The extreme ultraviolet (EUV) projection optics for 14 nm resolution, or ETIK, has been launched by the German Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF)and is led by Carl Zeiss. The aim is to improve EUV lithography resolution to the 14-nm node for semiconductor manufacturing.
The BMBF is putting up 7 million euros over 3 years for the project. Project partners will focus on the EUV illumination system and projection optics.
Six other German companies and research institutes will participate:
- Bestec is developing machine concepts for a new generation of reflectometers to measure the EUV reflectivity of large mirror surfaces.
- The Institute for Technical Optics (University Stuttgart) is developing flexible setting measuring technology for mirrors with a new type of surface geometry.
- IMS CHIPS is contributing powerful optical components to ensure the quality of the projection lens.
- The Fraunhofer institutes for Electron Beam and Plasma Technology (FEP), for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering (IOF), and for Material and Beam Technology (IWS) are providing scientific-technical services to further improve the surface quality of reflective optical components.
For more information on the project, read this article in our sister publication, Solid State Technology.
Conard Holton
Conard Holton has 25 years of science and technology editing and writing experience. He was formerly a staff member and consultant for government agencies such as the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority and the International Atomic Energy Agency, and engineering companies such as Bechtel. He joined Laser Focus World in 1997 as senior editor, becoming editor in chief of WDM Solutions, which he founded in 1999. In 2003 he joined Vision Systems Design as editor in chief, while continuing as contributing editor at Laser Focus World. Conard became editor in chief of Laser Focus World in August 2011, a role in which he served through August 2018. He then served as Editor at Large for Laser Focus World and Co-Chair of the Lasers & Photonics Marketplace Seminar from August 2018 through January 2022. He received his B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania, with additional studies at the Colorado School of Mines and Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University.