Lithographic Innovations for Advanced Packaging: Enabling Scalable Integration Across Large Fields

Advanced packaging is a critical enabler for AI performance scaling, leveraging high-bandwidth, low-latency interconnects and heterogeneous integration of specialized compute elements. These architectural shifts are driving demand for increased interconnect density, expanded package dimensions, and flexible chiplet-based designs. However, they also introduce significant challenges in lithographic patterning, particularly in maintaining overlay accuracy and critical dimension control across large exposure fields, diverse material stacks, and non-planar topographies. This paper presents a comprehensive evaluation of a 52 × 52 mm exposure field exposed on a new i-line scanner developed to address the diverse lithography requirements of advanced packaging. We demonstrate wafer alignment using a diffraction-based sensor and topography transfer schemes, enabling alignment through embedded metals for applications traditionally reliant on image-based alignment. We demonstrate substantial overlay improvements in thick-resist applications, validating the scanner’s capability for high-precision patterning in advanced packaging environments. Furthermore, we analyze critical dimension uniformity (CDU) across the full 52 × 52 mm exposure field for both line/space and via structures, with particular attention to stitching effects and large-field pattern fidelity. These results underscore the scanner’s capability to meet next-generation packaging requirements with enhanced lithographic performance.