Extending Moore’s Law through Novel Materials

Optical lithography has made consumer electronics ever more powerful, ubiquitous, and affordable. This is largely due to the ability of conventional lithographic techniques to transfer trillions of mask features to wafers at defect densities approaching virtually zero in high-volume manufacturing. The resolution of optical lithography tools and the accurate alignment of tight-pitch features continue to be the biggest challenges for scaling. The continued scaling of complex device geometries is driving the need for novel lithographic techniques, self-alignment strategies, thin film deposition and etch strategies with atomic-layer precision. Given the fundamental physical limitations of conventional optical lithography, novel patterning approaches are needed to overcome shortcomings in resolution, pattern uniformity, and pattern placement accuracy. Research in this area is a critical enabler of Moore’s Law in the foreseeable future. Bringing novel materials to high-volume manufacturing requires a highly coordinated research and development pipeline. This talk will outline the challenges presented by traditional patterning processes and discuss complementary patterning techniques such as directed self-assembly (DSA) and selective deposition (SD), as well as the role novel materials could play as a means to future scaling, will be explained.