Silylation of poly (t-BOC) styrene resists: Performance and mechanisms

Abstract

The rate and selectivity of silicon uptake during the silylation of resists consisting of styrene/para-(t-BOC)- styrene copolymer resins and tri-phenyl sulfonium hexa-fluoio-arsenate (onium salt) photosensitizer has been studied. FTCR spectroscopy has been used to monitor the extent of the deprotection reaction that occurs during baking and the silicon uptake during silylation. It has been found that for the co-polymers, silicon diffusion is rapid, and the silicon uptake is directly related to the number of phenolic sites created during the post-exposure (presilylation) bake.