Atomically Precise Ti-Zr Heterometallic Oxo Clusters for High-Sensitivity and High-Resolution Single-Component...

As a critical consumable in extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography, EUV photoresists directly improve the efficiency and performance of the lithography process through enhancements to their sensitivity and resolution. Herein, two Ti-Zr heterometallic oxo clusters (TiZrs) are designed and synthesized via a straightforward approach. TiZrs are demonstrated superior film formation properties and excellent thermal stability. Among the candidates, TiZr2, which contains a higher concentration of Ti atoms with excellent EUV absorption and easily cleavable butoxy-metal bonds, exhibits increased sensitivity, and can be used as a single-component photoresist to achieve high-resolution patterns with low line-edge roughness and high etching selectivity for silicon, under both electron beam (EB) and EUV lithography. Furthermore, the photoreaction mechanism of TiZrs is systematically investigated using TiZr2 as a model system. These findings underscore the efficacy of tailoring structural design and modulating cluster materials via heterometal and heteroligand strategies to enhance lithography sensitivity, thereby providing valuable insights for future material design and applications.