NANO™ SU-8 2000

Negative Tone Photoresist

Formulations 2002-2025

High aspect ratio imaging

Near vertical side walls

Near UV (350-400nm) processing 5µm, 10µm and 20µm post arrays in a 50µm thick film.

Improved coating properties Substrate Pretreat

Uniformity (lower surface tension)
Adhesion
Coat
Faster drying
Improved throughput
Soft Bake
SU-8 2000 is a high contrast, epoxy based photoresist de-
signed for micromachining and other microelectronic ap-
plications, where a thick, chemically and thermally stable Expose
image is desired. SU-8 2000 is an improved formulation
of SU-8, which has been widely used by MEMS produc-
ers for many years. By using a faster drying, more polar
solvent system, improved coating properties and higher Post Expose Bake
throughput are realized. Film thicknesses of 0.5 to (PEB)
>200mm can be achieved with a single coat process. The
excellent imaging characteristics of SU-8 are maintained.
The exposed and subsequently cross-linked portions of Develop
the film are rendered insoluble to liquid developers. SU-8
2000 has very high optical transparency above 360nm,
which makes it ideally suited for imaging near vertical
sidewalls in very thick films. SU-8 2000 is best suited for Rinse & Dry
permanent applications where it is imaged, cured and left
in place
Hard Bake
Process Guidelines
(optional)
SU-8 2000 is most commonly processed with conventional
near UV (350-400nm) radiation, although it may be im-
aged with e-beam or x-ray. i-line (365nm) is recommended.
Upon exposure, cross-linking proceeds in two steps (1) for- Imaged Material
mation of a strong acid during the exposure process, fol-
lowed by (2) acid-initiated, thermally driven epoxy cross-
linking during the post exposure bake (PEB) step. Remove
(optional)
A normal process is: spin coat, soft bake, expose, post ex-
pose bake (PEB) followed by develop. A controlled hard SU8-2000 Spin Speed Curve
bake is recommended to further cross-link the imaged SU-8
2000 structures when they will remain as part of the device.
The entire process should be optimized for the specific ap- 100
SU-8 2002
plication. A baseline process is given here to be used as a 90
SU-8 2005
starting point. 80

Film Thickness (microns)

SU-8 2007
70 SU-8 2010
Substrate Pretreat 60 SU-8 2015
50 SU-8 2025
To obtain maximum process reliability, substrates should be
clean and dry prior to applying the SU-8 2000 resist. Start 40
with a solvent cleaning, or a rinse with dilute acid, followed 30
by a DI water rinse. Where applicable, substrates should be 20
subjected to a piranha etch / clean (H SO & H O ). To 10
2 4 2 2
dehydrate the surface, bake at 200°C for 5 minutes on a con- 0
750 1000 1250 1500 1750 2000 2250 2500 2750 3000 3250
tact hot plate or 30 minutes in a convection oven. Adhesion
promoters are typically not required. For applications that Spin Speed (rpm)
require electroplating and subsequent removal of SU-8 2000 Figure 1. Spin speed vs. thickness curves for selected
apply MicroChem’s OmniCoat prior to processing. SU-8 2000 resists.

Coat Soft Bake

SU-8 2000 resists are designed to produce low defect coat- After the resist has been applied to the substrate, it must be
ings over a very broad range of film thickness. The film soft baked to evaporate the solvent and densify the film.
thickness versus spin speed data displayed in Table 1 and SU-8 2000 is normally baked on a level hot plate, although
Figure 1 provide the information required to select the ap- convection ovens may be used. The following bake times
propriate SU-8 2000 resist and spin conditions, to achieve are based on contact hot plate processes. Bake times should
the desired film thickness. be optimized for proximity and convection oven bake pro-
cesses since solvent evaporation rate is influenced by the
The recommended coating conditions are: rate of heat transfer and ventilation.
(1) STATIC Dispense: Approximately 1ml of SU-8 2000 For best results, ramping or stepping the soft bake tempera-
per inch of substrate diameter. ture is recommended. Lower initial bake temperatures al-
(2) Spread Cycle: Ramp to 500 rpm at 100 rpm/second low the solvent to evaporate out of the film at a more con-
acceleration. This will take 5 seconds. trolled rate, which results in better coating fidelity, reduced
(3) Spin Cycle: Ramp to final spin speed at an acceleration edge bead and better resist -to-substrate adhesion. Refer to
of 300 rpm/second and hold for a total of 30 seconds. Table 2. for TWO STEP contact hot plate process recom-
mendations.
Product Name Viscosity** Thickness** Spin Speed
(cSt) (µms) (rpm) Product Name Thickness Pre-bake Softbake
2 3000 (µms) @ 65º C @ 95º C
SU-8 2002 7.5 2.5 2000 2 1 2
3 1000 SU-8 2002 2.5 1 2
5 3000 3 1 2
SU-8 2005 45 6 2000 5 1 2
7.5 1000 SU-8 2005 6 1 2
7 3000 7.5 1 2
SU-8 2007 140 8.5 2000 7 1 2
12.5 1000 SU-8 2007 8.5 1 2
10 3000 12.5 1 2
SU-8 2010 380 13 2000 10 1 2
20 1000 SU-8 2010 13 1 2
15 3000 20 1 3
SU-8 2015 1250 21 2000 15 1 2
38 1000 SU-8 2015 21 1 3
25 3000 38 2 5
SU-8 2025 4500 41 2000 25 1 3
75 1000 SU-8 2025 41 2 5
75 3 9
Table 1. Thickness vs. spin speed data for selected SU-8
2000 resists.
Table 2. Recommended soft bake parameters
** Approximate
Expose
SU-8 is optimized for near UV (350-400nm) exposure. i-
SU-8 2000 Exposure vs Film Thickness
line exposure tools are recommended. SU-8 is virtually
transparent and insensitive above 400nm but has high ac-
tinic absorption below 350nm. This can be seen in Figure 800
2. Excessive dose below 350nm may, therefore, result in 700

Exposure Energy (mJ/cm^2)

over exposure of the top portion of the resist film, resulting
600
in exaggerated negative sidewall profiles or T-topping. The
optimal exposure dose will depend on film thickness (thicker 500
films require higher dosage) and process parameters. The 400
exposure dose recommendations in Table 3. are based on
300
source intensity measurements taken with an i-line (365nm)
radiometer and probe. 200
100
Expose tip: When using a broad spectral output source, for
best imaging results, i.e. straightest sidewalls, filter out 0
excessive energy below 350nm. 0 25 50 75 100 125 150 175 200 225 250
Film Thickness (um)
Catastrophic adhesion failure, severely negative sidewalls
and excessive cracking often indicate an under cross-link-
ing condition. To correct the problem, increase the expo- Table 3. Recommended expose dose processes
sure dose and/or increase the post exposure bake (PEB) time.
Post Expose Bake
Following exposure, a post expose bake (PEB) must be per-
formed to selectively cross-link the exposed portions of the
film. This bake can be performed either on a hot plate or in
a convection oven. Optimum cross-link density is obtained
500 µm through careful adjustments of the exposure and PEB pro-
2.5
100 µm cess conditions. The bake recommendations below are based
50 µm on results obtained with a contact hot plate.
2 10 µm
PEB tip: SU-8 is readily cross-linked and can result in a
Absorbance

highly stressed film. To minimize stress, wafer bowing and

1.5 resist cracking, a slow ramp or TWO STEP contact hot plate
process, as shown in Table 4., is recommended. Rapid cool-
1 ing after PEB should be avoided.

P r odu ct N am e Th ickn ess P EB 1 P EB 2

0.5 (µ m s) @ 65º C @ 95º C
2 1 1
S U -8 200 2 2.5 1 1
0 3 1 1
300 320 340 360 380 400 420 5 1 1
Wavelength (nm) S U -8 200 5 6 1 1
7.5 1 1
Figure 2. SU-8 absorbance vs. film thickness 7 1 1
S U -8 200 7 8.5 1 2
1 2.5 1 2
10 1 2
S U -8 201 0 13 1 2
20 1 2
15 1 2
S U -8 201 5 21 1 2
38 1 3
25 1 3
S U -8 202 5 41 1 3
75 1 7

Table 4. Recommended post expose bake parameters

Develop conventional solvent based resist strippers. MicroChem’s
SU-8 2000 resists have been optimized for use with Remover PG will swell and lift off minimally cross-linked
MicroChem’s SU-8 Developer. Immersion, spray or spray- SU-8 2000. However, if OmniCoat has been applied immer-
puddle processes can be used. Other solvent based develop- sion in Remover PG should effect a clean and thorough Lift-
ers such as ethyl lactate and diacetone alcohol may also be Off of the SU-8 2000 Material. It will not remove fully cured or
used. Strong agitation is recommended for high aspect ra- hard baked SU-8 2000 without the use of OmniCoat. Alter-
tio and/or thick film structures. Recommended develop times nate removal processes include immersion in oxidizing acid
are given in Table 5. for immersion processes. These pro- solutions such as piranha etch / clean, plasma ash, RIE, laser
posed develop times are approximate, since actual dissolu- ablation and pyrolosis.
tion rates can vary widely as a function of agitation rate,
temperature and resist processing parameters. To remove minimally cross-linked SU-8 2000, or if using
Omnicoat, with Remover PG, heat the bath to 50-80°C and
immerse the substrates for 30-90 minutes. Actual strip time
Product Name Thickness Development
(µms) (minutes) will depend on resist thickness and cross-link density
2 1 For more information on MicroChem Omnicoat and Remover
SU-8 2002 2.5 1 PG please see the relevant product data sheets.
3 1
5 1 Storage
SU-8 2005 6 1
7.5 1
Store SU-8 2000 resists upright in tightly closed containers in
7 1 a cool, dry environment away from direct sunlight at a tem-
SU-8 2007 8.5 2 perature of 40-70°F(4-21°C). Store away from light, acids,
12.5 3 heat and sources of ignition. Shelf life is twelve months from
10 2 date of manufacture.
SU-8 2010 13 3
20 3
15 3
Disposal
SU-8 2015 21 3 SU-8 2000 resists may be included with other waste con-
38 4 taining similar organic solvents to be discarded for destruc-
25 4 tion or reclaim in accordance with local state and federal
SU-8 2025 41 5 regulations. It is the responsibility of the customer to ensure
75 7 the disposal of SU-8 2000 resists and residues made in ob-
Table 5. Recommended develop processes servance all federal, state, and local environmental regula-
tions.

Rinse and Dry Environmental, Health and Safety

Following development, the substrate should be rinsed briefly Consult product Material Safety Data Sheet before working
with isopropyl alcohol (IPA), then dried with a gentle stream with SU-8 2000 resists. Handle with care. Wear chemical
of air or nitrogen. goggles, chemical gloves and suitable protective clothing
when handling SU-8 2000 resists. Do not get into eyes, or
Rinse tip: If a white film is produced during rinse, this is onto skin or clothing. Use with adequate ventilation to avoid
an indication that the substrate has been under developed. breathing vapors or mist. In case of contact with skin, wash
Simply immerse or spray the substrate with SU-8 developer affected area with soap and water. In case of contact with
to remove the film and complete the development process. eyes, rinse immediately with water and flush for 15 minutes
Repeat the rinse step. lifting eyelids frequently. Get emergency medical assistance.

Hard Bake (cure) The information is based on our experience and is, we be-
SU-8 2000 has good mechanical properties, therefore hard lieve to be reliable, but may not be complete. We make no
bakes are normally not required. For applications where the guarantee or warranty, expressed or implied, regarding the
imaged resist is to be left as part of the final device, the .information, use, handling, storage, or possession of these
resist may be ramp/step hard baked between 150-200°C on products, or the application of any process described herein
a hot plate or in a convection oven to further cross link the or the results desired, since the conditions of use and han-
material. Bake times vary based on type of bake process and dling of these products are beyond our control.
film thickness.

1254 Chestnut Street

Removal Newton, MA 02464
SU-8 2000, after expose and PEB, is a highly cross-linked tel: (617)965-5511 fax: (617)965-5818
epoxy, which makes it extremely difficult to remove with email: [email protected] www.microchem.com

Rev. 2/02