Post photodevelopment isotropic radiation treatment method for forming patterned photoresist layer with attenuated linewidth

Abstract

A method for forming a patterned photoresist layer. There is first provided a substrate employed within a microelectronics fabrication. There is then formed over the substrate a blanket photoresist layer. There is then photoexposed and developed the blanket photoresist layer to form a patterned photoresist layer having a first linewidth. There is then irradiated isotropically the patterned photoresist layer with an isotropic radiation source to decompose a conformal surface layer of the patterned photoresist layer while simultaneously forming a conformal surface layer decomposed patterned photoresist layer having a second linewidth narrower than first linewidth. The conformal surface layer decomposed patterned photoresist layer may then be employed as an etch mask layer when etching a blanket microelectronics layer formed interposed between the substrate and the conformal surface layer decomposed patterned photoresist layer. Through the method there may be formed a patterned microelectronics layer of narrow linewidth without employing an advanced photoexposure apparatus.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.