page_title: Chemistry of photolithography
hierarchical_section_title: Chemistry of photolithography
caption_attribution_description: English: Two solar cells created at the Cal Poly Microfab Clean Room. One wafer is sintered with aluminum and the other with gold. Standard practices were followed to create these two solar cells.
context_page_description: Photolithography is a process in removing select portions of thin films used in microfabrication. Microfabrication is the production of parts on the micro- and nano- scale, typically on the surface of silicon wafers, for the production of integrated circuits, microelectromechanical systems, solar cells, and other devices. Photolithography makes this process possible through the combined use of hexamethyldisilazane, photoresist, spin coating, photomask, an exposure system and other various chemicals. By carefully manipulating these factors it is possible to create nearly any geometry microstructure on the surface of a silicon wafer. The chemical interaction between all the different components and the surface of the silicon wafer makes photolithography an interesting chemistry problem. Current science has been able to create features on the surface of silicon wafers between 1 and 100 μm.
context_section_description: Photolithography is a process in removing select portions of thin films used in microfabrication. Microfabrication is the production of parts on the micro- and nano- scale, typically on the surface of silicon wafers, for the production of integrated circuits, microelectromechanical systems (MEMS), solar cells, and other devices. Photolithography makes this process possible through the combined use of hexamethyldisilazane (HMDS), photoresist (positive or negative), spin coating, photomask, an exposure system and other various chemicals. By carefully manipulating these factors it is possible to create nearly any geometry microstructure on the surface of a silicon wafer. The chemical interaction between all the different components and the surface of the silicon wafer makes photolithography an interesting chemistry problem. Current science has been able to create features on the surface of silicon wafers between 1 and 100 μm.
caption: A gold and aluminum sputtered solar cell manufactured from a <100> p-type silicon wafer at the Cal Poly San Luis Obispo Microfab clean room.
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