Abstract

The successful use of x-ray illumination in the semiconductor lithography process requires trade-offs between source size, brightness, spectrum, lifetime, and stability. Further, integration of an optimized source in a production worthy lithography system imposes requirements in crucial and indispensable subsystems, such as alignment and reticle systems. The physics and engineering issues, together with emerging system integration solutions, are reviewed. Additionally, a figure of merit comparison of lithography modalities for submicron integrated circuit production is presented.

© 1989 Optical Society of America