International EUV Lithography Workshop to Devise Approach for Bringing EUV From Lab to Fab

MAUI, HI -- (MARKET WIRE) -- 06/01/08 -- More than 100 of the world's leading lithographers will gather here in mid-June to begin developing a detailed approach to speeding up the introduction of extreme ultraviolet lithography (EUVL) into high-volume semiconductor manufacturing.

This problem-solving effort will take place at the 2008 International Workshop on EUV Lithography, scheduled June 10-12 at the Wailea Beach Marriott in Maui. Keynote speaker will be Dr. Eberhard Spiller, the retired IBM senior scientist whom many consider the "father of EUVL" due to his pioneering work on EUVL mirrors.

The workshop's organizer is EUV Litho, Inc., an organization dedicated to promoting and accelerating introduction of EUVL into high-volume manufacturing through workshops and education. SPIE is co-sponsoring the event and will publish its proceedings.

In focused sessions at the workshop, key researchers from North America, Europe and Asia will present findings aimed at solving the most critical EUVL challenges in source power, mask defects and resist performance.

Special emphasis will be placed on the power scaling potential of discharge-produced plasma (DPP) and laser produced plasma (LPP) as potential EUV power sources. LPP-based sources using high-power lasers are strong candidates for delivering 180 W of EUV power, enough to meet manufacturing requirements.

Gigaphoton, a leading single module high-power laser supplier, will describe its high-power pulsed CO2 lasers, while researchers from MIT will document the performance of Yb: YAG lasers as an alternate high-power laser technology. Additional candidates for high-power source technology also will be reviewed.

Six papers on enhancing the performance of current EUVL resists and highlighting new approaches for developing new resists will be presented by world-class scientists. Other papers will cover EUVL source, optics, optics design, contamination, reticle protection, mask and mask metrology. Also, many leading researchers will give invited talks to highlight potential solutions to EUVL challenges.

Interspersed among the presentations will be three expert panels on EUVL source, mask, and general R&D issues. Panelists will identify areas where additional R&D is needed to solve the challenges to bringing EUVL into the factory.

Preceding the workshop, several courses will be offered June 9-10 on the fundamentals and underlying physics of EUVL. These courses recognize that EUVL is a multi-disciplinary science, and are designed for technologists whose expertise lies outside lithography.

Registration information and additional details on the workshop are available at www.euvlitho.com. The workshop is open to industry media.

Media Contact: Vivek Bakshi vivek.bakshi@euvlitho.com 512-462-2290 (office) 512-784-7585 (cell)

2008-06-01 19:00:50 0374178 MARKETWIRE