Nikon Announces ArF immersion Scanner for Double Patterning
Low Risk Solution for 32 nm Process Development
Belmont, California – February 20, 2008 – Nikon
Corporation has announced they will provide an immersion scanner
for Double Patterning, based on the successful NSR-S610C platform,
to their customers in the 4th quarter of 2008. By enhancing
the performance of the mature NSR-S610C ArF immersion scanner
to address the critical overlay requirements of Double Patterning,
Nikon will deliver a low risk solution for Double Patterning
development based on the proven Tandem Stage platform and Nikon
proprietary Local Fill Technology.
To satisfy ever-shrinking device requirements, immersion lithography
is now well established as the leading edge technology for 45
nm volume manufacturing. At the 32 nm node, Double Patterning
is the leading technology solution. In Double Patterning,
one of the key challenges for the exposure tool is overlay accuracy. The
final overlay accuracy is a combination of the two individual
exposure overlay accuracies, dramatically reducing the overlay
budget for each single exposure. The current expected budget
is approximately 3 to 4 nm per exposure.
32 nm volume production is scheduled to begin between 2011 to
2013. To meet this schedule, customers will start development
of Double Patterning technology in late 2008 and early 2009. By
using the mature S610C platform as the base for this development,
Nikon offers a low risk solution to allow customers to quickly
begin their Double Patterning development.
About Double Patterning:
In Double Patterning, a single, dense circuit pattern is split
into two coarser patterns that can be printed separately with current
immersion technology. By combining the two exposure results
on the wafer, the final, dense circuit pattern is achieved.
About Nikon
Since 1980, Nikon Corporation has been revolutionizing lithography
with innovative products and technologies. The company is a
worldwide leader in lithography equipment for the microelectronics
manufacturing industry with more than 7,800 exposure systems
installed worldwide. Nikon offers the most extensive selection
of production-class steppers and scanners in the industry.
These products serve the semiconductor, flat panel display
(LCD) and thin-film magnetic head (TFH) industries. Nikon Precision
Inc. provides service, training, applications and technical
support, as well as sales and marketing for Nikon lithography
equipment in North America. For more information about Nikon,
access our web site at www.nikonprecision.com
Forward Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements as that term is defined in the Private Securities Reform Act of 1995, which are subject to known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such statements Such statements are subject to risks, uncertainties and changes in condition, particularly those related to industry requirements and other risks. The Company undertakes no obligation to update the information in this press release.
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Contact:
Bernie Wood
Director of Marketing
Nikon Precision Inc.
(650) 413-8533 phone
bwood@nikon.com |
