Methods for reducing line width roughness and/or critical dimension nonuniformity in a patterned photoresist layer
AssigneeApplied Materials, Inc.
InventorsBANQIU WU, AJAY KUMAR, RAO YALAMANCHILI, OMKARAM NALAMASU
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Abstract
Methods for reducing line width roughness and/or critical dimension nonuniformity in a photoresist pattern are provided herein. In some embodiments, a method of reducing line width roughness along a sidewall of a patterned photoresist layer disposed atop a substrate includes: (a) depositing a first layer atop the sidewall of the patterned photoresist layer; (b) etching the first layer and the sidewall after depositing the first layer to reduce the line width roughness of the patterned photoresist layer. In some embodiments, (a)-(b) may be repeated until the line width roughness is substantially smooth.
Claims20
A method of reducing line width roughness along a sidewall of a patterned photoresist layer disposed atop a substrate, the method comprising:
- (a) depositing a first layer atop the sidewall of the patterned photoresist layer;
- and
- (b) etching the first layer and the sidewall after depositing the first layer to reduce the line width roughness of the patterned photoresist layer.
A method of reducing line width roughness along a sidewall of a patterned photoresist layer disposed atop a substrate, comprising:
- (a) patterning a photoresist layer atop a substrate, wherein the patterned photoresist layer has a line width roughness along a sidewall of the patterned photoresist layer;
- (b) depositing a first layer atop the sidewall of the patterned photoresist layer;
- (c) etching the first layer and the sidewall after depositing the first layer;
- and
- (d) repeating (b) and (c) until the line width roughness is substantially smooth.
A non-transitory computer readable medium having instructions stored thereon that, when executed, cause a method of reducing line width roughness along a sidewall of a patterned photoresist layer disposed atop a substrate, the method comprising:
- (a) depositing a first layer atop the sidewall of the patterned photoresist layer;
- and
- (b) etching the first layer and the sidewall after depositing the first layer to reduce the line width roughness of the patterned photoresist layer.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.