The development of low-temperature atomic layer deposition of HfO2 for TEM sample preparation on soft photo-resist substrate

TL;DR

This paper introduces a novel low-temperature atomic layer deposition method for creating HfO2 films on soft photo-resist substrates, enabling improved TEM sample preparation at temperatures between 40°C and 85°C.

Contribution

It demonstrates for the first time the feasibility of low-temperature ALD of HfO2 on soft PR substrates, opening new possibilities for TEM sample prep in advanced tech nodes.

Findings

HfO2 films successfully deposited at 40-85°C

Clear boundary observed between PR and HfO2 in TEM images

Film properties characterized by ellipsometry, XRD, and PES

Abstract

In this study, the method of low-temperature atomic layer deposition (ALD), which is applied on the soft photo-resist (PR) substrate forming hafnium dioxide (HfO2) at 40 C to 85 C, is reported for the first time. This reveals the potential application in the TEM sample preparation. The thickness, refractive index, band gap, and depth profiling chemical state of the thin film are analyzed by ellipsometry, X-ray diffraction, and photoelectron spectroscopy respectively. Our TEM image shows a clear boundary between the photo-resist and hafnium dioxide deposited on PR, which indicates the low-temperature atomic layer deposition (ALD) may lead a new way for TEM sample preparation in advanced technology node.