MSE 311: Introduction to MEMS

Lecture 8:
Photolithography

Instructor: Amin Rasouli

School of Mechatronic Systems Engineering
Simon Fraser University

Microfabrication process
Starting substrate
(e.g., silicon wafer)

Thin film formation

(e.g., oxidation, PVD, CVD)

Mask
Mask set
#1

Pattern definition
(Lithography)
Etching
(e.g., wet or dry etching)

Doping
(e.g., diffusion or ion implantation)

Dice, seal, and package

MSE 311/711: Introduction to MEMS

Photolithography
Process steps:

Coat substrate
Substrate preparation
Photoresist application
Soft-baking

Expose photoresist
Develop photoresist
Hard-bake

MSE 311/711: Introduction to MEMS

Cleanroom
Due to the small dimensions of
microstructures, it is important to keep
the fabrication area as clean as possible.
This is typically specified as the total
number of particles of a certain
maximum size (e.g., 0.5m) in a given
volume (e.g., one cubic foot).

Photolithography is the most sensitive

fabrication step, therefore, requiring the
cleanest environment in a facility.

MSE 311/711: Introduction to MEMS

Cleaning
It is often necessary to clean the wafers in
between different fabrication steps.
RCA clean: NH4OH:H2O2:H2O followed by
HCl:H2O2:H2O
Piranha clean: H2SO4:H2O2:H2O

MSE 311/711: Introduction to MEMS

Photoresist
Positive resist becomes more soluble to the
developer after it is exposed to UV light.
Exposure to UV light makes negative resist less
soluble in the developer.
The resist is applied to the wafer by putting a
few drops at the centre of the wafer and then
spinning it at 1000s of rpm.
The final resist thickness is empirically found
from:

=

Typical values of , and are 0.5, 1 and 1,

respectively.
MSE 311/711: Introduction to MEMS

Resist Polarity

MSE 311/711: Introduction to MEMS

Optical lithography

MSE 311/711: Introduction to MEMS

Exposure
= 546 nm
= 436 nm
= 405 nm
= 365 nm

: (10 100 2 )

:
:
Region name

Wavelength (nm)

Near UV

330-450

UV

260-330

Deep UV

200-260

Extreme UV

10-14

MSE 311/711: Introduction to MEMS

Contact printing
Mask is pressed onto the wafer
Advantages:
simple setup;
good resolution ( 0.5 m).

Disadvantages:
resolution is not uniform;
defects on mask and wafer.

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Proximity Printing
Small spacing between mask
and wafer (10-50m)
Advantages:
simple setup;
increased mask lifetime

Disadvantage:
Reduced resolution ( 2m)

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Projection Printing
Mask is projected onto wafer (Reducing projection
for increased resolution such as 5:1 or 10:1)
Pros: high resolution (0.1-0.5 m); long mask lifetime
Cons: complex optical system; many exposures are
needed; limited depth of focus (1m)

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Developing and Resist stripping

Developing is the final step in lithography
when undesired areas of the photoresist film
are removed through a chemical process.
The subsequent step is usually an etch or doping
step.

After the photoresist has served its purpose, it

needs to be removed from the wafer surface
before the next processing step.
Can be done with acetone, special stripping
solutions, or inside an oxygen plasma.
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Resolution

The smallest width that can be successfully transferred to the resist layer is the
resolution of the printing process.

In contact and proximity printing, the resolution is found from:

3

=
+
2
2
where tresist is the resist thickness and s is the separation between the mask and the wafer.

In projection printing, the resolution is found from:

1
=

NA is the numerical aperture (= lens radius/focal length, typically between 0.16 to 0.93) and k1 is an
experimentally determined number ( between 0.3 and 1.1).

Depth of focus in projection printing is found from:

2
2 2
=
= 2
2
1
where k2 is a measure of contrast.

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Masks and layout

Each lithography step is often followed by etching of
the film/substrate underneath the photoresist.
Exception: lift-off, electroplating,

In micromachining, we use the 2D drawings on the

mask to create 3D structures.
Layout is a set of features that defines the geometry of
a particular deposited layer
e.g., interconnect, structural or sacrificial layers

Often, one mask is needed for each patterning step

exception: self-aligned processes

Layouts need to be checked for design rule

compatibility
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Alternative lithography techniques

Soft lithography: Stamp the desired
pattern on surface and pattern the
underlying layer.
Advantage: low cost, applicable to large
area substrates

Nanoimprint: High resolution patterns

are created by mechanical
deformation of a resist material that is
cured by either heat treatment or UV
light projection
Advantage: low cost, high throughput
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Next generation lithography

Immersion lithography ( < 22nm)

The resolution is increased by a factor equal to the refractive

index of the liquid.
Challenge: Defects

EUV lithography ( = 10-14nm)

Challenges: Light source, Optics

X-ray lithography ( 1nm)

Challenges: Light source, Optics

E-beam lithography ( 10nm)

Challenges: Cost, Charging, Throughput

Ion-beam lithography ( 10nm)

Challenges: Cost, Charging, Throughput

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