photoresist
A photoresist (also known simply as a resist) is a light-sensitive material used in several processes, such as photolithography and photoengraving, to form a patterned coating on a surface. This process is crucial in the electronics industry.
Article
22 sectionsContents
- Simple resist polarity
- Positive photoresist
- Negative photoresist
- Differences between positive and negative resist
- Classification
- Light sources
- Absorption at UV and shorter wavelengths
- Electron-beam exposure
- Parameters
- Chemical amplification
- Types
- DNQ-[[Novolac]] photoresist
- Epoxy-based resists
- Off-stoichiometry thiol-enes(OSTE) polymer
- Hydrogen silsesquioxane (HSQ)
- Applications
- Microcontact printing
- Printed circuit boards
- Patterning and etching of substrates
- Microelectronics
- See also
- References
A photoresist (also known simply as a resist) is a light-sensitive material used in several processes, such as photolithography and photoengraving, to form a patterned coating on a surface. This process is crucial in the electronics industry.
The photoengraving process begins by coating a substrate with a light-sensitive organic material. A patterned mask is then applied to the surface to block light, so that only unmasked regions of the material will be exposed to light. A solvent, called a developer, is then applied to the surface. In the case of a positive photoresist, the photo-sensitive material is degraded by light, and the developer will dissolve away the regions that were exposed to light, leaving behind a coating where the mask was placed. In the case of a negative photoresist, the photosensitive material is strengthened (either polymerized or cross-linked) by light, and the developer will dissolve away only the regions that were not exposed to light, leaving behind a coating in areas where the mask was not placed. thumb|462x462px|Photoresist of photolithography A BARC (bottom anti-reflectant coating) may be applied before the photoresist is applied, to avoid reflections from occurring under the photoresist and to improve the photoresist's performance at smaller semiconductor nodes.