PROGRESS IN E-BEAM MASK MAKING FOR OPTICAL AND X-RAY-LITHOGRAPHY

This paper discusses the various aspects of the mask making challenge with particular emphasis on the pattern generation process and presents solutions developed to meet this challenge. The tool progress is demonstrated with examples of recent results obtained with a new version of IBM's EL-3 electron beam lithography system specifically developed to meet the requirements of 1x mask making at sub-half micron critical dimensions. The key features of the tool are described including auto-calibration and error correction schemes together with experimental results illustrating the effectiveness of these corrections.