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News Article

EUV source progresses to 20W

Extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography sources have reached 20% of the power that will be needed for commercial high-volume systems, according to presentations at an International SEMATECH (ISMT) workshop. Progress in the three areas of source power, debris mitigation and longer collector lifetimes was demonstrated at the ISMT-sponsored workshop.
Extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography sources have reached 20% of the power that will be needed for commercial high-volume systems, according to presentations at an International SEMATECH (ISMT) workshop. Progress in the three areas of source power, debris mitigation and longer collector lifetimes was demonstrated at the ISMT-sponsored workshop.

Philips Extreme described the output of more than 20W from a tin-based plasma pinch source. The company also showed a significant control of debris generation for tin, extending the advantages of using tin and making it more competitive with xenon-based sources. This diminished level of debris, Philips Extreme said, could within a year result in a collector (the lens system) lifetime of more than 1.5bn pulses.

Another research group from Xtreme technologies presented an EUV source that generates 15W of power at the intermediate focus using xenon, with a collector lifetime of more than 100mn pulses. Xtreme is supplying the UK stepper producer Exitech with an EUV source for its Microstepper system that ISMT will use in its EUV resist development programme in Albany, New York.

In EUV lithography, extremely short wavelengths of13.4nm are used to print very narrow features consistent with the requirements of the 32nm technology node defined by the International Technology Roadmap for Semiconductors (ITRS).

One way to produce EUV light is to magnetically compress xenon or tin to very high temperatures in pinch plasma or gas discharge produced plasma (GDPP) systems. Alternatively, laser-produce plasma (LPP) systems bombard a target of tin or xenon with a high power laser to generate EUV radiation.

The resulting EUV light is gathered by a lens system, called the "collector", that projects it to an "intermediate focus" area from where it is directed onto a wafer to print semiconductor patterns. To be commercially practical, the amount of EUV power at the intermediate focus must be of the order 115W. A year ago, experimental systems were generating only 5W at that focus.

In addition, the "debris" of high-energy ions and neutral particles produced from the very hot xenon or tin must be controlled to prevent damage to the EUV source and other optical components. The collector must also be able to withstand billions of energy pulses and impact from debris without breaking down. Otherwise, replacement schedules and production costs would be prohibitive.

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