Characterization of the synchrotron-based 0.3 numerical aperture extreme ultraviolet microexposure tool at the Advanced Light Source Available to Purchase

Synchrotron-based extreme ultraviolet (EUV) exposure tools continue to play a crucial roll in the development of EUV lithography. Utilizing a programmable-pupil-fill illuminator, the 0.3 numerical aperture (NA) microexposure tool at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory’s Advanced Light Source synchrotron radiation facility provides the highest resolution EUV projection printing capabilities available today. This makes it ideal for the characterization of advanced resist and mask processes. The Berkeley tool also serves as a good benchmarking platform for commercial implementations of 0.3 NA EUV microsteppers because its illuminator can be programmed to emulate the coherence conditions of the commercial tools. Here we present the latest resist and tool characterization results from the Berkeley EUV exposure station.