[News] China Makes Breakthrough in Chip Technology, Paving the Way for Lithography Advancements

Lithography technology remains one of the core driving forces behind the continuous scaling of integrated circuit (IC) manufacturing. Recently, a research team led by Professor Peng Hailin from the College of Chemistry and Molecular Engineering at Peking University, together with collaborators, achieved a major breakthrough by using cryo-electron tomography (cryo-ET) to visualize, for the first time, the in-situ three-dimensional microstructure, interfacial distribution, and entanglement behavior of photoresist molecules in a liquid environment.

This discovery has guided the development of an industrial process that can significantly reduce lithography defects, marking an important step forward for the semiconductor sector. The study was recently published in Nature Communications.

Development—the step where photoresist in exposed regions is dissolved by a developer solution—is one of the most critical stages in lithography, as it determines how precisely circuit patterns are transferred onto silicon wafers. Acting as the “pigment” of chipmaking, the motion of photoresist molecules within the developer directly affects pattern accuracy and chip yield. For decades, the microscopic behavior of photoresists in liquid developers has remained a “black box”, forcing the industry to rely on trial and error for process optimization—a key bottleneck in improving yields at 7-nanometer nodes and beyond.

To address this long-standing challenge, the Peking University team became the first to introduce cryo-electron tomography into semiconductor research. The scientists successfully generated a three-dimensional microstructural “panoramic image” with sub-5-nanometer resolution, overcoming three major technical barriers: the inability of traditional methods to achieve in-situ, three-dimensional, and high-resolution observation simultaneously.

According to Professor Peng, cryo-electron tomography offers a powerful tool for probing liquid-phase interfacial reactions at the atomic and molecular scales. A deeper understanding of polymer structures and microscopic dynamics in liquids could enable better defect control and yield enhancement across key semiconductor processes—including lithography, etching, and wet cleaning—in advanced chip manufacturing.

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