Fundamental studies of airborne chemical contamination of chemically amplified resists

The susceptibility of most chemically amplified resists to performance degradation caused by low levels of airborne basic chemical substances presents a significant barrier to their practical implementation. We have carried out a series of systematic studies intended to improve our understanding of the mechanism of such degradation. We summarize here our investigation of how the contaminant/resist interaction is influenced by resist film composition. Our results suggest that contamination effects can be minimized y targeting specific ranges of physical properties when designing the matrix polymer. © 1993, The Society of Photopolymer Science and Technology(SPST). All rights reserved.