
Splitting hairs to ten to the power of four

14ACMOS: EU project for the next technology node in semiconductor manufacturing.
By Mathias Winter, Head of Piezo Drives & Systems Technology, Global Research and Markus Wiederspahn, Corporate Communications, PHYSIK INSTRUMENTE L.P. (PI).
The 14ACMOS project is part of Horizon Europe, the EU’s key funding program for research and innovation for the period of 2021 to 2027 with a volume of more than € 95 billion. It tackles climate change, helps to achieve the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, and boosts the EU’s competitiveness and growth.
Horizon is divided into six clusters, of which cluster 4 addresses “Digital, Industry & Space”, funded with more than € 15 billion. With a total of currently 127 projects cluster 4 aims to strengthen the competitiveness of European companies in semiconductor and photonics industries.
Application examples of magnetic direct drive technology.
The 14ACMOS project (14ACMOS = 14 Angstroem Complementary Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor) within Horizon aims to develop solutions for the 1.4 nm process technology node. Project activities address four key pillars: lithography, metrology, mask-infrastructure, and process technology.
Lithography solutions will be pushed to meet 1.4 nm capability, and extreme UV plasma physics will be studied to optimize optics transmission and lifetime. In the metrology pillar, advanced methods will be developed to improve measurement sensitivity and uncertainty and to assess reticle degradation induced by extreme UV light. Mask-infrastructure will cover the development of mask repair strategies based on particle removal technology and will assess durability. Process technology involves the development of patterning solutions, active device selection, and new interconnect technology, which are suitable for the 1.4 nm technology node.
The 14ACMOS project started in December 2022 and is set to end in November 2025. Total cost of the project sums up to € 94.6 million with an EU contribution of € 21.8 million. The project is coordinated by ASML. Participants are among others Carl Zeiss SMT, Trumpf, Applied Materials, KLA, Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB).
European players like ASML, Carl Zeiss SMT, and PI have contributed to every step of miniaturization in semiconductor manufacturing along the way from several microns down to the 1.4 nm node. To reach precision of 1.4 nm, new actuator and motor concepts, sensors and (control) algorithms for the drives must be developed, besides advancements
in process technology, improved optics, and materials.
This project is co-funded by the European Union under grant agreement No 101096772 and is supported by the Chips Joint Undertaking and its members.
“Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the authors only and do not necessarily reflect those of the Chips Joint Undertaking. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.”
PI offers 50 years of experience in piezo technology and nano positioning, a broad technological spectrum, and a high level of vertical integration in order to develop and provide components and systems that are optimally tailored to the respective process: From the very beginning, the basis for this consisted of mechanical motion systems (actuators and motors) and the appropriate bearing technology, sensors for recording the distance traveled and for determining the absolute position, algorithms for the firmware and an extensive collection of software interfaces and control technology. As a decade-long system partner of semiconductor equipment manufacturers and in particular the main participants in the 14ACMOS project, PI contributes its expertise and experience to the development of innovative motion solutions. The focus here is on very demanding motion and positioning tasks that require precision in the nanometer and sub-nanometer range. A particularly important aspect of some of the applications is the need to operate the systems under vacuum conditions. PI also offers suitable technologies and options for this.
The new N-332 linear stage utilizes the PiezoWalk® technology.
A wide range of drive technologies
The field of semiconductor manufacturing, and the 14ACMOS project in particular, presents a unique challenge for motion systems: the combination of long travel distances (up to hundreds of millimeters) with high dynamics, speed, and precision down to the nanometer range. PI meets these challenges head-on with a comprehensive portfolio of drive technologies.
Electromagnetic drives
In the class of electric motors, PI offers rotating electric motors such as DC or stepper motors. These are used in connection with screw or worm drives. Stepper motor systems with high-resolution encoders can perform minimum incremental motions of 10 nm with high reliability and repeatability.
Also, in the field of magnetic direct drives, a wide range of technologies is at hand, namely voice coil motors, iron-core and ironless linear motors, and torque motors.
Piezo-based actuators and drives
The motion of piezo actuators is based on solid-state effects, giving them unlimited resolution in principle. Their stiffness is very high, enabling high force generation and dynamics. Their rapid response time in the microsecond range is a result of their high resonant frequency which can reach more than one hundred kilohertz. Actuator travel in the range of several ten micrometers can be mechanically amplified to reach more than 1 mm. The combination of extremely high resolution and small travel ranges requires the use of suitable guiding elements which are typically flexures that enable highest accuracy by avoiding friction, play and backlash.