The lithography simulation group develops physical/chemical models, numerical algorithms, and software for the simulation of lithographic processes. This covers the process steps pre-bake, exposure, post-exposure bake, and chemical development of the photoresist. Our lithography simulation algorithms are available in the software Dr.LiTHO of Fraunhofer IISB. Additional modules of Dr.LiTHO are used for the evaluation and optimization of lithographic processes and for the simulation of non-standard lithographic exposures such as interferometric exposures. Besides from model and software development, the lithography group offers also support for industrial and governmental partners in process development and feasibility studies.
Current topics of the lithography group include:
- rigorous simulation of light diffraction from advanced masks, including defect-free and defective EUV-masks
- modeling of modern chemical amplified resists, including model calibration by local and global optimizers
- evaluation and optimization of lithographic imaging, mask, and source optimization using genetic algorithms