This Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Phase I project proposes to create state-of-the-art proximity correction software, which will ultimately be merged with the Nanometer Pattern Generation System, which is an advanced SEM lithography system that is already commercially successful. In recent years, SEM lithography has become an increasingly popular tool in university and government research labs, as well as at industrial R&D labs. The interest in SEM lithography comes from both its low cost and versatile nature when compared to the dedicated e-beam writing systems that are designed primarily for writing full wafers in industrial settings. The purpose of this project is to create an advanced proximity correction system that matches the inherent versatility of a well-designed SEM lithography system such as NPGS. To achieve this goal, this project will investigate the development of two advanced proximity correction techniques that are currently not commercially available. Specifically, the techniques are "grayscale" proximity corrections for manufacturing multi-level (grayscale) structures and binary proximity corrections for non-rectangular pattern elements. Potential commercial applications, if successful, will give researchers worldwide a much more advanced e-beam lithography capability than is presently available.
