New polyoxometalates containing hybrid polymers and their potential for nano-patterning

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Nanotechnology
• Polymer Chemistry

Background:

• Polyoxometalates (POMs) are versatile inorganic clusters with tunable electronic and optical properties.
• Developing advanced photoresists is crucial for next-generation lithography, particularly for extreme ultraviolet (EUV) applications.
• Hybrid materials combining POMs with polymers offer potential for novel functionalities.

Purpose of the Study:

• To synthesize novel polyoxometalate (POM)-based hybrid monomers.
• To create new POM/polymer hybrids through radical polymerization.
• To evaluate the performance of these hybrids as photoresists in electron beam (E-beam) and EUV lithography.

Main Methods:

• Grafting polymerizable organic units onto Wells-Dawson and Keggin-type POM clusters.
• Characterization using ESI-MS, single-crystal X-ray diffraction, NMR, IR spectroscopy, and thermal analyses.
• Photoresist performance evaluation using E-beam/EUV lithographic techniques.

Main Results:

• Two new POM-based hybrid monomers were successfully synthesized and characterized.
• Novel POM/polymer hybrids were formed by polymerizing these monomers with MAPDST and/or MMA.
• The POM/polymer hybrid of monomer 2 with MAPDST demonstrated improved sensitivity under EUV lithography compared to the homopolymer.

Conclusions:

• The synthesized POM/polymer hybrids are promising materials for advanced photoresist applications.
• The enhanced EUV sensitivity is attributed to the efficient photon harvesting capabilities of the POM clusters.
• This work opens avenues for designing high-performance photoresists by integrating POMs into polymer architectures.