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Chemical Origins of Environmental Modifications to MOR Lithographic Chemistry

Chemical Origins of Environmental Modifications to MOR Lithographic Chemistry
by Daniel Nenni on 03-25-2026 at 10:00 am

Chemical Origins of Environmental Modifications to MOR Lithographic Chemistry

In the pursuit of advanced extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography for high-NA patterning, metal oxide resists (MORs) offer significant promise but face challenges like critical dimension (CD) variation due to atmospheric interactions. Presented at SPIE Advanced Lithography + Patterning 2025 by Kevin M. Dorney and colleagues… Read More


Beyond Moore’s Law: High NA EUV Lithography Redefines Advanced Chip Manufacturing

Beyond Moore’s Law: High NA EUV Lithography Redefines Advanced Chip Manufacturing
by Daniel Nenni on 03-23-2026 at 8:00 am

DSC00975

The imec installation of the ASML EXE:5200 High Numerical Aperture (High NA) extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography system at imec represents a pivotal advancement in semiconductor manufacturing and research. This system, installed in imec’s 300 mm cleanroom in Leuven, Belgium, introduces unprecedented lithographic resolution… Read More


Accelerating Computational Lithography Using Massively Parallel GPU Rasterizer

Accelerating Computational Lithography Using Massively Parallel GPU Rasterizer
by Kalar Rajendiran on 03-18-2026 at 10:00 am

Rasterization Polygon to pixel based representation

As semiconductor manufacturing pushes deeper into the nanometer regime, computational lithography has evolved from a supporting step into a central pillar of advanced chip design. Mask synthesis, lithography simulation, and optical proximity correction (OPC) now demand unprecedented levels of accuracy and computational… Read More


Unraveling Dose Reduction in Metal Oxide Resists via Post-Exposure Bake Environment

Unraveling Dose Reduction in Metal Oxide Resists via Post-Exposure Bake Environment
by Daniel Nenni on 03-15-2026 at 4:00 pm

Unraveling Dose Reduction in Metal Oxide Resists via Post Exposure Bake Environment

In the realm of extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography, metal oxide resists (MORs) have emerged as promising candidates for advanced semiconductor patterning. However, their stability poses challenges, particularly interactions with clean-room environments like humidity and airborne molecular contaminants (AMCs) … Read More


TSMC Process Simplification for Advanced Nodes

TSMC Process Simplification for Advanced Nodes
by Daniel Nenni on 02-22-2026 at 4:00 pm

TSMC Patent US10692720B2

In the modern world, the semiconductor industry stands at the heart of technological innovation. From smartphones and laptops to advanced medical devices and artificial intelligence systems, nearly every piece of contemporary electronics depends on increasingly sophisticated microchips. Among the leading companies … Read More


CEO Interview with Dr. Heinz Kaiser of Schott

CEO Interview with Dr. Heinz Kaiser of Schott
by Daniel Nenni on 01-22-2026 at 10:00 am

Dr. Heinz Kaiser (1)

With over 25 years of experience in the specialty materials industry, Dr. Heinz Kaiser is a member of the Management Board of SCHOTT AG, responsible for High-Performance Materials and Flat Glass, while also heading Sales and Market Development, Sales Excellence, and Intellectual Property. With a strong engineering background… Read More


Kirin 9030 Hints at SMIC’s Possible Paths Toward >300 MTr/mm2 Without EUV

Kirin 9030 Hints at SMIC’s Possible Paths Toward >300 MTr/mm2 Without EUV
by Fred Chen on 12-28-2025 at 2:00 pm

Number of masks required for the M0 through M3 layers

Earlier this month, TechInsights did a teardown of the Kirin 9030 chip found in Huawei’s Mate 80 Pro Max [1]. Two clear statements were made on the findings: (1) the transistor density of SMIC’s “N+3” process was definitely below that of the earlier 5nm processes from Samsung and TSMC, and (2) metal pitch was aggressively scaled

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Self-Aligned Spacer Patterning for Minimum Pitch Metal in DRAM

Self-Aligned Spacer Patterning for Minimum Pitch Metal in DRAM
by Fred Chen on 11-16-2025 at 10:00 am

Spacer Patterning for Minimum Pitch Metal in DRAM 1

The patterning of features outside a DRAM cell array can be just as challenging as those within the array itself [1]. The array contains features which are densely packed, but regularly arranged. On the other hand, outside the array, the minimum pitch features, such as the lowest metal lines in the periphery for the sense amplifier… Read More


Via Multipatterning Regardless of Wavelength as High-NA EUV Lithography Becomes Too Stochastic

Via Multipatterning Regardless of Wavelength as High-NA EUV Lithography Becomes Too Stochastic
by Fred Chen on 09-28-2025 at 10:00 am

Fred Chen EUV 2025

For the so-called “2nm” node or beyond, the minimum metal pitch is expected to be 20 nm or even less, while at the same time, contacted gate pitch is being pushed to 40 nm [1]. Therefore, we expect via connections that can possibly be as narrow as 10 nm (Figure 1)! For this reason, it is natural to expect High-NA EUV lithography as the go-to

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EUV Lithography Without Pellicles: Accounting for Low Yields

EUV Lithography Without Pellicles: Accounting for Low Yields
by Fred Chen on 09-15-2025 at 6:00 am

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While stochastic defects link yield with the practical resolution of EUV lithography resulting from its quantum nature [1], very low yields of EUV processes are more readily linked to the use of EUV masks without pellicles. Pellicles are thin film membrane covers on masks (regardless of wavelength: EUV and DUV and i-line) used… Read More