Yuichi Yamada, Canon, Inc. & Toshihiro Oga, Canon U.S.A., Inc.

ABSTRACT

Lithography, the primary enabling technology of the semiconductor industry, is rapidly moving from 130nm to 90nm for volume
production, and 65nm for R&D. Suppliers of lithography systems are being challenged to deliver superior imaging performance at ever-higher productivity at two-year design shrink intervals. To ensure a balance of performance and cost, the manufacturers of leading-edge devices are pursuing a mix-and-match strategy using new very high NA (0.85) 193nm (ArF) scanners for critical layers, 248nm (KrF) for semicritical layers and i-line for non-critical. This paper outlines Canon’s exposure tool strategy for the 90nm to 65nm
era, with emphasis on platform design fundamentals, imaging/machine performance, and cost of ownership.