Issue 33, 2018

Nano-confinement of block copolymers in high accuracy topographical guiding patterns: modelling the emergence of defectivity due to incommensurability

Abstract

Extreme ultraviolet interference lithography (EUV-IL) is used to manufacture topographical guiding patterns to direct the self-assembly of block copolymers. High-accuracy silicon oxide-like patterns with trenches ranging from 68 nm to 117 nm width are fabricated by exposing a hydrogen silsesquioxane (HSQ) resist layer using EUV-IL. We investigate how the accuracy, the low line width roughness and the low line edge roughness of the resulting patterns allow achieving DSA line/space patterns of a PS-b-PMMA (polystyrene-block-poly methyl methacrylate) block copolymer of 11 nm half-pitch with low defectivity. We conduct an in-depth study of the dependence of the DSA pattern morphology on the trench width and on how the neutral brush covers the guiding pattern. We identify the relation between trench width and the emergence of defects with nanometer precision. Based on these studies, we develop a model that extends available free energy models, which allows us to predict the patterning process window.

Graphical abstract: Nano-confinement of block copolymers in high accuracy topographical guiding patterns: modelling the emergence of defectivity due to incommensurability

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
21 May 2018
Accepted
03 Jul 2018
First published
05 Jul 2018

Soft Matter, 2018,14, 6799-6808

Nano-confinement of block copolymers in high accuracy topographical guiding patterns: modelling the emergence of defectivity due to incommensurability

S. Gottlieb, D. Kazazis, I. Mochi, L. Evangelio, M. Fernández-Regúlez, Y. Ekinci and F. Perez-Murano, Soft Matter, 2018, 14, 6799 DOI: 10.1039/C8SM01045E

To request permission to reproduce material from this article, please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

If you are an author contributing to an RSC publication, you do not need to request permission provided correct acknowledgement is given.

If you are the author of this article, you do not need to request permission to reproduce figures and diagrams provided correct acknowledgement is given. If you want to reproduce the whole article in a third-party publication (excluding your thesis/dissertation for which permission is not required) please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

Read more about how to correctly acknowledge RSC content.

Social activity

Spotlight

Advertisements