Method for reducing pattern dimension in photoresist layer

a technology of photoresist layer and pattern, applied in the direction of photosensitive materials, instruments, photomechanical equipment, etc., can solve the problems of inability to achieve successful approach, inability to achieve substantial variation, and inability to achieve the above-described method of post-patterning dimension reducing method.

Inactive Publication Date: 2005-03-17
SUGETA YOSHIKI +2
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  • Summary
  • Abstract
  • Description
  • Claims
  • Application Information

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0013] Thus, in a first aspect of the invention, the present invention provides, in a method for reducing a pattern dimension in a patterned photoresist layer formed on a substrate by a post-patterning heat treatment, referred to as the coated thermal flow process hereinafter, comprising the steps of: (a) forming a coating layer of a water-soluble resin composition on the patterned resist layer, (b) drying the coating layer of the aqueous coating solution, (c) subjecting the

Problems solved by technology

This approach, however, cannot be successful without development of a photoresist composition having adaptability to these short-wavelength exposure radiations.
This method, however, has a problem in respect of the relatively large temperature dependency amounting to more than 10 nm/° C. within the substrate surface.
This disadvantage can hardly be overcome with the heating device currently employed in the manufacture of semiconductor devices due to poor uniformity of the temperature distribution.
Accordingly, the above-described method of post-patterning dimension-reducing method cannot be practiced without substantial variations in the pattern dimensions.
Though advantageous in respect of small temperature dependency of only a few nm/° C. within the plane of the substrate surface, this method has a problem that, due to the difficulty in controlling mobilization of the photoresist layer by the heat treatment, uniform reduction of the dimension of the photoresist layer can hardly be expected within the substrate surface.
For example, the crosslinking reaction of t

Method used

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Examples

Experimental program
Comparison scheme
Effect test

example 1

[0044] A semiconductor silicon wafer was uniformly coated on a spinner with a positive-working photoresist composition (TDUR-P036PM, a product by Tokyo Ohka Kogyo Co.) followed by a baking treatment at 80° C. for 90 seconds to form a photoresist layer having a thickness of 560 nm.

[0045] The photoresist layer was subjected to a patterning light-exposure treatment with KrF excimer laser beams on a light-exposure machine (Model Canon FPA-3000EX3, manufactured by Canon Co.) followed by a post-exposure baking treatment at 120° C. for 90 seconds and then subjected to a development treatment with a 2.38% by weight aqueous solution of tetramethylammonium hydroxide to give a hole pattern having a diameter of 182.3 nm.

[0046] In the next place, the resist layer having the thus formed hole pattern was coated with a coating solution prepared by dissolving 9.1 g of a copolymeric resin of acrylic acid and N-vinylpyrrolidone in a copolymerization ratio of 2:1 by weight and 0.9 g of triethanolamin...

example 2

[0048] A semiconductor silicon wafer was uniformly coated on a spinner with a positive-working photoresist composition (TDMR-AR2000, a product by Tokyo Ohka Kogyo Co.) followed by a pre-baking treatment at 90° C. for 90 seconds to form a photoresist layer having a thickness of 1.3 μm.

[0049] In the next place, the photoresist layer was subjected to patterning light exposure on an i-line light-exposure machine (Model Nikon NSR-2205i14E, manufactured by Nikon Co.) followed by a post-exposure baking treatment at 110° C. for 90 seconds and then subjected to a development treatment to give a trench pattern of 411.1 nm width.

[0050] The thus formed trench-patterned resist layer was provided in the same manner as in Example 1 with a coating layer of the water-soluble resin followed by a heat treatment to effect thermal shrinkage and then washing away of the coating layer with water. The result was that the width of the trench pattern had been reduced from 411.1 nm to 219.5 nm.

example 3

[0051] The experimental procedure was substantially the same as in Example 1 except that the coating solution of a water-soluble resin was prepared by dissolving, in 90 g of water, 9.5 g of a copolymeric resin of acrylic acid and N-vinylpyrrolidone in a copolymerization ratio of 2:1 by weight and 0.5 g of monoethanolamine. The result was that the hole pattern diameter could be reduced from 182.3 nm to 160.3 nm.

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Abstract

The invention discloses improvements in the so-called coated thermal flow process for reducing the pattern dimension of a patterned resist layer on a substrate to accomplish increased fineness of resist patterning, in which a coating layer of a water-soluble resin formed on the patterned resist layer is heat-treated to effect thermal shrinkage of the coating layer with simultaneous reduction of the pattern dimension followed by removal of the coating layer by washing with water. The improvement of the process is obtained by using an aqueous coating solution admixed with a water-soluble amine compound such as triethanolamine in addition to a water-soluble resin such as a polyacrylic acid-based polymer. Further improvements can be obtained by selecting the water-soluble resin from specific copolymers including copolymers of (meth)acrylic acid and a nitrogen-containing monomer such as N-vinylpyrrolidone, N-vinylimidazolidinone and N-acryl-oylmorpholine as well as copolymers of N-vinylpyrrolidone and N-vinylimidazolidinone in a specified copolymerization ratio.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0001] The present invention relates to improvements in a method for obtaining a patterned photoresist layer of which the resist pattern has a reduced dimension by a post-patterning heat treatment. More particularly, the invention relates to improvements in the method for reducing the pattern dimension in a photolithographically patterned resist layer by a post-patterning procedure in which a patterned resist layer on a substrate is provided thereon with a coating layer of a water-soluble resin and then the thus coated patterned resist layer is subjected to a heat treatment to effect thermal shrinkage of the resist layer resulting in a reduced pattern dimension followed by complete removal of the coating layer of the water-soluble resin by washing with water. [0002] Along with the recent trend in the technology of semiconductor devices toward higher and higher degrees of integration and more and more compact sizes of the devices, the photolithographic pat...

Claims

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Application Information

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IPC IPC(8): H01L21/027G03F7/40
CPCG03F7/40H01L21/027
Inventor SUGETA, YOSHIKIKANEKO, FUMITAKETACHIKAWA, TOSHIKAZU
Owner SUGETA YOSHIKI
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