Watch Professor Denbeaux's "Inside CNSE" video interview on extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography processes 

Degrees

• Ph.D., Physics, Duke University, 1999
• M.A., Physics, Duke University, 1996
• B.A., Physics, Wesleyan University, 1993

Areas of research

• fundamentals of extreme ultraviolet (EUV) resists
• electron interactions in solids
• lithography
• nanoparticle detection and identification

Research Description

Professor Denbeaux's research focuses lithography and related processes.  Part of his research program focuses on the fundamentals of photoresists for extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography with an emphasis on the interactions of electrons within the exposure.  In an EUV exposure, the primary chemical reaction is due to high energy photon absorption generating a primary electron and a hole (positive charge).  The primary electron has some range and during its motion through the resist it can also generate secondary electrons and more holes.  The understanding of how many electrons are generated, how far they travel, which energies of the electrons cause the desired reaction in the photoresist is a major focus of his research.

As part of this research program, typical experiments involve exposures (EUV photons or primary electrons with energies from 5-5000 eV) and reactions are monitored based on outgassing products or other acid detection mechanisms.

Another focus area of his research is on the detection and identification of nanoparticles with an emphasis on how the particles can be generated, transport, and eventually adhere to critical surfaces like masks or wafers in semiconductor manufacturing.  That research effort includes particle detection in aerosol, in liquids, and in vacuum systems.

Recent Publications

1. Electron trapping: a mechanism for acid production in extreme ultraviolet photoresists, S Grzeskowiak, J Kaminsky, S Gibbons, A Narasimhan, RL Brainard, ..., Journal of Micro/Nanolithography, MEMS, and MOEMS 17 (3), 033501, 2018
2. Investigating the threshold electron energy for reactions in EUV resist materials, J Kaminsky, S Grzeskowiak, S Gibbons, J Chandonait, U Welling, ..., Advances in Patterning Materials and Processes XXXV 10586, 105861N, 2018
3. Mechanisms of photodecomposition of metal-containing EUV photoresists: isotopic labelling studies, M Murphy, J Sitterly, S Grzeskowiak, GH Denbeaux, RL Brainard, Advances in Patterning Materials and Processes XXXV 10586, 1058608, 2018
4. Molecular organometallic resists for EUV (MORE): Reactivity as a function of metal center (Bi, Sb, Te and Sn), J Sitterly, M Murphy, S Grzeskowiak, G Denbeaux, RL Brainard,Advances in Patterning Materials and Processes XXXV 10586, 105861P,2018
5. Polymer effects on PAG acid yield in EUV resists, S Grzeskowiak, J Kaminsky, S Gibbons, M Murphy, J Chandonait, ..., Advances in Patterning Materials and Processes XXXV 10586, 105860D, 3, 2018
6. Secondary electron interactions of chemically amplified EUV photoresists (Conference Presentation),S Grzeskowiak, AK Narasimhan, GH Denbeaux, International Conference on Extreme Ultraviolet Lithography 2017 10450, 104500I, 2017
7. EUV Mechanistic Studies of Antimony Resists,M Murphy, A Narasimhan, S Grzeskowiak, J Sitterly, P Schuler, J Richards, ..., Journal of Photopolymer Science and Technology 30 (1), 121-131, 4, 2017
8. What We Don’t Know About EUV Exposure Mechanisms, A Narasimhan, L Wisehart, S Grzeskowiak, LE Ocola, G Denbeaux, ..., Journal of Photopolymer Science and Technology 30 (1), 113-120, 2017
9. Antimony photoresists for EUV lithography: mechanistic studies, M Murphy, A Narasimhan, S Grzeskowiak, J Sitterly, P Schuler, J Richards, ..., Extreme Ultraviolet (EUV) Lithography VIII 10143, 1014307, 2017
10. Mechanisms of EUV exposure: electrons and holes, A Narasimhan, S Grzeskowiak, C Ackerman, T Flynn, G Denbeaux, ..., Extreme Ultraviolet (EUV) Lithography VIII 10143, 101430W, 5, 2017
11. Reactivity of metal-oxalate EUV resists as a function of the central metal, S Grzeskowiak, A Narasimhan, M Murphy, L Napolitano, DA Freedman, ..., Advances in Patterning Materials and Processes XXXIV 10146, 1014605, 6, 2017
12. Analytical techniques for mechanistic characterization of EUV photoresists, S Grzeskowiak, A Narasimhan, M Murphy, C Ackerman, J Kaminsky, ..., Advances in Patterning Materials and Processes XXXIV 10146, 101462C, 2017
13. Correlation of experimentally measured atomic scale properties of EUV photoresist to modeling performance: an exploration, Y Kandel, J Chandonait, LS Melvin, S Marokkey, Q Yan, S Grzeskowiak, ..., Extreme Ultraviolet (EUV) Lithography VIII 10143, 101430B, 2017