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EUV Lithography now reaches the fab floor. The technology ramp up and integration with existing processes will require evolutionary steps in many aspects of the technology. For instance will it be necessary to reduce 3D mask effects like shadowing e.g. by introducing a thinner absorber structure. Continuous progress will be based on using new materials, adapted multilayers, and new reticle designs. Many of these developments are based on simulations and computer models for the design of the required structures and thus require data on the optical properties of the materials involved. In particular when addressing the reticle where the optical function is the target value. Using its more than 25 years of expertise in EUV metrology1, PTB operates instrumentation for reflectometry and scatterometry2 in the EUV and adjacent wavelength ranges and can provide the data for the determination of optical material parameters for individual thin layers. The need for sound optical parameter characterization for the development of alternative EUV materials was thoroughly motivated during the 2015 SPIE Advanced Lithography conference3. The data required is not readily available from databases, as thin film properties - depending on their deposition method and interfaces - may deviate significantly from standard bulk data4. Therefore, better optical constants and a continuous availability of the associated measurement tools are vital for further progress in EUV reticle and optical system design. The ability to vary relevant parameters like wavelength, angle of incidence (AOI), the plane of incidence and polarization is a prerequisite to gather sufficient data to model optical constants. We give details on PTB's measurement capabilities and accessible parameter space for optical material parameter characterization and show some representative data and results.
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