Studies of dissolution inhibition mechanism of DNQ novolak resists: part III--secondary inhibition with quaternary ammonium salts in development process

The dissolution behavior of films comprising novolak polymers and oligomers having defined structural characteristics has been investigated by means of near-real-time UV and FT-IR spectroscopic measurements. The observed results are correlated with the behavior of practical resists and the solution chemistry of related model compounds in order to provide a better understanding of the mechanism of dissolution inhibition with emphasis on `secondary' reactions occurring during the development process. In particular, evidence is presented for the formation of a stable TMA+/novolate- complex which may influence the dissolution inhibition dependency of the novolak microstructure.