Fabrication of 11-nm-Wide Silica-Like Lines Using X-Ray Diffraction Exposure

Fine silica-like lines with 11 nm width are successfully fabricated using x-ray Fresnel diffraction exposure. X-rays pass a mask of 175-nm-wide lines and 125-nm-wide spaces and form sharp peaks on a wafer coated with a layer of hydrogen silsesquioxane resist (HSQ). By precisely controlling the mask-wafer gap at 10μm using the laser interferogram method, the fine structures are defined on HSQ. Experimental images are reproduced by a simulation using the one-dimensional beam propagation method. This lithographic technique presents a novel and convenient way to fabricate fine silica-like structures and devices in nano-optical and nanoelectronic applications.