Dennik
02-21-2006, 03:30 PM
IBM Research has come up with a way to draw lines in silicon 29.9 nanometers apart with existing chipmaking machines, far closer than on today's chips, a development that could help cut the cost of making chips in the future.
The breakthrough revolves around an enhanced, experimental version of immersion lithography (http://news.com.com/New+life+for+Moores+Law/2009-1006_3-5672485.html?tag=nl). In immersion lithography, silicon wafers are immersed in purified water. Laser light shining through an intricate mask throws a microscopic shadow pattern onto the wafer, which then becomes permanent through chemical processes similar to the process in which a negative becomes a photographic print. The more intricate the pattern, the smaller the circuits.
The wafers are immersed in water because water bends light rays better than air, which in turn can lead to sharper resolution and smaller patterns. Immersion lithography will start getting used commercially in the relatively near future.
In IBM's system, light from the laser is split into two beams. Then, a tool called Nemo weaves the two beams to create a light and dark interference pattern that allows for a pattern with more closely etched lines that can be achieved in standard immersion lithography.... Read full article here (http://news.com.com/IBM+promotes+making+chips+in+the+bath/2100-1008_3-6041196.html)
The breakthrough revolves around an enhanced, experimental version of immersion lithography (http://news.com.com/New+life+for+Moores+Law/2009-1006_3-5672485.html?tag=nl). In immersion lithography, silicon wafers are immersed in purified water. Laser light shining through an intricate mask throws a microscopic shadow pattern onto the wafer, which then becomes permanent through chemical processes similar to the process in which a negative becomes a photographic print. The more intricate the pattern, the smaller the circuits.
The wafers are immersed in water because water bends light rays better than air, which in turn can lead to sharper resolution and smaller patterns. Immersion lithography will start getting used commercially in the relatively near future.
In IBM's system, light from the laser is split into two beams. Then, a tool called Nemo weaves the two beams to create a light and dark interference pattern that allows for a pattern with more closely etched lines that can be achieved in standard immersion lithography.... Read full article here (http://news.com.com/IBM+promotes+making+chips+in+the+bath/2100-1008_3-6041196.html)