Sputtered W-Ti Film for X-Ray Mask Absorber
- 1 December 1992
- journal article
- Published by IOP Publishing in Japanese Journal of Applied Physics
- Vol. 31 (12S) , 4210-4214
- https://doi.org/10.1143/jjap.31.4210
Abstract
Properties of DC-sputtered W-Ti absorber films such as internal stress, density and microstructure were systematically investigated for X-ray mask application. Smooth, stress-free amorphous W-Ti films with a comparatively high density of 16.5-17.0 g/cm3 were obtained by optimizing several conditions: gas pressure, N2 content in the working gas, DC power density and annealing temperature. The reproducibility of the film stress was about ±5×107 Pa. Reproducibility was found to be mainly determined by the degree to which the sputtering tool used could be controlled. Furthermore, it was confirmed that the optimized absorber films offered good stability under stress within 1×107 Pa when stored in an air atmosphere for more than 250 days.Keywords
This publication has 15 references indexed in Scilit:
- An ultra-low stress tungsten absorber for x-ray masksJournal of Vacuum Science & Technology B: Microelectronics and Nanometer Structures, 1991
- Ta Film Properties for X-Ray Mask AbsorbersJapanese Journal of Applied Physics, 1990
- Low Stress Tungsten Absorber for X-ray MasksMicroelectronic Engineering, 1990
- Stress and microstructure relationships in gold thin filmsVacuum, 1990
- Use of ion implantation to eliminate stress-induced distortion in x-ray masksJournal of Vacuum Science & Technology B, 1988
- Physicochemical properties in tungsten films deposited by radio‐frequency magnetron sputteringJournal of Vacuum Science & Technology A, 1988
- Reduction in x-ray mask distortion using amorphous WNx absorber stress compensated with ion bombardmentJournal of Vacuum Science & Technology B, 1988
- Improved tungsten absorber technology for sub-half-micron x-ray lithographyMicroelectronic Engineering, 1987
- Optimization of the stresses in tungsten sputtered films, study of their stabilityMicroelectronic Engineering, 1987
- Internal stresses in titanium, nickel, molybdenum, and tantalum films deposited by cylindrical magnetron sputteringJournal of Vacuum Science and Technology, 1977