Irresistible Materials (IM) is developing next generation photo-resist materials for the semiconductor industry. A photo-resist (resist) is a material that undergoes a change in its physical properties upon exposure to radiation.

In the microchip manufacturing process, silicon substrates are coated in a resist material and selectively exposed to radiation to form a pattern on the resist that is used to create the features in the silicon that act as the ‘wires’ of modern day microchips (a process known as lithography).

Resists are thus critical to the semiconductor industry, and the ever-decreasing size of microelectronics is possible only through advances in lithography and resist technologies. However, existing lithography technology is reaching its performance limits, and is unable to meet the industry’s targets past 2018/19. To address this, a new type of lithography is planned for commercial introduction, called Extreme Ultraviolet Lithography (EUV).

EUV lithography uses higher energy radiation to enable smaller feature sizes, and new resist solutions, optimized for use with EUV light exposure, are urgently required. IM is addressing this need through the introduction of our patented new ‘Multi-Trigger Resist system.

IM’s Multi-Trigger Resists

The IM resist material is a patented new category of resist referred to as a Multi-Trigger resist. It is comprised of 4 components:

  • A patented small molecule
  • A cross-linker
  • A photo-acid generator, and
  • A quencher.

The resist’s innovation and accompanying benefits include:

  • IM’s patented small molecule is ~10X smaller than polymers used in existing state-of-the-art resists, enabling smaller features sizes and improving Resolution (R)
  • IM’s patented Multi-Trigger chemistry creates a high chemical gradient at the boundaries of patterns, reducing blurring effects and improving Line-Edge Roughness (L)
  • The ‘Multi-Trigger’ process amplifies chemical reactions in the resist, increasing Sensitivity (S); and
  • The high absorbency of IM’s patented small molecule and PAG further increase resist Sensitivity.

For further details on IM’s EUV resist material, please refer to our technology bulletin. [Coming Soon]