Walter D. Gillespie

XLA 300 : the fourth-generation ArF MOPA light source for immersion lithography

The XLA 300 is Cymers fourth-generation MOPA-based Argon Fluoride light source built on the production-proven XLA platform. The system is designed to support very high numerical aperture dioptric and catadioptric lens immersion lithography scanners targeted for volume production of semiconductor devices at the 45nm node and beyond. The light source delivers up to 90 W of power with ultra-line narrowed bandwidth as low as 0.12 pm FWHM and 0.25 pm 95% energy integral. The high output power is achieved by advancements in pulse power technology, which allow a 50% increase in repetition rate to 6 kHz. The increased repetition rate, along with pulse stretching, minimizes damage to the scanner system optics at this high power level. New developments in the laser optical systems maintain industry-leading performance for bandwidth stability and high level of polarization despite the increased thermal load generated at the higher repetition rate. The system also features state-of-the-art on-board E95% bandwidth metrology and improved bandwidth stability to provide enhanced CD control. The E95% metrology will move bandwidth monitoring from a quality safeguard flag to a tool that can be used for system feedback and optimization. The proven high power optics technology extends the lifetime of key laser optics modules including the line-narrowing module, and the cost of consumables (CoC) is further reduced by longer chamber lifetimes.

Long-term reliable operation of a MOPA-based ArF light source for microlithography

Since the introduction of the XLA-100 in January 2003, we have built, tested, and shipped a large number of XLA-100 MOPA lasers to microlithography scanner manufacturers. Some systems have already been installed at chip fabrication lines. To ensure product design robustness, we have been performing a long-term system performance test of an XLA-100 laser at Cymer. In this paper, we will report optical performance of the XLA-100 we see during manufacturing final tests, and a summary of the long term testing.

6 kHz MOPA light source for 193 nm immersion lithography

Volume production immersion lithography scanners will require new light sources offering increased output power while delivering improved dose stability over a shorter exposure window. Scaling the light source repetition rate from 4 to 6 kHz is the logical step toward meeting those combined requirements. We will present the results of the latest progress towards developing a 193 nm, 6 kHz light-source using Cymer’s proprietary MOPA technology. We will discuss how the design of critical core technology elements, such as the discharge chamber, the solid-state-pulsed-power modules and opto-electronic detectors within the system are modified to handle the higher average power, thermal demands, and speed to support reliable operation up to 6kHz. The XLA platform, which is already used on three generations of 193 nm MOPA light source, allows seamless integration of these improved technology elements into a reliable, proven product platform. We will also report results of the characterization of the optical parameters critical to the lithography process, such as spectral bandwidth and its stability, energy stability and dose stability, up to 6 kHz.

Enabling CoO improvement thru green initiatives

Chipmakers continued pressure to drive down costs while increasing utilization requires development in all areas. Cymer’s commitment to meeting customer’s needs includes developing solutions that enable higher productivity as well as lowering cost of lightsource operation. Improvements in system power efficiency and predictability were deployed to chipmakers’ in 2014 with release of our latest Master Oscillating gas chamber. In addition, Cymer has committed to reduced gas usage, completing development in methods to reduce Helium gas usage while maintaining superior bandwidth and wavelength stability. The latest developments in lowering cost of operations are paired with our advanced ETC controller in Cymer’s XLR 700ix product.