The SMARTTM Process for Directed Block Co-Polymer Self-Assembly

• Published in: Journal of Photopolymer Science and Technology Vol. 26; no. 5; pp. 573 - 579
• Main Authors: Kim, Jihoon, Wan, Jingxiu, Miyazaki, Shinji, Yin, Jian, Cao, Yi, Her, Young Jun, Wu, Hengpeng, Shan, Jianhui, Kurosawa, Kazunori, Lin, Guanyang
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Hiratsuka The Society of Photopolymer Science and Technology(SPST) 2013; Japan Science and Technology Agency
• Subjects: AZ SMART; BCP; block co-polymer; directed self-assembly; DSA; poly(styrene-b-methylmethacrylate); PS-b-PMMA
• ISSN: 0914-9244; 1349-6336
• DOI: 10.2494/photopolymer.26.573

A new process for directed block co-polymer self-assembly (DSA),AZ(R) SMARTTM, for high resolution line and space patterning was introduced. The SMART process started with photoresist trench patterns generated through common photolithographic processes on top of a thin crosslinked neutral layer. A reactive ion etching (RIE) process removed the neutral layer at bottom of the resist trenches and followed by a resist stripping step which completely removed the resist material and uncovered the neutral surface protected by the resist film during etching step. DSA performances of the resultant SMART chemical pre-patterns without or with extra pinning material brushing step were compared. Results indicated that pinning material enhanced chemical pre-pattern directing power for DSA performance. The chemical pre-pattern without pinning material provided well aligned DSA performance for some specific pre-pattern structure and DSA multiplication factor, but it lacked general performance stability. On the other hand, process with added pinning material was demonstrated with stable performance for variable pre-pattern pitches with different DSA multiplication factors. SMART DSA pattern profile and its pattern etching transfer into hard masks were investigated.