Asianometry With Directed Self Assembly, the Chips Make Themselves (Kinda)
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Jul 31, 2025 Dive into the fascinating world of Directed Self-Assembly (DSA) in semiconductor manufacturing. Discover how it complements traditional photolithography and its potential to revolutionize production by reducing costs. Learn about its history, mechanisms, and the hurdles it faces in adoption. The ability of DSA to 'heal' errors in EUV lithography could change the game for high-volume manufacturing. This innovative approach promises efficiency and precision in crafting the next generation of chips.
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Three Ways to Direct Self-Assembly
- Directed self-assembly (DSA) combines designing material behavior, using templates, and applying external energy to guide self-assembly.
- This triad approach accelerates and controls the spontaneous organization of materials for semiconductor patterning.
Block Copolymers Enable Nanoscale Patterns
- Block copolymers self-assemble due to repulsion between different blocks, creating precise nanoscale patterns.
- Removing one block leaves behind these patterns, enabling fine semiconductor features beyond traditional top-down lithography.
IBM's Early Block Copolymer Demo
- IBM demonstrated the first block copolymer lithography by creating 20nm wide dot arrays on silicon nitride.
- They used reactive ion etching after self-assembly to transfer patterns for potential DRAM applications.