High rate resist polymerization method

Abstract

An improvement in the method of forming polymerization resists by directing high energy particles such as electron beams along a path across a vacuum chamber and onto polymerizable molecular species at a substrate surface with sufficient energy to polymerize the polymerizable molecular species in situ is provided, comprising maintaining a chamber-isolated relatively higher pressure layer of polymerizable molecular species vapor locally at the substrate surface during, e.g. electron beam exposure to form the resist while maintaining the beam path free of polymerizable molecular species during beam traverse of the chamber. Polymerization resist generation apparatus is also provided comprising a high energy particle, e.g. electron beam source including an electron beam gun and a vacuum chamber therebeyond, means adapted to support a substrate having a surface on which a resist is to be generated in electron beam exposed relation, means defining a closed volume between the supported substrate and the electron beam source, and means to introduce polymerizable molecular species vapor into the closed volume for electron beam exposure and polymerization in situ on the substrate surface.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.