Status and outlook of EUV optics at ZEISS

The EUV lithography optics program continues to enable the progress of the semiconductor roadmap with higher productivity and finer imaging resolution. ZEISS Starlith® lithography optics systems with a numerical aperture (NA) of 0.33 and an optical resolution of 13 nm half-pitch are being produced in high volume for integration into ASML´s NXE scanners, which have established themselves as industry workhorses in leading edge semiconductor manufacturing. Even finer imaging resolution will be achieved with the Starlith® 5000 for ASML´s EXE scanners, with NA = 0.55 and an optical resolution of 8 nm half-pitch, with highly flexible illumination and an anamorphic projection optics featuring a central obscuration. The first Starlith® 5000 illuminator and projection optics box have been delivered to ASML. The outlook includes future roadmap extensions for low-k₁ imaging at increased productivity and potential further improvements of the single exposure resolution capabilities.