X-ray and Photon-Based Metrology for EUV and Future Lithographic Materials

The development of advanced photoresists and related patterning materials is critical for manufacturing highly integrated semiconductor devices in the AI era. Their development is increasingly challenging as sensitivity, resolution, roughness, stochastic performance, and other material requirements must be addressed simultaneously. As semiconductor technology enters the Angstrom era, EUV and future patterning materials require a deeper understanding of their chemical and physical behavior at the molecular and nanoscale levels. This growing complexity increases the importance of metrology, analysis, and evaluation infrastructure in material development.
Photon-based technologies, particularly synchrotron radiation, have played an important role in the development of EUV lithography and its material evaluation. This presentation introduces X-ray and photon-based techniques across a broad spectral range, integrating lithographic evaluation with spectroscopic and nanoscale characterization of chemical, electronic, and morphological properties. Material evaluation capabilities established and developed over the years at the Pohang Accelerator Laboratory, POSTECH and the Paul Scherrer Institute will also be highlighted. These approaches provide a framework connecting radiation, material response, and patterning performance for EUV, High NA EUV, and future lithography.