Clifford L. Henderson
Associate Professor
Contact Information
Building: Ford ES&T
Office:
1226
Phone: 404.385.0525
Fax: 404.894.2866
email
Mailing Address
Georgia Institute of Technology
School of Chemical &
Biomolecular Engineering
311 Ferst Drive, N.W.
Atlanta, GA 30332-0100
Links
Clifford L. Henderson
Education
B.S. 1994, Georgia Institute of Technology
M.S. 1996, University of Texas at Austin
Ph.D. 1998, University of Texas at Austin
Research Interests
Dr. Henderson's research interests include microelectronics processing, microlithography, photoresists and imaging materials, microstructures, and microfluidics. The general theme of interest in these areas is the concept of patterning, encompassing both the processes and materials used to achieve pattern definition and the use of such processes to build novel materials and devices. Current projects are focused on imaging/resist materials for next-generation lithography (NGL) applications, simulation and modeling of photoresist performance, graft polymerization at solid surfaces, spin-on and photo-definable metal films, and the formation of ultra-thin polymer films.
There is a continuous drive in the semiconductor industry to shrink the size of device features such as the transistor gate in order to produce faster and more powerful microelectronic products. This aggressive schedule of feature size reductions imposes strong demands on the microlithographic technologies and imaging materials used to pattern semiconductor devices. A variety of projects are being pursued in the area of imaging materials (photoresists) that are directed at developing a fundamental understanding of the important physical and chemical processes that control their performance. For example, experimental and modeling studies are being pursued to understand the process of acid generation, simultaneous acid diffusion and reaction, and the polymer dissolution kinetics in chemically amplified (CA) photoresists. There is also a need to develop new imaging materials for next generation lithography systems (such as 193 nm, 157 nm, EUVL, imprint, scanning probe methods, and SCALPEL). Development of new surface imaging techniques and materials is currently being explored for such applications.
The application of such advanced patterning techniques to the formation of novel microstructured materials and other devices (MEMS and microfluidics) is also currently under investigation. The interest in this area is to apply ULSI processing and patterning technologies to the formation of materials with well-defined and custom-tailored microstructures and to other non-semiconductor devices such as microfluidic systems.
Dr. Henderson has also performed research in the area of semiconductor microlithography at Motorola in the Advanced Products Research and Development Laboratory in Austin, Texas. He is a member of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers, the American Chemical Society, and the International Society for Optical Engineering.