Development and performance of EUV pellicles
The next step in lithography is the move from 193 nm light to extreme ultra-violet (EUV) at 13.5 nm. This poses a lot of challenges that have been overcome in the past years. One of these challenges is the protection of the reticle front side from defects. This protection can be achieved by the use of an EUV pellicle which is a large area, freestanding, ultra-thin (~50 nm) membrane that prevents particles from landing on the reticle surface. During operation, the pellicle has to endure mechanical movements, withstand the scanner environment and increasing source power while remaining chemical and structural integrity on the nanometer scale.
This presentation will highlight the unique requirements and challenges for EUV pellicles. Moreover, we will present the working principle and performance of the current EUV pellicle solution as well as the development of future generation EUV pellicles.
Sr. Architect in the EUV Pellicle group within the Development and Engineering department of the EUV Business Line at ASML
Paul Janssen holds a Master in Applied Physics with a specialization in functional nanomaterials. In 2013, he gained his PhD from Eindhoven University of Technology where he worked in the field of organic spintronics, which is an research area where physics, organic chemistry and material science meet. Here, he studied the intriguing role of spins in organic semiconducting nanodevices. Paul is currently working as Sr. Architect in the EUV Pellicle group within the Development and Engineering department of the EUV Business Line at ASML.
