February 6, 2012 — Gigaphoton Inc., lithography light source manufacturer, uncrated the GT63A next-generation ArF excimer laser for multi-patterning immersion lithography scanners. The lasers begin shipping in Q2 2012.
The GT63A includes "s" series options such as sMPL (Spectrum Multi-Positioning LNM), a spectrum control (focus drilling) technology for wider depth of focus. Other options include sGRYCOS (Sixty Gigaphoton Recycled Chamber Operation System) chamber technology; sTGM (Supreme Total Gas Manager) gas management system; and sMONITORING (Smart Monitoring) real-time information management tracking.
Also read: Gigaphoton extends DUV another generation and The physics behind Gigaphoton EUV source technology
sMPL increases laser spectrum control width to 10x that of conventional technology, Gigaphoton reports. Focus drilling enables expansion of the lithography process window for contact holes, trenches and vias, while avoiding negative effects on critical dimension uniformity (CDU), overlay and productivity. The sMPL technology was tested in a high-volume manufacturing environment with a leading scanner manufacturer and device manufacturer.
sGRYCOS technology extends the effective life of a laser chamber 1.5x longer than conventional chambers, from increasing the strength of the pre-ionization electrode in a newly developed chamber and using a robust pulse-power supply.
The sTGM technology implements an innovative wavelength calibration method to avoid routinely replacing the laser chamber’s gas. No process gases are wasted due to calibration requirements. This gas management technology allows for system calibration of laser wavelength “as-is” without replacement of the laser chamber’s gas.
The sMONITORING technology is an extension of existing real-time monitoring of laser performance and can be connected with the end-user’s Fault Detection and Classification (FDC) system to monitor system operation. It is a final check upon highly stable laser output to the scanner and on-wafer performance.
These DUV technologies will be presented at SPIE Advanced Lithography 2012, February 12-16, San Jose, CA.
Gigaphoton develops DUV laser light sources used by major semiconductor chip makers for the lithography step. Visit http://www.gigaphoton.com/e/index.html.