The Journal of Organic Chemistry
Article
Figure 5. Kinetics of photoconversion of 1 (25 mM) to 2, 3, and 4 determined by HPLC analysis of photolyzed acetonitrile solutions a 254 nm. See
Supporting Information, Figure S11, for HPLC traces.
the expected photoproduct 4 based on HPLC-MS analysis
(Supporting Information, Figures S9 and S10). A quantum yield
for loss of 2 of Φ = 0.56 0.02 was determined using valerophen-
one as actinometer, which demonstrates the efficiency of this
photoreaction.
ester 2 (PBG) undergoes N−O cleavage with a high quantum
yield (Φ = 0.56 for direct photolysis of 2, λex = 254 nm) leading to
the imine 4, which generates the desired base upon reaction with
water. Because the production of 4 from 1 involves two sequen-
tial photolysis steps, the desired delayed generation of 4 was
observed. However, for the material to be used in practical resist
formulations for photolithography with 193 nm light, the relative
rates of both sequential steps should be of similar magnitude.
The rates are determined by the extinction coefficients of 1 and 2
at the excitation wavelength and the quantum yields for each
photoreaction step. While the extinction coefficients of 1 and 2
are similar, the quantum yield for the second step (2 + hν →
base) is 1 order of magnitude larger compared to the first step
(1 + hν → 2). Therefore, the overall rate is dominated by the
kinetics of the slowest step (1 + hν → 2), and the desired delay in
the onset of base generation is reduced. Further chemical mod-
ification of the system is needed before it meets the requirements
for industrial use in resist formulations for pitch division photo-
lithography.
Using the model compounds 1M and 2, both photochemical
steps have been investigated separately as described above. To
study the entire sequential two-step base generation as outlined
in Scheme 1, acetonitrile solutions of 1 were irradiated at 254 nm
and analyzed by HPLC (Supporting Information, Figure S11).
Using authentic samples and quantitative HPLC calibration, the
concentrations of the major product (3) and intermediate (2)
were determined. Figure 5 shows the concentrations of 1, 2,
and 3 with increasing photolysis time. With consumption of 1,
the concentrations of 2 and 3 increase. As soon as enough 2 is
generated to compete for the excitation light at 254 nm (ε2 =
2360 M−1 cm−1 and ε1 = 7070 M−1 cm−1; Figure 1), photo-
product 4 is formed and the concentration of 2 decreases.
We were unable to determine the concentrations for the genera-
tion of 4 due to the lack of an authentic sample of 4 for quan-
titative HPLC calibration. Therefore, only relative concentrations of
4 are plotted in Figure 5 (right, green line). The formation of sig-
nificant amounts of 4 is observed after an inhibition time of ∼20 min
(Figure 5, green line), which shows that only at higher light doses
the second photolysis step gains importance. This delayed base
generation is a desired characteristic for potential application of 1 in
photoresist systems using pitch division technology.3
EXPERIMENTAL SECTION
■
Materials. The synthesis and characterization of compounds 1, 2, 6, 1M,
and p-OCH3-1M have been described previously.4
Laser flash photolysis experiments employed the pulses from a Nd:YAG
laser (266 nm, 5 ns) and a computer-controlled system, which has
been described previously.16 Acetonitrile solutions containing 1M, 3,
p-OCH3-1M, or p-OCH3-acetophenone were prepared at concentrations
to have an absorbance of 0.3 at 266 nm (1 cm optical path length). The
sample solutions were deoxygenated by argon purging.
High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) was performed on a
system equipped with a photodiode array detector and an ESI mass
detector. The injection volume was typical 10 μL. A reverse-phase C18
column (C18 5 μm 4.6 × 100 mm column) was used for all HPLC runs.
HPLC-grade water and acetonitrile were used as mobile phases with
either isocratic or gradient modes. The flow rate for all HPLC runs was
1 mL/min. The system was equilibrated with the mobile phases for at
least 20 min before each run. The samples being injected were dissolved
in acetonitrile if not specified.
CONCLUSIONS
■
We have demonstrated that 1, a latent PBG, functions as a two-
stage PBG. Upon photolysis of 1, the generated triplet excited
states of the acetophenone moiety undergo Norrish type II reac-
tion with the CH moiety, leading to generation of 2 (PBG). The
quantum yield of this type II reaction of the AP triplet is relatively
low (Φ ∼ 0.04 at λex = 254 nm) due to competition with the more
efficient triplet energy transfer from the acetophenone to the
cyclohexenone moiety. However, this low quantum yield for type
II reaction is sufficient to generate significant amounts of 2 on
steady-state irradiation. In the second photolysis step, the oxime
Quantum yield measurement. Valerophenone with a quantum yield of
1 (loss of valerophenone in acetonitrile solutions)14 was used as actinometer
for quantum yield measurements. The loss of valerophenone was quantified
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dx.doi.org/10.1021/jo302149u | J. Org. Chem. 2013, 78, 1735−1741