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Forget half-pitch: how about half tool! Couldn’t resist it! |
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Aug 30, 2006 at 02:58 PM |
The news that ASML has delivered the first EUV lithography development tools is no mean feat and the general perception is that EUV has made a significant leap into the world of next generation lithography reality, even though a massive effort is still required in power source, masks and resists, just to throw a few out there.
Perhaps it was the excitement from both Albany Nanotech and IMEC that got ASML a little flustered yesterday on a couple of different issues concerning the separate R&D centres' press releases.
Firstly, it was the claims for being ‘first'! Both claimed they were recipients of the worlds ‘first' full field EUV tool! Two does not go into one, twice! Perhaps the ‘first' billing should go to the centre that actually puts the tool together, presses the ‘ON' button and cranks the power up! Got a feeling that press release has already been thought of somehow. Though we might all get to know about the tools powering up as the lights might dip in your home when that happens!
It was also interesting to note that neither facility actually mentioned when the tools might start patterning wafers. ASML wasn't exactly sure either! Though tool install will take some considerable time we would expect first meaningful results before the end of the year and most definitely public detailed first data at next years SPIE conference in late February. This could be the first packed EUV conference sessions as well!
The Albany press release also caused some flusters at ASML as it noted ASML has spent $400 million US dollars on its own R&D centre at the New York State Center of Excellence in Nanoelectronics and Nanotechnology at CNSE's Albany NanoTech complex and that this was part of the International Multiphase Partnership for Lithography Science and Engineering ("IMPLSE") program.
If that long list is confusing, join the club; Albany really needs to simplify all this. Look at IMEC: it's IMEC that gets the EUV tool, simple.
But what makes this more confusing and flustering for ASML is that ASML doesn't have its own R&D centre within Albany and is definitely not ‘ASML's only 300mm wafer R&D facility located outside of its main headquarters in the Netherlands.'
There is one and it's definitely at ASML's headquarters in the Netherlands, honest gov! Where that little gem came from we are not so sure but it could have come from the fact that ASML has a $400 million commitment at Albany to develop leading edge lithography processes with some of its major customers.
Albany may well be confusing itself now!
IMEC also caused a few flutters with the release of two photos showing the early stages of the ‘first' EUV tool being installed in the IMEC's 300mm fab. Having seen one the two ‘first' EUV Alpha tools assembled at ASML's ‘first' and only headquartered R&D/test and assembly facility late last year I was a little confused at what I was actually looking at in the IMEC pictures.
As shown below what you see is actually only half of the main EUV tool structure. In fact it is only the bottom half! The silver foil shown covers the triangulated bottom half that needs to be mated to the triangulated top half that then forms a completely sealed vacuum rectangular structure—with me?
At 40 plus tons the split configuration makes sense, even though showing the bottom half of the tool perhaps doesn't. The pictures are also quite revealing in their detail, something ASML may also be a bit flustered about.
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