S-FIL^® versus other Lithography and Imprinting Techniques

Unlike next generation optical lithography systems, S-FIL systems use a conventional 365 nm UV lamp to replicate sub-50 nm features and do not require a DUV laser source and lenses. Furthermore, the S-FIL process exactly replicates the imprint templates, thereby making complex OPC masks unnecessary.

Compared to thermal imprinting techniques, S-FIL’s room temperature, low pressure, UV curable process provides superior alignment overlay management and is compatible with thermal and pressure sensitive substrates. While other imprint tools use spin-on resist, the Imprio systems dispense low viscosity imprint solution in very small droplets one field at a time immediately prior to the imprint step. This Drop-on-Demand™ approach is a key distinguisher, enabling simultaneous imprinting of both dense and sparse features onto the substrate during the same imprint step. Lastly, the Imprio's step and repeat approach is advantageous relative to whole wafer imprinting because templates are compatible with all substrate sizes and are lower cost.

Molecular Imprints has licensed all S-FIL related technology, which was invented at the University of Texas at Austin under the direction of Professors Grant Willson and S.V. Sreenivasan, for the lifetime of the patents. In addition, the company has over 400 patent applications filed or granted, providing protection to its customers.