Radiation imagery chemistry: process – composition – or product th – Diazo reproduction – process – composition – or product – Composition or product which contains radiation sensitive...
Reexamination Certificate
2001-06-05
2004-05-18
Chu, John S. (Department: 1752)
Radiation imagery chemistry: process, composition, or product th
Diazo reproduction, process, composition, or product
Composition or product which contains radiation sensitive...
C430S192000, C430S193000, C430S270100
Reexamination Certificate
active
06737212
ABSTRACT:
TECHNICAL FIELD
This invention relates to a radiation sensitive composition comprising a resin composition and a radiation sensitive material and, more particularly, to a radiation sensitive composition suitably usable as a photoresist material in manufacturing a semiconductor device such as LSI and a flat panel display such as a liquid crystal display (LCD) etc., and like use.
BACKGROUND ART
In the wide field of manufacturing semiconductor integrated circuits such as LSI, producing FPD, manufacturing a circuit substrate for thermal head etc., and like use, photolithography technique has so far been employed for forming microelements or conducting fine processing. In the photolithography technique, a positive or negative-working radiation sensitive composition comprising a resin component and a radiation sensitive material is used for forming a resist pattern. Of these radiation sensitive compositions, those compositions comprising an alkali-soluble resin and a radiation sensitive material of quinonediazide compound are popularly used as the positive-working radiation sensitive compositions. As such compositions, there are described compositions having different formulations as, for example, ‘novolak resin/quinonediazide compound’ in many documents such as Japanese Examined Patent Publication No. S54-23570 (U.S. Pat. No. 3,666,473), Japanese Examined Patent Publication No.56-30850 (U.S. Pat. No. 4,115,128), Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication Nos. S55-73045 and S61-205933, etc.
These compositions comprising a novolak resin and a quinonediazide compound have so far been studied and developed with respect to both novolak resins and radiation sensitive materials. In respect of novolak resins, there have been developed novel resins. In addition, radiation sensitive compositions having excellent properties have also been obtained by improving properties of conventionally known resins. For example, there are disclosed techniques providing a radiation sensitive composition having excellent properties by using a novolak resin with a particular molecular weight distribution in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication Nos. S60-140235 and H01-105243 and by using a novolak resin from which low-molecular-weight components of the resin has been removed by fractionation in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication Nos. S60-97347, S60-189739 and Japanese Patent Publication No. 2590342. Further, as the negative-working radiation sensitive composition, a composition comprising a novolak resin, an alkoxymethylated melamine as a cross-linking agent and a halogenated triazine as an acid generator (Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. H5-303196) can be mentioned. Up to now, radiation sensitive compositions having various compositions have been developed, and as a result of the improvement of the characteristics of these radiation sensitive compositions, a large number of radiation sensitive compositions have been put into practice.
On the other hand, degree of integration in semiconductor elements have been increased year by year and, in the manufacture of semiconductor elements or the like, processing of patterns with a line width of less than sub-micron order has become required. However, conventionally known radiation sensitive compositions can not satisfy enough these requirements in the prior art described above. Further, the large-sizing of the mother glass is advancing in the production of display surface of LCD etc. When the conventional radiation sensitive composition is used as the resist material, there arise the following problems with large-sizing of a mother glass:
That is, first, there is mentioned the problem of sensitivity of the resist as large-sizing of the mother glass. This is because the frequency of pattern exposure by the exposure device is increased as the substrate is large-sized and when the conventional radiation sensitive composition is used, the throughput (yield per unit time) in production is lowered. For improvement of the throughput, the higher sensitization of the resist is required.
In order to meet the higher sensitization of a resist composition, methods have been taken such as use of a low-molecular weight resin, decreasing of the amount of a radiation sensitive material to be added, addition of a material having high dissolution rate in an alkali solution, and use of a radiation sensitive material having high sensitivity. Of these methods, however, by using a low-molecular-weight resin or decreasing of the amount of a radiation sensitive material to be added, there arise some problems. That is, though the coating properties of the resist composition and the line-width uniformity of the resist patterns can be improved, the heat resistance of the resist obtained lowers. As the result, the etching resistance of the resist drops in the production of semiconductor devices and the like. Further, the developability of the resist composition becomes so poor that scum (residue in development) is formed and the film retention rate drops. For example, when the amount of the radiation sensitive material is less than conventional, for example 20 parts by weight or less relative to 100 parts by weight of the resin, the film retention properties of the resist composition containing only novolak resin as the resin component become very poor. The composition does not function as a resist. By way of example, the amount of the radiation sensitive material to be used conventionally is about 25 parts by weight relative to 100 parts by weight of the resin component in the radiation sensitive composition.
To solve above-described problems, the techniques have been proposed in which two or more kinds of novolak resins derived from specific phenol compounds and having a specified molecular weight range are used as the novolak resin (Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. H07-271024); a novolak resin derived from a specific phenol compound and having a specified molecular weight range and degree of dispersion is used as the novolak resin and further a polyhydroxy compound having phenolic hydroxyl groups is used (Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. H08-184963); and a radiation sensitive component comprising a mixture of a naphthoquinonediazide-sulfonic acid ester of trihydroxybenzophenone and trihydroxybenzophenone in a certain ratio is used (Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. H08-82926).
Further, when the conventional radiation sensitive composition is applied onto a large glass substrate, there arises the problem that the uniformity of pattern line width on the surface cannot be sufficiently achieved because of the increase of uneven application or the uneven thickness of the resist film. To improve the coating properties of such a radiation sensitive composition, the addition of a surfactant to the radiation sensitive composition and the type and amount of the surfactant to be added have been examined. Further, in the examination of solvent as improvement of coating properties, use of a solvent having a specific boiling point, kinematic viscosity and evaporation rate (Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 10-186637) and use of a mixed solvent containing as one component therein a solvent selected from propylene glycol and dipropylene glycol (Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 10-186638) are reported.
However, even by these various proposals, there is none of the radiation sensitive composition which can simultaneously and sufficiently solve the problems of sensitivity, resist layer-remaining properties, resolution, reproducibility of patterns, improvement of throughput during production, coating properties, process dependency etc. Therefore it is desired to provide a radiation sensitive composition free of such problems, that is, capable of simultaneously and sufficiently solving the problems of high sensitivity, highly normalized film remaining characteristics, high resolution, excellent reproducibility of patterns, improvement of throughput during production, good coating properties, low process dependency etc. Further, for reducing the costs o
Chu John S.
Clariant Finance (BVI) Limited
Kass Alan P.
LandOfFree
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