Composition for forming a resist upper-layer film and method for producing a semiconductor device using the composition

1. A composition for forming an EUV or electron beam resist upper-layer film, the composition comprising:

(a) a polymer (P), and

(b) a solvent,

wherein the solvent contains a ketone compound having 4 to 12 carbon atoms in an amount of 1 to 13% by mass, based on a total mass of the solvent, and

wherein the composition further comprises an ether compound having 8 to 16 carbon atoms as a solvent.

2. The composition according to claim 1 , wherein (a) polymer (P) comprises two or more types of repeating units and comprises all of the groups selected from the following (a1) to (a3):

(a1) an alkyl group having 1 to 10 carbon atoms and hydrogen atoms, wherein part or all of the hydrogen atoms may be substituted by a fluorine atom,

(a2) a hydroxyl group and/or a carboxyl group, and

(a3) an organic group having an aromatic ring.

3. The composition according to claim 1 , wherein (a) polymer (P) comprises repeating units represented by any of the following formulae (1-1) to (1-4):

wherein, in formulae (1-1) to (1-4), Ar 1 is an organic group having an aromatic ring of 6 to 18 carbon atoms, and Ar 2 represents an organic group having an aromatic ring of 6 to 18 carbon atoms and being linked with Ar 1 through a methylene group or a tertiary carbon atom;

wherein the organic group containing an aromatic ring in Ar 1 or Ar 2 comprises an alkyl group (a1) having 1 to 10 carbon atoms and hydrogen atoms, wherein part or all of the hydrogen atoms may be substituted by a fluorine atom, and a number of substitution is an integer of 1 to 10; wherein at least one of hydrogen atoms of the aromatic ring in Ar 1 or Ar 2 is substituted by a hydroxyl group and/or a carboxyl group, and is optionally substituted by a halogen atom, a nitro group, a cyano group, a methylenedioxy group, an acetoxy group, a methylthio group, an alkoxy group having 1 to 9 carbon atoms, an amino group having hydrogen atoms that may be substituted by an alkyl group having 1 to 3 carbon atoms, an alkyl group having 1 to 6 carbon atoms and hydrogen atoms that may be substituted by a hydroxyl group, a halogenated alkyl group having 1 to 6 carbon atoms, or a combination thereof, and a number of substitution is an integer of 1 to 10.

4. The composition according to claim 3 , wherein Ar 1 represents an organic group represented by any of the following formulae (2-1) to (2-5) or a combination thereof, and the aromatic ring in Ar 1 is appropriately linked with Ar 2 , and Ar 2 represents an organic group represented by the following formula (3-1) or formula (3-2):

wherein, in formulae (2-1) to (2-5) and formula (3-1) or formula (3-2), each of R 3 to R 14 , R 16 , and R 17 independently represents the alkyl group (a1) having 1 to 10 carbon atoms and hydrogen atoms, wherein part or all of the hydrogen atoms may be substituted by a fluorine atom; each of T 3 to T 17 independently comprises a hydroxyl group and/or a carboxyl group and represents a hydrogen atom, a halogen atom, a nitro group, a cyano group, a methylenedioxy group, an acetoxy group, a methylthio group, an alkoxy group having 1 to 9 carbon atoms, an amino group having hydrogen atoms that may be substituted by an alkyl group having 1 to 3 carbon atoms, an alkyl group having 1 to 6 carbon atoms and having hydrogen atoms that may be substituted by a hydroxyl group, a halogenated alkyl group having 1 to 6 carbon atoms, or a combination thereof; each of Q 1 and Q 2 represents a single bond, an oxygen atom, a sulfur atom, a sulfonyl group, a carbonyl group, an imino group, an arylene group having 6 to 40 carbon atoms, an alkylene group having 1 to 10 carbon atoms and having hydrogen atoms that may be substituted by a halogen atom, or a combination thereof, wherein the alkylene group optionally forms a ring; each of m1 to m4, r4, r5, r8 to r14, t4, t5, and t8 to t14 independently represents an integer of 0 to 2; each of r3, r6, r7, r17, t3, t6, t7, and t17 independently represents an integer of 0 to 8; and each of r16 and t16 independently represents an integer of 0 to 9, wherein each of the total of r3 to r14, r16, and r17 and the total of t3 to t14, t16, and t17 is independently an integer of 1 to 10.

5. The composition according to claim 1 , wherein (A) polymer (P) comprises repeating units represented by the following formulae (4-1) and (4-2):

wherein, in formulae (4-1) and (4-2),

R 1 and R 2 are the same or different and represent a hydrogen atom or an alkyl group having 1 to 10 carbon atoms,

Q 1 and Q 2 are the same or different and represent a single bond, an ester linkage (—C(═O)—O— or —O—C(═O)—), or an amide linkage (—NH—CO— or —CO—NH—),

X 2 represents a single bond, an alkylene group having 1 to 10 carbon atoms, or an arylene group having 6 to 14 carbon atoms,

R 1a represents an alkyl group (a1) having 1 to 10 carbon atoms and hydrogen atoms, wherein part or all of the hydrogen atoms may be substituted by a fluorine atom,

n1 represents an integer of 1 to 3, and

m11 represents an integer of 0 to 2.

6. The composition according to claim 2 , wherein the alkyl group (a1) is the following formula (5):

wherein, in formula (5), each of W 1 and W 2 independently represents a hydrogen atom, a fluorine atom, a trifluoromethyl group, a difluoromethyl group, or a monofluoromethyl group, w 3 represents a hydrogen atom, a fluorine atom, or a combination thereof, wherein at least one of W 1 , W 2 , and w 3 is a fluorine atom or the fluorine-containing organic group as defined above, and m10 represents an integer of 0 to 9, wherein a number of the carbon atoms contained in formula (5) is at most 10.

7. The composition according to claim 2 , wherein the alkyl group (a1) is unsubstituted by fluorine atom.

8. The composition according to claim 1 , further comprising an acid compound and/or a basic compound.

9. A method for producing a semiconductor device, the method comprising the steps of:

forming a resist film on a substrate;

applying the composition according to claim 1 to the resist film and calcining the applied composition to form a resist upper-layer film;

subjecting the semiconductor substrate covered with the resist upper-layer film and the resist film to exposure with an EUV light or an electron beam through a mask pattern having a pattern for a semiconductor device;

subjecting the substrate obtained after the exposure to development to remove the resist upper-layer film and the resist film to form a resist pattern; and

subjecting the developed substrate to dry etching or wet etching using the resist pattern as a mask.

10. A method for forming a resist pattern for use in producing a semiconductor device, which comprises the steps of:

forming a resist film on a substrate;

applying the composition according to claim 1 to the resist film and calcining the applied composition to form a resist upper-layer film;

subjecting the semiconductor substrate covered with the resist upper-layer film and the resist film to exposure with an EUV light or an electron beam optionally through a mask pattern having a pattern for a semiconductor device; and

subjecting the substrate obtained after the exposure to development to remove the resist upper-layer film and the resist film to form the resist pattern.

11. A method for producing the composition according to claim 1 , which comprises the step of mixing the polymer (P) and a ketone compound having 4 to 12 carbon atoms as a solvent.

12. The composition according to claim 1 , wherein (a) polymer (P) comprises repeating units represented by any of the following formulae (P-1) to (P-4) and (P-8) to (P-10):

13. The composition according to claim 1 , wherein (a) polymer (P) comprises repeating units represented by any of the following formulae (P-5) to (P-7):

a copolymer of:

a copolymer of:

a copolymer of: