European consortium to address directed self assembly for chip industry

(Nanowerk News) PLACYD, an EU funded consortium of industrial and academic collaborators and led by Arkema will establish a dedicated material manufacturing facility that allows the production of block copolymers meeting the rigorous standards required for their use in industry as nanolithographic templates. PLACYD brings together leading researchers and industries to allow for the first time the integration of synthesis through to wafer scale production and system/device characterization.
Arkema hosted the kick-off meeting of the PLACYD project on February 18th in Paris, aiming to set up a full European Ecosystem dedicated to DSA technology with the support of key players of the semiconductor industry.*
Part of the Seventh Framework European Programme (FP7) and funded by ENIAC JU (European Technology Platform for Nanoelectronics), this project will be led by Arkema for 3 years. Its aim is to develop and bring DSA materials to industrial maturity, as well as processes and integration schemes. It will contribute to establishing specific DSA design rules and developing specific software for device manufacture. Metrology and inspection requirements in the sub-10 nm range will be defined and implemented in next generation tools, and lastly, a full integration demonstration activity will be performed based at CEA-Leti to assess the efficiency of the whole solution.
Arkema has been developing Block Copolymer technology for decades for various applications. Based on this technology, the chemicals manufacturer has developed nanolithography materials in partnership with the CEA-Leti Institute and the LCPO laboratory. Through the PLACYD project, they will bring their know-how to the semiconductor industry. With the help of the PLACYD Consortium partners, a dedicated materials line will be set up on the Arkema Research Center site in Lacq (France) with the aim of delivering precisely defined, high purity, and highly reproducible materials on an industrial scale in order to enable supply to the semiconductor industry.
Meanwhile, new materials will be developed and optimized for next generation electronic chips.
PLACYD will strengthen the partners’ position in their respective markets such as materials, equipment, EDA (Electronic Design Automation), and semiconductors, and it will secure and accelerate potential DSA lithography adoption by industry through proper materials supply and infrastructure availability.
Project participants
Coordinator: Arkema (France)
A global chemical company and France’s leading chemicals producer, Arkema is building the future of the chemical industry every day. Deploying a responsible, innovation-based approach, we produce state-of-the-art specialty chemicals that provide customers with practical solutions to such challenges as climate change, access to drinking water, the future of energy, fossil fuel preservation and the need for lighter materials. With operations in more than 40 countries, some 14,000 employees and 10 research centers, Arkema generates annual revenue of some €6.5 billion, and holds leadership positions in all its markets with a portfolio of internationally recognized brands. www.arkema.com
CEA-Leti (France)
By creating innovation and transferring it to industry, Leti is the bridge between basic research and production of micro- and nanotechnologies that improve the lives of people around the world. Backed by its portfolio of 2,200 patents, Leti partners with large industrials, SMEs and startups to tailor advanced solutions that strengthen their competitive positions. It has launched more than 50 startups. Its 8,000m² of new-generation cleanroom space feature 200mm and 300mm wafer processing of micro and nano solutions for applications ranging from space to smart devices. Leti’s staff of more than 1,700 includes 200 assignees from partner companies. Leti is based in Grenoble, France, and has offices in Silicon Valley, Calif., and Tokyo. Visit www.leti.fr for more information.
STMicroelectronics (France)
ST is a global leader in the semiconductor market serving customers across the spectrum of sense and power and automotive products and embedded processing solutions. From energy management and savings to trust and data security, from healthcare and wellness to smart consumer devices, in the home, car and office, at work and at play, ST is found everywhere microelectronics make a positive and innovative contribution to people's life. By getting more from technology to get more from life, ST stands for life augmented.
Intel IPLS (Ireland)
Intel Corporation is a leader in semiconductor manufacturing, producing integrated circuits and conducting R&D globally. Ireland is Intel's manufacturing and technology centre for Europe. The Leixlip site in County Kildare employs approximately 4,500 people and is Intel's fourth largest manufacturing site overall, and the largest outside the United States. On site there is a team responsible for ongoing research in semiconductor manufacturing and nanotechnology in such areas as advanced process control, next wafer size generation, energy efficiency in manufacturing, self-assembly, nano-materials synthesis and integration, nano-photonics, and silicon spintronics. www.intel.ie
Applied Material Israel (Israel)
Applied Materials, Inc. (Nasdaq: AMAT) is the global leader in providing innovative equipment, services and software to enable the manufacture of advanced semiconductor, flat panel display and solar photovoltaic products. Our technologies help make innovations like smartphones, flat screen TVs and solar panels more affordable and accessible to consumers and businesses around the world.
Mentor Graphics (France)
Mentor Graphics® is a leader in electronic design automation software. We enable companies to develop better electronic products faster and more cost-effectively. Our innovative products and solutions help engineers conquer design challenges in the increasingly complex worlds of board and chip design.
ASML (Netherlands)
University of Cork (Ireland)
The block copolymer self-assembly group at University College Cork has considerable expertise in the formation, characterization and pattern transfer of block copolymer nanopatterns. They will bring their expertise in pattern formation and characterization using techniques such as transmission electron and helium ion microscopy to generate reproducible and reliable methods for pattern formation at large scales and define quantitative assessment of defectivity in as formed and pattern transferred patterns.
LCPO-University of Bordeaux (France)
The LCPO (and particularly the team run by G. Hadziioannou) has lifelong experience in block copolymers (synthesis, physical chemistry and physics) and has already been involved in the development of polymeric materials for DSA applications. In recent years, the LPCO in collaboration with Arkema and CEA-Leti has fostered the development of a technical solution based on a PS / PMMA system for DSA.
LTM-CNRS (France)
An academic research laboratory (CNRS and universities) in the field of micro and nanotechnologies, based within the CEA-LETI facilities and with a staff of around 100 people (including PhD students and Post-docs), LTM-CNRS addresses advanced R&D studies in the field of patterning and integration technologies. www.ltm-cnrs.fr
CNM-CSIC (Spain)
The Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC) is the largest public multidisciplinary research organization in Spain. It has a staff of more than 10,000 employees, among them 3,202 scientists, and around 3,802 pre- and postdoctoral researchers in 116 institutes or centers around Spain. CSIC will participate through the National Center for Microelectronics – Institute of Microelectronics Barcelona (IMB-CNM), the largest center in Spain devoted to micro/nano electronics and micro/nano systems technology. IMB-CNM has outstanding facilities for micro and nano fabrication in a clean room environment.
Source: CEA Leti