Mar 23 2009
Vistec Lithography Inc., a global supplier of electron-beam lithography systems, announced that they have received a major order from Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin in Berlin-Adlershof for one of its Vistec EBPG5000plus electron-beam lithography systems. The Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin and Vistec Lithography Inc. will work together on further enhance the Gaussian Beam system to fulfil the challenging requirements for generating advanced diffractive optics required for the X-ray imaging activities at BESSY II, the only German 3rd generation synchrotron radiation facility.
BESSY II is now operated by the new Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin für Materialien und Energie GmbH (HZB), which has been formed by the merger of the Hahn-Meitner-Institut Berlin (HMI) and BESSY. Beside other synchrotron applications Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin pursues on high-resolution X-ray microscopy.
Fresnel zone plates are the key elements for high resolution X-ray microscopy. The achievable resolution of an X-ray microscope depends strongly on the optical performance of the Fresnel lenses. This is where the new electron-beam lithography system comes into play. The Vistec EBPG5000plusES is used for patterning Fresnel zone plates with a minimum zone width below 20 nm, in combination with superb placement and overlay figures. It’s worth saying that the system can also be used for more standard e-beam lithography applications.
“The EBPG5000plusES combines both excellent resolution and the highest accuracy, which allows us to pattern the most enhanced Fresnel optics for soft and hard X-rays. With the new e-beam lithography system, we expect to develop stacked zone plates with unique performance in spatial resolution and efficiency for the soft and hard X-ray photon energy range”, said Dr. Gerd Schneider, Head of the X-ray microscopy activities at the Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin.
The order from HZB is in line with other Vistec electron-beam lithography systems currently installed at leading edge research institutes worldwide. Based on reliable and well-proven system architecture, the Vistec EBPG5000plusES system provides a spot size down to <2.2nm at 100keV beam energy, thus allowing nano-lithography structures smaller than 8nm to be routinely generated. As a result of its high flexibility and easy–to-use software, the EBPG5000plusES has become the “system of choice” in the research community.
“We are very pleased to have received this order from the Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin für Materialien und Energie GmbH. We are looking forward to contributing to the success of our customers’ challenging projects with our electron-beam technology”, says Rainer Schmid, General Manager at Vistec Lithography Inc.