-oxocyclopentanecarboxylic acid.

4. The diluent composition as claimed in claim 1, wherein the cyclic hydrocarbon compound comprises one or more types of compounds selected from the following chemical formulas 2-1 and 2-2: [Chemical Formula 2-1] In Chemical Formula 2-1, R1 and R2 each independently represent a hydrogen atom or an alkyl group having 1 to 12 carbon atoms, and when both R1 and R2 are alkyl groups, the sum of the number of carbon atoms in R1 and R2 is 2 to 12; and n represents an integer from 1 to 3; [Chemical Formula 2-2] In Chemical Formula 2-2, Ra is an alkenyl group having 1 to 12 carbon atoms; and n represents an integer from 1 to 3.

5. The diluent composition as claimed in claim 1, wherein the cyclic hydrocarbon compound comprises one or more compounds selected from 1,1-dimethylcyclohexane, 3-methylbutylcyclopentane, ethylenecyclopentane, n-octylcyclopentane and n-dodecylcyclopentane.

6. The diluent composition as claimed in claim 1, wherein the diluent composition does not contain water, basic compounds, or acidic compounds.

7. The diluent composition as claimed in claim 1, wherein the diluent composition is used to remove one or more types of photosensitive resins for ArF, KrF and EUV photoresists.

8. A method for removing photosensitive resin, the method comprising: forming a photosensitive resin on a substrate; and removing the photosensitive resin using a diluent composition as described in any one of claims 1 to 7.

9. A method for removing an antireflective coating, the method comprising: forming an antireflective coating on a substrate; and removing the antireflective coating using a diluent composition as described in any one of claims 1 to 7.