Where to Buy Laser Lithography Equipment

Photolithography is a microfabrication technique that is commonly used to pattern parts of a thin film or the bulk of a substrate. It is also often termed as optical lithography or UV lithography, if ultraviolett wavelengths are used.

The technique uses light to transfer a geometric pattern from a photomask onto a light-sensitive chemical ("photoresist" or "resist") on the substrate. This first irradiation step is followed by a series of chemical treatments that either engrave the exposed pattern into the material underneath the photoresist, or it enables deposition of a new material in the desired pattern on top of it.

The optical lens system of photolithography setups is usually very complex and is inspected during the manufacturing process with coherent cw laser light of the same wavelength as the excimer lasers, i.e. 193 or 248 nm. Since excimer lasers have insufficient coherence, other lasers are used for this inspection, e.g. frequency-stabilized and frequency-converted diode lasers.

The TopWave 266 is ideal for sophisticated measurement and production tasks in e.g. semiconductor inspection, lithography or Raman spectroscopy. It is a cost-effective and reliable laser that enables the user to concentrate on their application rather than worrying about the light source.

See us at Frontiers in Optics + Laser Science in Tacoma, Washington, USA, Oct. 08–12 (booth 401)!