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Electromagnetic radiation in the vacuum-ultraviolet (VUV) region is needed for imaging of very fine features at the 65 nm and 45 nm nodes. Photolithography using 157-nm radiation, emitted from an F2 excimer laser, is a candidate for next generation lithography. Only chemically amplified resists containing fluorinated hydrocarbons and siloxanes have the required transparency at this wavelength. We have identified hexafluoroisopropanol units as a building block for our 157-nm resist polymers. This paper reports our progress on the most recent research development for this platform. The hexafluoroisopropanol functionality, which has a pKa similar to phenol, has been used to increase the transparency of 157-nm single-layer acrylate-based resists. Our recent effort has been focused on the syntheses of new acrylate monomers with highly transparent building blocks based on trifluoroacetone. The first example, a homopolymer derived from trifluoroacetone bearing a fluorinated hemiacetal unit, has moderate transparency at 157 nm (A = 1.9 μm-1). We have also introduced a new acrylate monomer containing a trimer based on trifluoroacetone, where the 6-hydroxy group in the hemiacetal unit is substituted by a fluorine atom, with an acceptable transparency at 157 nm (A = 2.1 μm-1). Copolymers of the former monomer, derived from trifluoroacetone, and tert-butyl α-fluoroacrylate have also been prepared and showed good 248-nm lithographic performance suggesting suitability for 157-nm lithography. This paper will discuss the transparency, etch resistance and chemical properties of several fluorinated acrylate-based resists, synthesized from groups containing pendent hexafluoroisopropanol units and trimers derived from trifluoroacetone.
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