Researched
EUV Lithography
Light of 13.5 nm wavelength, generated from tin plasma, exposes chip structures; only ASML can build the machines.
Open in the interactive tree →Researchers worked on EUV for more than 20 years: a CO2 laser hits tin droplets 50,000 times per second, the plasma emits 13.5 nm light, and special mirrors (Zeiss) steer it onto the wafer. Since 2019 TSMC (and Samsung) have made volume chips with EUV; ASML is the only manufacturer worldwide. Without EUV, structures below about 7 nm would need extremely many exposure steps.
Prerequisites
- Abbe's Image Theory (Zeiss)1873Abbe's resolution limit is why a shorter wavelength prints finer lines
- Integrated Circuit1958-1959
- Laser1960
- Multilayer EUV Mirrors1981Multilayer mirrors are the only way to focus 13.5 nm light
- DUV Excimer-Laser Lithography1982EUV scanners succeed the DUV scanner platform and its optics
- EUV Lithography Proof of Concept1986-1997Kinoshita's 1986 images and the EUV LLC proved the concept
- Foundry Model (TSMC)1987TSMC was the first foundry to bring EUV into high-volume production
- Immersion Lithography2003Immersion was the last optical step before EUV was needed
- Tin-Plasma EUV Light Source2009The tin-plasma source gives the 13.5 nm light the machine needs