Company RnD-M. Modelling of processes
RnD-M holds broad theoretical expertise in plasma physics, plasma-based radiation sources, plasma chemistry. The expertise includes broad capabilities in numerical simulations of plasma. The theoretical group consists of twelve scientists involved in research areas listed below.
Radiative hydrodynamics of hot dense plasmas
This topic covers the studies of radiative properties of hot dense plasmas that are used in radiation sources for various applications including soft x-ray microscopy and lithography. The studies are mainly focused on simulations of tin plasma sources of extreme ultraviolet radiation for applications in lithography, e.g. sources for EUVL scanners and sources for actinic inspection.
Radiation generated plasmas
This topic covers the studies of physical process occurring in low-pressure gaseous media irradiated by EUV or soft X-ray radiation. The research are mainly focused on the transient simulations of the EUV indeuced plasmas by a self-consistent model. This results in characterization of the fluxes of ions and neutrals from the plasma to an exposed surface. The calculated fluxes can be used to estimate the damage to the surface (e.g. sputtering) as function of the setup operational conditions. The topic has direct relevance to the modeling of lifetime of the projection optics for EUV lithography.
Plasma-surface interaction
This topic covers the studies of chemical processes at surfaces assisted by plasma. The studies are mainly focused on the analysis of the available experimental data of tin and carbon cleaning from optical surfaces by EUV-induced plasmas. The obtained phenomenological models allow to reasonably accurate estimate the effect of the EUV induced plasma on the projection optics. The studies are of direct relevance for EUVL applications.