KR20030050556A - Process for forming ultra fine pattern using organic bottom anti-reflective coating containing thermal acid generator - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: A method for forming a fine-pattern using an organic BARC(Bottom Anti-Reflective Coating) containing a thermal acid generating agent is provided to be capable of obtaining vertical profile of the pattern though photoresist resin has a high extinction for a light source. CONSTITUTION: A photoresist pattern forming process is carried out by using an organic BARC composition, wherein the organic BARC composition contains a thermal acid generating agent of 20-100 weight percentage. An organic BARC is formed by coating and baking the organic BARC composition on an etching object layer. A photoresist layer is formed by coating and baking a photoresist composition on the organic BARC. An exposure process is carried out at the resultant structure. After baking the resultant structure, a fine-pattern is obtained by developing the resultant structure.

Description

Process for forming ultra fine pattern using organic bottom anti-reflective coating containing thermal acid generator

The present invention relates to a method for forming a vertical photoresist pattern, and more particularly, in order to solve the problem that the photoresist resin absorbs light of a wavelength used as a light source to form an inclined pattern, excessive heat generation occurs. By using the organic anti-reflective coating which added the agent, it is related with the pattern formation method which can obtain a vertical pattern, even when using the photoresist resin with a rather large absorbance with respect to a light source.

In the semiconductor microcircuit manufacturing process using a 248nm light source (KrF), a 150nm L / S microcircuit has already been formed, and efforts are being made to form patterns of 150nm or less. On the other hand, in order to form a finer circuit, research into a microcircuit manufacturing process using a low-light source such as ArF (193nm), F ₂ (157nm), EUV (Extremely Ultraviolet (13nm)) is in progress. However, there is a problem that development of a photosensitive resin having good transmittance for these wavelengths is not easy. For example, the photoresist used for i-line (365 nm) and KrF (248 nm) is composed of an aromatic compound resin, which can not be used because the absorbance for 193 nm is too large. For this reason, photosensitive agents for 193 nm have been developed using acrylic or alicyclic resins containing no aromatic compounds. However, these resins also have a relatively high absorbance at 193 nm, making it difficult to form a good pattern.

1A is a pattern shape after development when there is almost no absorbance of the photosensitive agent to the light source. A vertical pattern is obtained because the amount of light reaching the top and bottom of the photoresist is about the same. However, when the absorbance to the light source of the photosensitive agent is large as shown in FIG. 1B, since the amount of light reaching the upper portion of the photosensitive agent is greater than that of the lower portion, the amount of acid generated in the upper portion is higher than that of the lower portion. As shown, an inclined pattern may be formed. That is, the inclined pattern is formed because the concentration gradient of the acid generated by the exposure differs depending on its height in the vertical direction.

Therefore, in order to overcome this problem, most research directions are focused on developing resins having low absorbance for light sources, but the development of such resins has reached its limit, especially when using VUV (157 nm) or EUV (13 nm) light sources.

Accordingly, the present inventors have been trying to develop a method of obtaining a vertical pattern even if the photoresist resin has a slightly high absorbance to a light source, and abbreviated as "organic bottom anti-reflective coating" (hereinafter referred to as "BARC"). The present invention was completed by finding that an excessive amount of a thermal acid generator was added to the lower portion of the photoresist resin in the organic BARC to obtain a vertical pattern.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a method by which a photoresist resin can obtain a vertical pattern even if the absorbance for a light source is rather high.

Figure 1a shows the shape of the pattern obtained when there is almost no absorbance of the photosensitive agent to the light source,

Figure 1b shows the shape of the pattern obtained when the absorbance of the photosensitizer to the light source is large,

Figure 1c shows the shape of the pattern obtained in the present invention,

2 is a pattern photograph obtained in Example 5;

3 is a pattern photograph obtained in Example 6;

4 is a pattern photograph obtained in Example 7;

5 is a pattern photograph obtained in Example 8;

6 is a pattern photograph obtained in Comparative Example 2;

7 is a pattern photograph obtained in Comparative Example 3. FIG.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a method of forming an ultrafine pattern by including an excessive amount of a thermal acid generator in the organic BARC used in the pattern formation process.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail.

First, the present invention provides a method of forming a photoresist pattern using an organic BARC containing an excessive amount of thermal acid generator.

Specifically, the pattern forming method of the present invention

(a) applying an organic BARC composition comprising a thermal acid generator to the etched layer and baking to form an organic BARC;

(b) applying and baking a photoresist composition on the organic BARC to form a photoresist film;

(c) exposing the result;

(d) baking the result; And

(e) developing the resultant to obtain an ultrafine photoresist pattern.

As described above, when the light absorber of the photosensitive agent is somewhat large, the amount of light reaching the upper portion of the photosensitive agent is greater than that of the lower portion. Since the amount is larger than the lower part of the upper part of the photoresist, after the development, an inclined pattern may be formed as shown in FIG. 1B.

In the present invention, in order to solve this problem, an excess thermal acid generator is added to the organic BARC. The acid generated from the thermal acid generator added to the organic BARC is diffused into the photosensitizer to compensate for the less acid formed at the lower part. As shown in 1c, the inclined pattern may be formed in a vertical shape.

Such an organic BARC composition of the present invention uses a conventional organic BARC composition in which the thermal acid generator is contained in an excessive amount, and preferably, the thermal acid generator; As a curing agent, a compound represented by Formula 1; Polyvinyl phenol of the formula (2) to act as a light absorbing agent as the base resin; And organic solvents.

[Formula 1]

Wherein R ₁ and R ₂ are branched or main chain substituted alkyl groups having 1 to 10 carbon atoms, and R ₃ is hydrogen or methyl.

[Formula 2]

The compound of Formula 1 is preferably selected from the group consisting of compounds of Formulas 1a to 1d.

[Formula 1a]

[Formula 1b]

[Formula 1c]

[Formula 1d]

In particular, the thermal acid generator may be used as long as it is a compound capable of generating an acid by heat. Specifically, it is preferable to use one selected from the group consisting of the following Chemical Formulas 3 and 4 alone or in combination, It is preferable that it is 20-100 weight% with respect to the total weight of a base resin and a hardening | curing agent.

[Formula 3]

[Formula 4]

Where

A is a sulfonate group,

Preferably or ego,

n is 0 or 1;

The compound of Chemical Formula 3 is preferably represented by the following Chemical Formula 5, and preferably represented by the following Chemical Formula 6.

[Formula 5]

[Formula 6]

In addition, the compound of Chemical Formula 5 is preferably represented by the following Chemical Formulas 5a to 5d, and the compound of Chemical Formula 6 is preferably represented by the following Chemical Formulas 6a to 6b.

[Formula 5a]

[Formula 5b]

[Formula 5c]

[Formula 5d]

[Formula 6a]

[Formula 6b]

In addition, as the organic solvent, any organic solvent conventionally used may be used, and US 5,212,043 (May 18, 1993), WO 97/33198 (September 12, 1997), WO 96/37526 (1996. 11. 28), EP 0 794 458 (September 10, 1997), EP 0 789 278 (August 13, 1997), US 5,750,680 (May 12, 1998), GB 2,340,830 A (March 1, 2000), US 6,051,678 (April 18, 2000), GB 2,345,286 A (July 5, 2000), US 6,132,926 (October 17, 2000), US 6,143,463 (November 7, 2000), US 6,150,069 (Nov. 21, 2000), US 6,180,316 B1 (January 30, 2001), US 6,225,020 B1 (May 1, 2001), US 6,235,448 B1 (May 22, 2001) and US 6,235,447 B1 (May 22, 2001) and the like. Organic solvents, preferably methyl 3-methoxypropionate, ethyl 3-ethoxypropionate, propylene glycol methyl ether acetate, cyclohexanone, 2-heptanone or ethyl lactate or the like alone or It can be mixed and used.

The present invention also provides a semiconductor device manufactured by the pattern forming method of the present invention described above.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail by examples. However, the examples are only to illustrate the invention and the present invention is not limited by the following examples.

Preparation example. Preparation of Curing Agent of Organic BARC Composition

100 g of acrolein, 66 g of THF, and 2 g of AIBN were placed in a 500 ml round bottom flask, vacuumed, and then reacted at 65 ° C. for 5 hours, and after filtering, the white solid (poly acrolein) produced was filtered. Wipe several times with ethyl ether (yield 80%). 80 g of this white solid and 500 g of methanol were put in a 1000 ml round bottom flask, and 1 ml of trifluoromethyl sulfonic acid was added as a catalyst, followed by reaction at room temperature (25 ° C.) for 24 hours. The white solid (poly acrolein) that was not initially dissolved is dissolved in methanol as the reaction is completed. After completion of the reaction, the infrared spectroscopy (IR Spectrum) confirmed that the absorption band of 1690 cm-1 disappeared, neutralized with triethylamine, methanol was removed by distillation to make a thick state, and then sedimentation was carried out in distilled water. Vacuum drying afforded the compound of Formula 1a (yield 65%).

Molecular weight 6,820; Polydispersity 1.60;

¹ H NMR 1.2-2.1 ppb (3H), 3.0-3.8 ppb (6H), 3.8-4.7 (1H).

Example 1 Preparation of Organic BARC Composition Containing Excess Thermal Acid Generator (1)

0.26 g of the curing agent of Formula 1a and 0.455 g of polyvinylphenol of Formula 2 were prepared in Preparation Example in 24.7 g of propylene glycol methyl ether acetate, and 0.2 g of the thermal acid generator of Formula 5a was dissolved therein. After passing through a 0.2 ㎛ microfilter to prepare an organic BARC composition according to the present invention.

Example 2. Preparation of Organic BARC Composition Containing Excess Thermal Acid Generator (2)

0.26 g of the curing agent of Formula 1a and 0.455 g of polyvinylphenol of Formula 2 were prepared in Preparation Example in 24.7 g of propylene glycol methyl ether acetate solvent, and 0.3 g of the thermal acid generator of Formula 6a was dissolved therein. After passing through a 0.2 ㎛ microfilter to prepare an organic BARC composition according to the present invention.

Example 3. Preparation of Organic BARC Containing Excess Thermal Acid Generator (3)

0.2 g of the thermal acid generator of Chemical Formula 5a was added to 100 ml of BARC (Clariant 1C5D), followed by dissolution to prepare an organic BARC composition according to the present invention.

Example 4 Preparation of Organic BARC Containing Excess Thermal Acid Generator (4)

An organic BARC composition according to the present invention was prepared by adding 0.7 g of the thermal acid generator of Chemical Formula 6a to 100 ml of BARC (Clariant 1C5D) and then dissolving it well.

Comparative Example 1 Preparation of Conventional Organic BARC (3)

0.26 g of the curing agent of Formula 1a and 0.455 g of polyvinylphenol of Formula 2 were prepared in Preparation Example in 24.7 g of a propylene glycol methyl ether acetate solvent, and 0.04 g of the thermal acid generator of Formula 5a was added thereto. After passing through a 0.2 micron fine filter to prepare an organic BARC composition.

Example 5. Absorbance Measurement

DHA1001 photosensitive agent [Dongjin Semichem Co., Ltd.] was coated on a quartz substrate to a thickness of 1 μm, baked at 130 ° C. for 90 seconds, and cooled to 23 ° C. The transmittance of the coated photosensitizer was 46% as measured using a JASCO VUV 200 spectrometer.

Example 6. Pattern Formation (1)

BARC prepared in Example 1 was applied on a substrate with a thickness of 400 kPa, baked at 220 ° C. for 90 seconds, and cured to prepare a BARC coated substrate.

The photosensitive agent used in Example 5 was coated on the substrate with a thickness of 0.40 µm, baked at 130 ° C for 90 seconds, and then cooled to 23 ° C. Then, it was exposed with ASML ArF exposure equipment (PASS / 900, NA = 0.63), baked again at 130 ° C. for 90 seconds, and developed using a 2.38 wt% TMAH aqueous solution to obtain a vertical 120 nm L / S pattern. (See Figure 2).

Example 7. Pattern Formation (2)

A vertical 120 nm L / S pattern was obtained in the same manner as in Example 6, except that BARC prepared in Example 2 was used (see FIG. 3).

Example 8. Pattern Formation (3)

A vertical 120 nm L / S pattern was obtained in the same manner as in Example 6, except that the BARC prepared in Example 3 was coated on the substrate to a thickness of 390 μs (see FIG. 4).

Example 9. Pattern Formation (4)

A vertical 120 nm L / S pattern was obtained in the same manner as in Example 6, except that the BARC prepared in Example 4 was coated on the substrate to a thickness of 390 μs (see FIG. 5).

Comparative Example 2. Pattern Formation (5)

Except for using the BARC prepared in Comparative Example 1 in the same manner as in Example 6 to obtain a severe pattern of 120nm L / S gradient (see Figure 6).

Comparative Example 3. Pattern Formation (6)

The photosensitive agent used in Example 1 was applied to a substrate coated with BARC (Clariant 1C5D) to a thickness of 0.4 ㎛, baked for 90 seconds at 130 ℃ and then cooled to 23 ℃. Then, it was exposed with ASML ArF exposure equipment (PASS / 900, NA = 0.63), baked again at 130 ° C. for 90 seconds, and developed using a 2.38 wt% TMAH aqueous solution. Was obtained (see FIG. 7).

As described above, in the present invention, the acid is diffused from the thermal acid generator included in the BARC to the lower portion of the photoresist by forming a pattern by using the BARC added with an excess thermal acid generator, and thus the photoresist having a relatively high absorbance for the light source. Even if the resin is used, that is, even if the amount of light reaching the lower portion than the upper portion of the photoresist can be obtained without the inclined vertical pattern.

Claims (11)

The antireflection coating composition for forming a semiconductor device, wherein the composition further comprises a thermal acid generator. The method of claim 1, The thermal acid generator is used in an amount of 20 to 100% by weight based on the total weight of the base resin and the curing agent contained in the anti-reflective coating composition. The method of claim 1, The thermal acid generator is an anti-reflective coating composition, characterized in that used alone or in combination selected from the group consisting of Formula (3) and Formula (4). [Formula 3] [Formula 4] Where A is a sulfonate group and n is 0 or 1. The method of claim 3, wherein A is or The anti-reflective coating composition which is characterized by the above-mentioned. The method of claim 3, wherein The compound of Formula 3 is represented by the following formula (5), the compound of formula 4 is an anti-reflective coating composition, characterized in that represented by the formula (6). [Formula 5] [Formula 6] Where A is a sulfonate group and n is 0 or 1. The method of claim 5, The compound of Formula 5 is selected from the group consisting of Formulas 5a to 5d, the compound of Formula 6 is selected from the group consisting of the following formula 6a and 6b Anti-reflective coating composition. [Formula 5a] [Formula 5b] [Formula 5c] [Formula 5d] [Formula 6a] [Formula 6b] The method of claim 1, The anti-reflective coating composition is a thermal acid generator; As a curing agent, the compound of formula (1); Polyvinyl phenol of the following formula (2) as the base resin; And an anti-reflective coating composition comprising an organic solvent. [Formula 1] Wherein R ₁ and R ₂ are branched or main chain substituted alkyl groups having 1 to 10 carbon atoms, and R ₃ is hydrogen or methyl. [Formula 2] A method of forming a photoresist pattern using an organic bottom anti-reflective coating composition, wherein the anti-reflection coating composition comprises a thermal acid generator. The method of claim 8, wherein the pattern forming method (a) applying an organic anti-reflective coating composition comprising a thermal acid generator to the etched layer and baking to form an organic anti-reflective coating; (b) applying and baking a photoresist composition on the organic anti-reflective coating film to form a photoresist film; (c) exposing the result; (d) baking the result; And (d) developing the resultant to obtain an ultrafine pattern. The method of claim 8, And the thermal acid generator is used in an amount of 20 to 100% by weight based on the total weight of the base resin and the curing agent included in the diffuse reflection prevention film composition. A semiconductor device manufactured by the method of claim 8.