TW201932988A - Porous graphitic pellicle - Google Patents

Abstract

A method of manufacturing a pellicle for a lithographic apparatus, said method comprising growing the pellicle in a three-dimensional template and pellicles manufactured according to this method. Also disclosed is the use of a pellicle manufactured according to the method in an EUV lithography apparatus as well as the use of a three-dimensional template in the manufacture of a pellicle.

Description

Porous graphite protective film

The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing a protective film for a lithographic device, the use of the protective film manufactured according to the manufacturing method, the use of a three-dimensional template for the protective film for a lithographic device, and a method for a lithographic The protective film in the device.

The lithography device is a machine constructed to apply the desired pattern on the substrate. Lithography devices can be used, for example, in the manufacture of integrated circuits (ICs). The lithography apparatus can, for example, project a pattern from a patterned device (such as a photomask) onto a layer of radiation-sensitive material (resist) provided on the substrate.

The wavelength of the radiation used by the lithography device to project the pattern onto the substrate determines the minimum size of features that can be formed on the substrate. Compared to conventional lithography devices (which can, for example, use electromagnetic radiation with a wavelength of 193 nanometers), the micro-level of EUV radiation used as electromagnetic radiation with a wavelength in the range of 4 nanometers to 20 nanometers The shadow device can be used to form smaller features on the substrate.

The lithography apparatus includes a patterned device (such as a reticle or a reticle). The radiation is provided through or reflected from the patterned device to form an image on the substrate. A protective film can be provided to protect the patterned device from floating particles and other forms of pollution. Contamination on the surface of the patterned device can cause manufacturing defects on the substrate.

A protective film can also be provided for protecting optical components other than the patterned device. The protective film can also be used to provide a path for lithographic radiation between areas of the lithographic device that are sealed to each other. The protective film can also be used as an optical filter, such as a spectral purity filter. Due to the sometimes harsh environment inside the lithography device (especially the EUV lithography device), the protective film is required to exhibit excellent chemical stability and thermal stability.

Known protective films may include, for example, independent membranes, such as silicon membranes, silicon nitride, graphene or graphene derivatives, carbon nanotubes, or other membrane materials. The photomask assembly may include a protective film that protects the patterned device (eg, photomask) from particle contamination. The protective film may be supported by the protective film frame, thereby forming a protective film assembly. The protective film can be attached to the frame, for example, by gluing the protective film boundary region to the frame. The frame may be permanently or removably attached to the patterned device.

During use, the temperature of the protective film in the lithography apparatus increases to any temperature from about 500 ° C to 1000 ° C or higher. These high temperatures can damage the protective film, and therefore need to improve heat dissipation in order to reduce the operating temperature of the protective film and improve the service life of the protective film.

It has been found that the lifetime of carbon-containing protective films, such as those containing independent graphene membranes or other carbon-based membranes, can be limited, and carbon-based membranes can suffer certain disadvantages when used in lithographic devices.

The graphene protective film contains one or more parallel thin graphene layers. These protective films have, for example, a thickness of about 6 nm to about 10 nm and can exhibit high density. Due to the structure of these graphene coatings, the uniformity of EUV radiation through the coating will not change substantially. However, depending on the way the graphene coating is made, some graphene coatings may have relatively low mechanical strength. Although graphene is one of the strongest materials known (if not the strongest material), the roughness on the surface of the graphene layer caused by the substrate that produces the graphene protective film will negatively affect the strength of the protective film. During the use of the protective film, the lithography device using the protective film can be flushed with gas. Also, during exposure, the protective film will experience a considerable thermal load from EUV radiation. If the protective film is not strong enough, the stress change of the protective film induced by these factors may cause damage to the protective film. The protective film can damage and contaminate various components of the lithography device, which is not ideal.

Another type of carbon-containing protective film is based on carbon nanotubes. These coatings do not have the same dense, parallel layer structure as multilayer graphene coatings, but are formed by a network of carbon nanotubes in a mesh. The boundary between the carbon nanotube protective film and the multilayer graphene protective film is unclear, and the carbon nanotube can change the uniformity of the radiation beam passing through the protective film due to scattering, for example. This is not ideal because the uniformity of the radiation beam can be reflected in the final product. In the case where the lithography machine requires extremely high accuracy, even a small difference in the uniformity of the radiation beam can cause a reduction in exposure performance. However, the benefit of the carbon nanotube-based protective film is that it is stronger and therefore it can meet the strength requirements for use in lithographic devices.

Therefore, there is a need to provide a method for manufacturing a carbon-containing protective film that is strong enough to be used in a lithography device (such as an EUV lithography device) and also has a high EUV transmittance, for example, higher than 90% And it does not adversely affect the uniformity of the radiation beam passing through the protective film.

Although this application generally refers to a protective film in the context of the content of lithographic devices, especially EUV lithographic devices, the present invention is not limited to only protective films and lithographic devices, and it should be understood that the subject matter of the present invention can be applied to In other suitable devices or situations.

For example, the method of the present invention can also be applied to spectral purity filters. In practice, EUV sources (such as those that use plasma to generate EUV radiation) not only emit the desired "in-band" EUV radiation, but also emit unwanted (out-of-band) radiation. This out-of-band radiation is most significantly in the deep UV (DUV) radiation range (100 nm to 400 nm). In addition, under the conditions of some EUV sources (such as laser-generated plasma EUV sources), radiation emitted from the laser, for example at 10.6 microns, may be a source of out-of-band radiation (such as IR radiation).

In lithographic devices, spectral purity may be required for several reasons. One reason is that the resist is sensitive to the out-of-band wavelength of radiation, and therefore the image quality of the pattern applied to the resist may deteriorate when the resist is exposed to such out-of-band radiation. In addition, out-of-band radiation (such as infrared radiation in plasma sources generated by some lasers) causes undesirable and unnecessary heating of patterned devices, substrates, and optical components within the lithography apparatus. Such heating can cause damage to these elements, a reduction in their lifespan, and / or defects or distortions projected onto and applied to the pattern of the resist-coated substrate.

The spectral purity filter can be used as a protective film, and vice versa. Therefore, the reference to "protective film" in this application also refers to the reference to "spectral purity filter". Although the main reference is made to protective films in this application, all features can be equally applied to spectral purity filters.

In a lithography device (and / or method), there is a need to minimize the intensity loss of the radiation used to apply the pattern to the resist-coated substrate. One reason for this is that ideally as much radiation as possible should be available to apply the pattern to the substrate, for example to reduce exposure time and increase yield. At the same time, there is a need to minimize the amount of undesired radiation (eg, out-of-band) radiation that passes through the lithography device and is incident on the substrate. In addition, it is necessary to ensure that the protective film used in the lithography method or device has an appropriate life span and will not over time be exposed to the high thermal load to which the protective film can be exposed and / or the hydrogen to which the protective film can be exposed (or similar , Such as free radical species including H * and HO *) and rapidly degrade. Therefore, there is a need to provide an improved (or alternative) protective film, and for example to provide a protective film suitable for use in lithographic devices and / or methods.

The present invention has been made in consideration of the known method regarding the production of the protective film and the aforementioned problems regarding the known protective film.

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of manufacturing a protective film for use in a lithography apparatus, the method comprising: growing the protective film in a three-dimensional template material.

Known carbon-based protective films are currently based on solid layered two-dimensional materials. For example, the graphene protective film includes multiple graphene layers. Similarly, a silicon protective film is fabricated on a solid silicon wafer, which may or may not be coated with other protective capping layer materials, such as metal. Thus, these protective materials grow as layers on the surface, which are two-dimensional and solid; or have very small voids (ie, low porosity) in them. On the other hand, the protective film based on carbon nanotubes contains a disordered network of carbon nanotubes, which has a considerable gap in it, but is disordered, which is due to the radiation passing through due to scattering The uniformity of the beam has a negative effect. There is a need to provide a protective film with a regular and well-defined three-dimensional structure.

It has been found that manufacturing a protective film within a three-dimensional template provides a protective film with a regular and well-defined three-dimensional structure. The structure of the protective film manufactured according to the method of the present invention is also porous, like a carbon nanotube protective film, but has a more regular and well-defined three-dimensional structure, which provides sufficient strength to be used in a lithography device And provide enough flexibility to adapt to changes in temperature and stress on the protective film. It was surprisingly found that the resulting protective film has an acceptable EUV transmission of greater than 90% and does not adversely affect the uniformity of the passing radiation beam.

The three-dimensional template may be zeolite. Zeolite is a microporous aluminosilicate material, which is usually used as an adsorbent and catalyst. These zeolites have a regular internal pore structure where small molecules can enter.

The zeolite can be any suitable zeolite. For example, the zeolite may be zeolite A, zeolite β, mordenite, zeolite Y, or chabazite. These zeolites are the most commonly used and most readily available zeolites, but it should be understood that other zeolites are also considered suitable for the present invention.

The zeolite can be a modified zeolite. The modified zeolite may comprise zeolite that has been doped with suitable materials. Suitable materials include one or more of lanthanum, zinc, molybdenum, yttrium, calcium, tungsten, vanadium, titanium, niobium, chromium, tantalum, and hafnium. It was unexpectedly discovered that by doping zeolite with one or more of these elements, the temperature at which carbonization can occur in the pores of the zeolite is reduced. Doping can be performed by any suitable means, such as ion exchange. For example, sodium ions in the zeolite can be exchanged with lanthanum ions.

The method may include providing a carbon source, preferably a gaseous carbon source. The carbon source can enter the three-dimensional template material. Since the three-dimensional template contains an internal network of fine pores, the carbon source material can impregnate the three-dimensional template.

The carbon source may be saturated or unsaturated C1 to C4 hydrocarbons. It is possible to use hydrocarbons with more than four carbon atoms, but the absorption process is slow because the hydrocarbons are liquid at ambient temperature. Of course, if absorption into the three-dimensional template occurs at a temperature above ambient, longer chain hydrocarbons can be used. The hydrocarbon is preferably linear.

Examples of suitable carbon sources include methane, ethane, ethane, acetylene, propane, propylene, propadiene, propyne, butane, butene, butadiene, buttriene and butyne. Since the carbon source is intended to be mainly used for supplying carbon, it is preferable to use unsaturated hydrocarbons because these unsaturated hydrocarbons have a favorable carbon-to-hydrogen ratio and are more reactive than saturated hydrocarbons. For example, the preferred carbon source is acetylene. This is because it is the most reactive and relatively small, so it can easily diffuse into the three-dimensional template.

The method may include heating the three-dimensional template material up to the first temperature to carbonize the carbon source. Once the carbon source has entered the internal pores of the three-dimensional template, heating the material will cause the carbon source to carbonize. The carbonization process is enhanced by the aforementioned doping of the three-dimensional material and metal ions. The metal ion is selected because it forms a strong carbide bond. Without doping, the temperature required to carbonize the carbon source is much greater and results in the formation of carbon only on the surface of the three-dimensional template, and does not form an internal pore structure generally corresponding to the three-dimensional material containing the carbon source Carbon network.

The first temperature may be about 350 ° C to about 800 ° C, and preferably about 650 ° C. In the case of no doping, carbonization requires temperatures exceeding 800 ° C.

The three-dimensional material can then be heated to a second temperature above the first temperature. The second temperature may be about 850 ° C or higher. Heating to the second higher temperature causes the carbon to become more highly ordered and therefore stronger.

Once the heating has been completed, the carbon-containing protective film is captured by dissolving the three-dimensional template. In the case where the three-dimensional template is zeolite, the zeolite can be dissolved by exposure to a strong acid, such as hydrochloric acid or hydrofluoric acid, and can then be exposed to a hot alkaline solution, such as sodium hydroxide. The exact method for dissolving the zeolite is not limited to the examples given, and any suitable method for dissolving the zeolite while leaving the carbon-containing protective membrane can be used.

Three-dimensional materials can be prepared from silicon wafers by known methods. Preferably, the silicon wafer is single crystal silicon. Preparation from silicon wafers will allow control of the exact thickness and properties of the zeolite. Therefore, different zeolites can be prepared depending on the exact nature of the desired protective film, some of which have larger pores and others have smaller pores.

A part of the surface of the silicon wafer can be converted into zeolite material, or a zeolite material can be prepared on the surface of the silicon wafer. Two techniques are known in this technology. The thickness of the zeolite is about 50 nanometers to about 150 nanometers, about 80 nanometers to about 120 nanometers, and preferably about 100 nanometers. If the zeolite is too thin, the resulting protective film may not be thick enough to have the necessary strength to be used in EUV lithography devices. On the other hand, if the zeolite is too thick, the resulting protective film may be too thick and have inappropriately low EUV transmission, such as, for example, less than 90%. The exact thickness of the protective film can be achieved by removing material from the protective film until the desired thickness is satisfied.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, a three-dimensional template is used in the manufacture of a protective film.

As described above, the currently known protective film is manufactured by forming a two-dimensional layer on the surface. There is no known protective film generated inside the three-dimensional template. The use of three-dimensional templates allows the formation of protective films with extremely regular and predictable structures. The resulting protective film is stronger than the existing graphene protective film, and does not cause undesired diffraction or scattering of the radiation beam as in the case of the protective film based on the carbon nanotube.

The three-dimensional template may be any zeolite described in relation to the first aspect of the invention.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, a three-dimensional template for manufacturing a protective film is provided.

Preferably, the protective film is a carbon-containing protective film.

Preferably, the three-dimensional template is zeolite as described in relation to the first aspect of the invention.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a protective film having a three-dimensional structure substantially corresponding to the internal pore structure of a zeolite. The protective film is preferably carbon-containing.

Since there is no known protective film manufactured using a three-dimensional template, there is no known protective film having a three-dimensional structure that substantially corresponds to the internal pore structure of the zeolite. As described above, this provides a strong protective film that does not interfere with the uniformity of the radiation beam passing through the protective film.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a protective film for a lithography device, which is or can be obtained by the method according to the first aspect of the present invention.

Due to the limitations of the known methods of manufacturing the protective film and the absence of any protective film manufactured using a three-dimensional template, to date, there is no protective film with a regular three-dimensional order that is strong enough to be used in a lithography device Way.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a lithography device for a protective film manufactured according to a method of the first aspect of the present invention or according to the fourth aspect or the fifth aspect of the present invention Use in.

In summary, the method of the present invention allows the production of protective films suitable for use in EUV lithography devices, especially carbon-containing protective films. It has not been possible to manufacture this film before. The protective film manufactured according to the method of the present invention can resist the high temperature achieved when the protective film is in use, and also withstands mechanical forces on the protective film that will damage known protective films during use of the lithography device. In addition, a protective film having a regular three-dimensional structure means that the uniformity of the radiation beam when passing through the protective film is not adversely affected. It is believed that a three-dimensional structure that generally corresponds to the internal pore structure of the zeolite provides sufficient strength to be used in a lithography device, and is also flexible enough to withstand any changes in temperature and / or pressure during use Protective film.

The present invention will now be described with respect to a carbon-containing protective film formed in the pore structure of zeolite. However, it should be understood that the present invention is not limited to protective films and is equally applicable to spectral purity filters. In addition, due to the high surface area of the resulting material, the invention can also be used in charge storage devices, such as batteries or capacitors. Therefore, although the methods, uses, and products are described in the context of protective film and lithography, it should be understood that these methods, uses, and products can also be used in the manufacture of components for batteries and capacitors.

FIG. 1 shows a lithography system according to an embodiment of the present invention, which includes a protective film 15 manufactured according to the methods of the fourth and fifth aspects of the present invention or the first aspect of the present invention. The lithography system includes a radiation source SO and a lithography device LA. The radiation source SO is configured to generate an extreme ultraviolet (EUV) radiation beam B. The lithography apparatus LA includes an illumination system IL, a support structure MT configured to support the patterned device MA (such as a photomask), a projection system PS, and a substrate table WT configured to support the substrate W. The illumination system IL is configured to adjust the radiation beam B before it is incident on the patterned device MA. The projection system is configured to project the radiation beam B (now patterned by the mask MA) onto the substrate W. The substrate W may include a previously formed pattern. In this situation, the lithography device aligns the patterned radiation beam B with the pattern previously formed on the substrate W. In this embodiment, the protective film 15 is depicted as being in the path of radiation and protecting the patterned device MA. It should be understood that the protective film 15 may be located in any desired position and may be used to protect any one of the mirror surfaces in the lithography device.

The radiation source SO, the illumination system IL, and the projection system PS can all be constructed and configured so that they can be isolated from the external environment. A gas (for example, hydrogen) at a pressure lower than atmospheric pressure can be provided in the radiation source SO. The vacuum may be provided in the illumination system IL and / or the projection system PS. A small amount of gas (for example, hydrogen) at a pressure sufficiently lower than atmospheric pressure may be provided in the illumination system IL and / or the projection system PS.

The radiation source SO shown in FIG. 1 is of a type that can be referred to as a laser generating plasma (LPP) source. Laser 1, which may be, for example, a CO ₂ laser, is configured to deposit energy via laser beam 2 into a fuel such as tin (Sn) provided from fuel emitter 3. Although tin is mentioned in the following description, any suitable fuel may be used. The fuel may be in liquid form, for example, and may be metal or alloy, for example. The fuel emitter 3 may include a nozzle configured to direct tin, for example in the form of droplets, along a trajectory toward the plasma forming region 4. The laser beam 2 is incident on the tin at the plasma formation region 4. The deposition of laser energy into the tin will generate a plasma 7 at the plasma formation area 4. Radiation including EUV radiation is emitted from the plasma 7 during deexcitation and recombination of plasma ions.

The EUV radiation is collected and focused by a near normal incidence radiation collector 5 (sometimes more commonly referred to as a normal incidence radiation collector). The collector 5 may have a multilayer structure configured to reflect EUV radiation (for example, EVU radiation having a desired wavelength such as 13.5 nm). The collector 5 may have an elliptical configuration with two elliptical focal points. The first focus may be at the plasma formation region 4 and the second focus may be at the intermediate focus 6, as discussed below.

Laser 1 can be separated from the radiation source SO. In this case, the laser beam 2 can be transmitted from the laser 1 to the radiation source SO by means of a beam delivery system (not shown in the figure) including, for example, a suitable guide mirror and / or beam expander and / or other optical components . Laser 1 and radiation source SO can be considered together as a radiation system.

The radiation reflected by the collector 5 forms a radiation beam B. The radiation beam B is focused at the point 6 to form an image of the plasma forming region 4, which image serves as a virtual radiation source for the illumination system IL. The point 6 at which the radiation beam B is focused may be referred to as an intermediate focus. The radiation source SO is configured such that the intermediate focal point 6 is located at or near the opening 8 in the enclosure 9 of the radiation source.

The radiation beam B is transmitted from the radiation source SO to the illumination system IL, which is configured to adjust the radiation beam. The illumination system IL may include a faceted field mirror device 10 and a faceted pupil mirror device 11. The faceted field mirror device 10 and the faceted pupil mirror device 11 together provide the radiation beam B with the desired cross-sectional shape and the desired angular distribution. The radiation beam B passes from the illumination system IL and is incident on the patterned device MA held by the support structure MT. The patterned device MA reflects and patterns the radiation beam B. In addition to or instead of the faceted field mirror device 10 and the faceted pupil mirror device 11, the illumination system IL may also include other mirrors or devices.

After reflection from the patterned device MA, the patterned radiation beam B enters the projection system PS. The projection system includes a plurality of mirror surfaces 13, 14 configured to project the radiation beam B onto the substrate W held by the substrate table WT. The projection system PS can apply the reduction factor to the radiation beam, thereby forming an image with features smaller than the corresponding features on the patterned device MA. For example, a reduction factor of 4 can be applied. Although the projection system PS has two mirror surfaces 13, 14 in FIG. 1, the projection system may include any number of mirror surfaces (for example, six mirror surfaces).

The radiation source SO shown in FIG. 1 may include unillustrated components. For example, a spectral filter can be provided in the radiation source. Spectral filters can generally transmit EUV radiation, but generally block radiation at other wavelengths, such as infrared radiation.

In the exemplary method according to the present invention, a three-dimensional template in the form of zeolite is provided. This zeolite may have been formed on silicon wafers or by any other suitable means. An exemplary zeolite is zeolite-Y, where at least a portion of the sodium ions have been ion-exchanged with lanthanum ions. The carbon source containing acetylene gas is passed through the zeolite, and the acetylene gas is diffused into the internal pores of the zeolite. The zeolite is heated to about 650 ° C. to carbonize the acetylene gas and form a carbon structure inside the zeolite, which carbon structure generally corresponds to the internal structure of the zeolite. After this, the zeolite is heated to about 850 ° C in order to provide a more highly ordered carbon-containing protective membrane. Then dissolve the zeolite by dissolving in hydrofluoric acid to recover the protective membrane.

In this way, it is possible to control the structure of the resulting membrane and use different zeolites with different sizes to modify the exact structure of the membrane. The resulting protective film has an EUV transmission of greater than 90% and is strong enough to be used in a lithography device.

The term "EUV radiation" may be considered to cover electromagnetic radiation having a wavelength in the range of 4 nm to 20 nm (eg, in the range of 13 nm to 14 nm). EUV radiation may have a wavelength of less than 10 nanometers (eg, in the range of 4 nanometers to 10 nanometers, such as 6.7 nanometers or 6.8 nanometers).

Although specific embodiments of the invention have been described above, it should be understood that the invention can be practiced in other ways than those described. The above description is intended to be illustrative, not limiting. Therefore, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the described invention can be modified without departing from the scope of the patent application scope set forth below.

1‧‧‧Laser

2‧‧‧Laser beam

3‧‧‧fuel launcher

4‧‧‧Plasma formation area

5‧‧‧Collector

6‧‧‧middle focus / point

7‧‧‧ plasma

8‧‧‧ opening

9‧‧‧Enclosure structure

10‧‧‧ Faceted field mirror device

11‧‧‧ Faceted pupil mirror device

13‧‧‧Mirror

14‧‧‧Mirror

15‧‧‧Film

B‧‧‧Extreme ultraviolet (EUV) radiation beam

IL‧‧‧Lighting system

LA‧‧‧lithography device

MA‧‧‧patterned device / mask

MT‧‧‧support structure

PS‧‧‧Projection system

SO‧‧‧radiation source

W‧‧‧Substrate

WT‧‧‧Substrate table

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying schematic drawings as examples only, in these drawings:

-FIG. 1 depicts a lithography system including a lithography device and a radiation source according to an embodiment of the invention.

Claims (27)

A method for manufacturing a protective film for a lithography device, the method comprising: growing the protective film in a three-dimensional template. The method of claim 1, wherein the template is a zeolite. The method of claim 2, wherein the zeolite is selected from zeolite A, zeolite β, mordenite, zeolite Y, ZSM-5 and chabazite. The method of claim 2 or claim 3, wherein the zeolite is a modified zeolite. The method of claim 4, wherein the modified zeolite comprises zeolite doped with one or more of lanthanum, zinc, molybdenum, yttrium, calcium, tungsten, vanadium, titanium, niobium, chromium, tantalum, and hafnium. The method of any one of claims 1 to 3, the method comprising providing a carbon source and transferring the carbon source to the three-dimensional template material. The method of claim 6, wherein the gaseous carbon source contains at least one saturated or unsaturated C1 to C4 hydrocarbon. The method of claim 7, wherein the gaseous carbon source comprises methane, ethane, ethylene, acetylene, propane, propylene, propadiene, propyne, butane, butene, butadiene, butadiene and butyne At least one of them is preferably acetylene. The method of claim 6, wherein the method includes heating the three-dimensional template to a first temperature to carbonize the carbon source. The method of claim 9, wherein the first temperature is about 350 ° C to about 800 ° C. The method of claim 9, wherein the three-dimensional template is heated to a second temperature higher than the first temperature. The method of claim 11, wherein the second temperature is about 850 ° C. The method of claim 9, wherein the three-dimensional template is dissolved to release the carbon-containing protective film. The method of claim 13, wherein the three-dimensional template is dissolved by exposure to a strong acid, preferably hydrofluoric acid or hydrochloric acid, and then optionally by exposure to a hot alkaline solution, such as sodium hydroxide. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein a three-dimensional template is generated using a silicon wafer, preferably monocrystalline silicon. The method of claim 15, wherein at least a portion of the silicon wafer is converted into a zeolite, or wherein a zeolite film is deposited on a surface of the silicon wafer. The method of claim 16, wherein the thickness of the zeolite is about 50 nm to about 150 nm, preferably about 80 nm to about 120 nm, and most preferably about 100 nm. The method of claim 5, wherein the zeolite is doped via ion exchange. The use of a three-dimensional template in the manufacture of a protective film, the protective film is preferably a carbon-containing protective film. For the use of claim 19, wherein the three-dimensional template is a zeolite. The use according to claim 20, wherein the zeolite is a modified zeolite, which has been doped with one or more of lanthanum, zinc, molybdenum, yttrium, calcium, tungsten, vanadium, titanium, niobium, chromium, tantalum and hafnium . A three-dimensional template for the manufacture of a protective film, wherein the template includes a zeolite, preferably the protective film is a carbon-containing protective film. The three-dimensional template of claim 22, wherein the zeolite is doped with one or more of lanthanum, zinc, molybdenum, yttrium, calcium, tungsten, vanadium, titanium, niobium, chromium, tantalum, and hafnium. A protective film having a three-dimensional structure substantially corresponding to the internal pore structure of a zeolite. The protective film of claim 24, wherein the protective film is carbon-containing. A protective film for a lithography device, which can be obtained by or by a method as in any one of claims 1 to 18. A use of a protective film manufactured by the method as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 18 or as claimed in any one of claims 24 to 26 in a lithography apparatus.