KMPR® 1000

Part of the StructSure™ Line

KMPR® 1000 i-Line photoresist is a high contrast, epoxy-based photoresist that can be developed in a conventional aqueous alkaline developer (TMAH) and more easily removed after normal processing. KMPR® is designed to coat 4–110 μm in a single step using the five standard viscosities. KMPR® 1000 has excellent adhesion, chemical and plasma resistance, making it ideal for many MEMS, Electrolytic Plating and DRIE applications.

Material Uses:

Plating

Electroplating

Deep Etch

DRIE

Permanent

Permanent Structures

Electroformed Ni gear after stripping KMPR® Source: Univ. of Birmingham

Electroformed Ni gear after stripping KMPR®
Source: Univ. of Birmingham

Plating (100 µM tall Ni posts, KMPR® removed)

Plating (100 μm tall Ni posts, KMPR® removed)

Key Features

  • High aspect ratio imaging
    Vertical sidewalls
  • Greater than 100 μm film thickness in a single coat
  • Aqueous developer compatible (TMAH & KOH)
  • Wet stripping in conventional strippers
  • Excellent dry etch resistance

Application Notes

Process Parameters

Coat

KMPR® 1000 resists are available in five standard viscosities, as shown in Table 1. Figure 1 provides the information required to select the appropriate KMPR® 1000 resist and spin conditions, to achieve the desired film thickness.

Recommended Program

1. Dispense 1 ml of resist for each inch (25 mm) of substrate diameter
2. Spin at 500 rpm for 5–10 seconds with acceleration of 100 rpm/second
3. Spin at 3000 rpm for 30 seconds with acceleration of 300 rpm/second

Soft Bake

Table 2 shows the recommended soft bake temperature and times for the various KMPR® 1000 products at selected film thicknesses. The recommended bake temperature is 100ºC, however temperatures from 95–105ºC may also be used.

Exposure

To obtain vertical sidewalls in the KMPR® 1000 resist, we recommend the use of a longpass filter to eliminate UV radiation below 350 nm. With the recommended filter (PL-360LP), an increase in exposure time of approximately 40% is required to reach the optimum exposure dose.

Post Exposure Bake

A post exposure bake (PEB) is required to complete the curing reaction and should take place directly after exposure. Table 5 shows the recommended times and temperature for various approximate thickness targets. The recommended temperature is 100˚C, however temperatures from 95–105˚C may also be used.

Development

KMPR® 1000 resist has been designed for use with 2.38% TMAH (0.26N) aqueous alkaline developer in immersion, spray or spray-puddle processes. Other solvent based developers such as SU-8 developer may also be used instead of TMAH. Strong agitation during development is recommended for high aspect ratio and/or thick film structures. Recommended develop times for immersion processes are given in Table 6 for TMAH and Table 7 for SU-8 developer. These develop times are approximate, since actual dissolution rates can vary widely as a function of agitation.