SBIR Phase II: Aqueous Precursors for High Performance Metal Oxide Thin Films

This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II project aims to develop spin-coatable liquid precursors for extremely high etch resistance pattern transfer layers (hardmasks) to enable novel devices in advanced integrated circuit manufacturing. The approach is to employ the fully inorganic metal oxide dielectric precursors demonstrated during the Phase I project to provide unparalleled etch selectivity for lithography spin-on hardmask layers. Such materials enable new architectures and deep etches required for future device generations which demand increasingly complex integration of materials to compensate for the limited etch selectivity of conventional organic patterning materials. The expected outcome is one or more inorganic spin-on hardmask materials ready for scale up to manufacturing. The broader/commercial impact of this project will be the potential to provide materials to improve performance of integrated circuit devices manufactured at dimensions below 22 nm. This project addresses key challenges in the International Technology Roadmap for Semiconductors related to patterning requirements for future high performance electronic devices. The aqueous precursors are synthesized from environmentally benign raw materials, thereby reducing the environmental impact relative to conventional organic materials. The materials and low temperature processes developed in this project will also lay the foundation for broader applications in electronics, energy, and optical coatings.