LITHOGRAPHY USING ELECTRON-BEAM-INDUCED ETCHING OF A CARBON-FILM

A focused electron beam was found, in the presence of oxygen gas, to i nduce the etching of a plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposited amorph ous hydrogenated carbon (PECVD a-C:H) film. This reaction was used to pattern the film directly eliminating the need for subsequent developm ent of the exposed areas (as required for conventional resists). Patte rn transfer from the film into gold and into silicon was investigated. Submicrometer patterns have been transferred from a 50-nm-thick PECVD a-C:H film into a gold film by wet chemical etching. With a silicon s ubstrate, the exposure process produced an etch-resistant layer on the surface. (C) 1995 American Vacuum Society.