Multi-beam Sees The Light

By Mark LaPedus - 19 Jun, 2014 - Comments: 2

The multiple-beam electron-beam market is going in two separate directions at once. Multi-beam for photomask writing is set to take off. The other market--multi-beam for direct-write lithography applications—is still in the early stages and remains in flux. In the multi-beam direct-write segment, for example, multiple sources indicate that KLA-Tencor is exiting this market to focus on its ... » read more

Litho Is Out Of Sync

By Ed Sperling - 20 Mar, 2014 - Comments: 0

EUV’s repeated missed deadlines, and the slow-motion response by the rest of the industry to fill the void with alternatives, is having ripple effects in every facet and corner of the semiconductor industry. It’s making design harder and more expensive, introducing potential errors into the DFM flow, and greatly increasing the amount of time it takes to process wafers. It’s also adding a ... » read more

One-on-One: Naoya Hayashi

By Mark LaPedus - 20 Mar, 2014 - Comments: 0

Semiconductor Engineering sat down to discuss the current and future challenges in the photomask industry with Naoya Hayashi, research fellow at Dai Nippon Printing (DNP). SE: What are the big challenges for the photomask industry today? Hayashi: There are several challenges. Most of the challenges involve mask complexity. It is also quite difficult to handle the mask data, because it is ... » read more

Waiting For Next-Generation Lithography

By Mark LaPedus - 23 Jan, 2014 - Comments: 2

Nearly 30 years ago, optical lithography was supposed to hit the wall at the magical 1 micron barrier, prompting the need for a new patterning technology such as direct-write electron beam and X-ray lithography. At that time, however, the industry was able to push optical lithography for volume chip production at the 1-micron node and beyond. This, in turn, effectively killed direct-write e-... » read more

DSA, Multi-beam Make Steady Progress

By Mark LaPedus - 12 Dec, 2013 - Comments: 0

Semiconductor Engineering sat down to discuss current and future lithography challenges with Laurent Pain, lithography lab manager at CEA-Leti. What follows are excerpts of that conversation. SE: CEA-Leti has two major programs in lithography. One is in directed self-assembly (DSA) and the other is in multi-beam e-beam. Let’s start with multi-beam. What is Leti doing in multi-beam and what... » read more

Multi-Beam Begins To Shine

By Mark LaPedus - 17 Oct, 2013 - Comments: 0

After years of R&D and promises, multi-beam electron-beam technology is delayed and late to the market. The technology requires more funding and work than previously thought. And generally, the skepticism is running high for the technology. Finally, however, there is a ray of hope, and some momentum, in multi-beam—at least on the photomask front. Seeking to accelerate its multi-beam te... » read more

Executive Briefing: Getting Direct On Litho

By Mark LaPedus - 17 Oct, 2013 - Comments: 0

Semiconductor Engineering sat down and talked with David Lam, principal of the David Lam Group, an investment and advisory firm. Lam is also the chairman of Multibeam, a multi-beam equipment startup for direct-write lithography and other applications. He founded Lam Research in 1980 and left as an employee in 1985. He served on Lam Research’s board for five years after that. SE: Multibeam ... » read more

Litho Roadmap Remains Cloudy

By Mark LaPedus - 19 Sep, 2013 - Comments: 0

By Mark LaPedus For some time, the lithography roadmap has been cloudy. Optical lithography has extended much further than expected. And delays with the various next-generation lithography (NGL) technologies have forced the industry to re-write the roadmap on multiple occasions. Today, there is more uncertainty than ever in lithography. Until recently, for example, leading-edge logic chipma... » read more

Inside Leti’s Litho Lab

By Mark LaPedus - 16 May, 2013 - Comments: 0

By Mark LaPedus Semiconductor Manufacturing & Design sat down to discuss future lithography challenges with Serge Tedesco, lithography program manager at CEA-Leti; Laurent Pain, lithography lab manager at CEA-Leti; and Raluca Tiron, a senior scientist at CEA-Leti. SMD: CEA-Leti has two major and separate programs, including one in directed self-assembly (DSA) and another in multi-beam ... » read more

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