Awards

Dr. Julia Hsu, (PI), Dr. Kevin Brenner (Co-PI) , and Dr. CormacToher (Co-PI) received a National Science Foundation project of$1.9 million expected for 3 years –

FuSe2 Topic 3: Co-designing Indium-based Sol-gel Precursors for Extreme Ultraviolet Resist and Back-end-of-the-line Oxide Nanoelectronics

With the support of the Future of Semiconductors (FuSe) Program, Professors Julia Hsu, Cormac Toher,and Kevin Brenner of The University of Texas at Dallas, Professor Howard Katz of Johns HopkinsUniversity, and Professor Chih-Hao Chang of The University of Texas at Austin will establish agroundbreaking framework to develop new materials for advanced computer chips. This project will useindium-based materials to co-design two key aspects of chip manufacturing: materials used to create tinychip features, and the transistors (miniature switches) on these chips that enable them to do computing.The new materials will be designed for extreme-ultraviolet (EUV) patterning, to produce smaller, moreprecise features on chips, leading to better performance and energy efficiency. Additionally, a novel low-temperature method will be used to convert these features into high-performance transistors,potentially reducing production costs and environmental impact. The project will also include aworkforce development program to train community college students for careers in the semiconductorindustry, addressing the growing need for skilled technicians in North Texas. Collaborations with industrypartners will provide students with hands-on experience and career opportunities in this crucial field.The research objectives will include: (1) Designing novel indium-based EUV resists using computationaland machine learning tools to optimize both material and device properties, (2) synthesizing andcharacterizing precursors for indium oxide transistors, and assessing their performance in filmpatterning and transistor fabrication, (3) evaluating the resolution, line edge roughness, and sensitivityof the resist films, and (4) creating high-performance indium oxide transistors using photonically curedEUV-patterned resists and measuring their electrical performance. The co-designed materials willleverage the high EUV absorption cross-section of indium, and the potential high performance of indiumoxide transistors, increasing material economy and device performance and reducing processing stepsand waste. The project will investigate hypotheses such as whether pre-complexed fuels can increaseindium density for more sensitive resists, if lower-nitrate indium precursors can reduce featureroughness and environmental impact, and whether incorporating visible-light-absorbing chromophorescan enhance photonic annealing for better transistor performance. Additionally, machine learning willbe employed to drive the co-design of EUV resists and back-end-of-the-line devices, testing thefundamental limitations of sol-gel processing in material scalability