Self-Assembly for Nanoelectronics

Use of diblock copolymers for the fabrication of nanoelectronic devices. The focus is on device fabrication and process integration. We had successfully fabricated functional MOSFET and CMOS circuits using diblock copolymer as a patterning technique for features at the sub-20 nm scale. We are now developing directed self-assembly (DSA)technology using small guiding templates with sizes that are comparable to the desired pitch to improve the DSA performance and to provide flexible controls on pitch, shape, and ordering of the self-assembly. These canonical templates, which are akin to the letters of the alphabet, are the most basic features essential to compose a device layout of contact holes. Each template only generate one robust pattern consisting one or a few holes with certain size, shape and ordering. A canonical template database will be set up to cover all the essential patterns for device design. By applying the design rules of DSA, a device can be disassembled to a set of patterns that can be generated by the corresponding canonical templates. On the other hand, designers can also design devices with modified or new layouts to best fit the DSA design rules for optimal patterning. This is a project that crossed the boundaries of materials science, device design, image processing, and computer science.