Center for High-Precision Patterning Science (CHiPPS)
CHiPPS is an Energy Frontier Research Center (EFRC) funded by the U.S. Department of Energy. Led by Berkeley Lab, CHiPPS employs a holistic approach to patterning science that incorporates knowledge of radiation-driven reactions at extreme ultraviolet (EUV) photon energies to design new materials that are highly sensitive, highly uniform in structure and chemical response, and with controllable interfacial interactions during pattern development.
Microelectronics is arguably the single most critical example of advanced manufacturing, representing a $442B/year economic engine that drives every sector in the global economy. CHiPPS addresses the grand challenges of harnessing high-energy photons for selective chemical reactions enabling atomically precise patterning at the nanoscale, and mitigating the stochastic effects — variability arising from photon, atom, and molecular-scale fluctuations — that limit sub-nanometer precision.
Visit the CHiPPS website to learn more about the center.
Research Thrusts
Thrust 1: Resist Architecture Design Rules
Design rules for resist architectures controlling reaction fronts and stochastic variation in chemical patterning at sub-nanometer scales.
Thrust 2: Hierarchical Materials
Bottom-up functional hierarchical materials and selective-area pattern transfer for mitigating stochastics.
Thrust 3: Theory & Modeling
Quantitative theory and modeling enabling rational design of patterning materials.
Thrust 4: Multimodal Characterization
Multimodal characterization of patterning materials and operando processes informing theory and improving co-design outcomes.
Key Scientific Gaps
- Lack of fundamental understanding of EUV-radiation-driven chemical reactions
- Poorly controlled diffusion in reaction fronts with heterogeneous photoresists
- Insufficient knowledge of solvation at nanointerfaces during image development
- Absence of design rules for sub-10 nm self-assembling lithographic systems
- Limited understanding of chemical and physical phenomena in atom-removal or atom-addition processes
CXRO’s Role
CXRO houses a unique lithography platform — a high numerical aperture EUV exposure tool — which offers a resolution capability significantly better than current state-of-the-art EUV platforms. CXRO is currently the only research facility in the world where partners can use this tool to test new patterning materials.
Partner Institutions
- Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
- Stanford University
- Cornell University
- Argonne National Laboratory
- UC Santa Barbara
- San José State University
Training Program
CHiPPS sponsors four annual training stipends for San José State University STEM students at the undergraduate and master’s level. The 10-week program at Berkeley Lab or Stanford develops skills in patterning science and lithographic nanopatterning.
