Scattering with angular limitation projection electron beam lithography for suboptical lithography

There are several candidate lithography technologies for the postoptical era early in the next century. The scattering with angular limitation projection electron-beam lithography (SCALPEL) approach combines the high resolution and wide process latitude inherent in electron beam lithography with the throughput of a parallel projection system. In the SCALPEL system, a mask consisting of a low atomic number membrane and a high atomic number pattern layer is uniformly illuminated with high energy (100 keV) electrons. The entire mask structure is essentially transparent to the electron beam so very little of the beam energy is deposited in it. The portions of the beam which pass through the high atomic number pattern layer are scattered through angles of a few milliradians. An aperture in the back focal plane of the electron projection imaging lenses stops the scattered electrons and produces a high contrast image at the plane of the semiconductor wafer. This article describes how a lithography system based on the SCALPEL principle can be used for semiconductor manufacturing lithography for feature sizes beyond the capabilities of optical lithography. (C) 1997 American Vacuum Society.