Experimental study demonstrates 21 nm patterning in imide-modified poly(styrenesulfonate) resists, indicating an effective approach to eliminate acid diffusion tradeoffs.
Photoresists are fundamental to the modern electronics industry. Conventional chemically amplified resists suffer a tradeoff between acid diffusion and photosensitivity, while homopolymer-based nonchemically amplified resists (n-CARs) serve as promising alternatives in this context. We develop imide-modified poly(styrenesulfonate) nonionic photoacid generators and n-CARs with controllable molecular weights via reversible addition–fragmentation chain-transfer polymerization. Screened by molecular orbital calculations, candidates are characterized by electron beam lithography. We further investigated the effect of molecular weight on resist performance. The higher molecular weight polymer delivers optimal performance, realizing 21 nm line/space patterns. This work offers guidance for n-CAR design via macromolecular engineering.
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Yang et al. (2026) studied this question.
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