Computational study of 3-dimensional photo lithography on limitations and possibility for novel structures

Abstract

3D photolithography has been proposed using a built-in lens mask (BILM), which can form an optical image at an arbitrary focal point without using a lens by reproducing the wavefront formed in space by the complex transmittance of a glass mask, a three-dimensional structure can be formed using the multiple focus function. In this method, the 3D structure is decomposed into multiple seed patterns, and the seed images are exposed as a batch. However, the mutual interference of diffracted light to form the seed patterns causes turbulence in the image formation state, necessitating an optimized design of the mask. In this study, we conducted basic verification experiments for 3D imaging, verified the multiple focus function, reviewed the seed design including automatic optimization of the seed placement in order to first realize 3D image formation and then complex 3D image formation and verify the possibility for typical 3-D structures.