Abstract: A method of planarizing an overcoat layer on a surface-relief grating includes dispensing a layer of a resin material that is curable by heat or electromagnetic radiation on a surface-relief grating that includes a plurality of grating grooves, pressing the layer of the resin material using a planar imprint stamp, curing the resin material in the layer of the resin material, and detaching the planar imprint stamp from the layer of the resin material. In one example, a thickness of the overcoat layer on top of grating ridges of the surface-relief grating is equal to or less than 20 nm, and a surface peak-to-valley height of a top surface of the overcoat layer is equal to or less than 5 nm.

Abstract: Techniques, systems, and assemblies are presented relating to micro spacers positioned between optical substrates. In some embodiments, a stacked optical assembly comprises a first optical substrate having a first index of refraction greater than 1.4, a second optical substrate having a second index of refraction greater than 1.4 and disposed in a stacked position relative to the first optical substrate, and a plurality of micro spacers positioned between the first optical substrate and the second optical substrate. The plurality of micro spacers may maintain a gap having a gap height between the first optical substrate and the second optical substrate. The plurality of micro spacers may be fixedly attached to (a) the first optical substrate, (b) the second optical substrate, or (c) both the first optical substrate and the second optical substrate.

Abstract: Coating compositions comprise: a curable compound comprising: a core chosen from a C6 carbocyclic aromatic ring, a C2-5 heterocyclic aromatic ring, a C9-30 fused carbocyclic aromatic ring system, a C4-30 fused heterocyclic aromatic ring system, C1-20 aliphatic, and C3-20 cycloaliphatic, and three or more substituents of formula (1) wherein at least two substituents of formula (1) are attached to the aromatic core; provided that no substituents of formula (1) are in an ortho position to each other on the same aromatic ring of the core; a polymer; and one or more solvents, wherein the total solvent content is from 50 to 99 wt % based on the coating composition.

Abstract: A method is provided. The method includes forming a shrink material layer over a substrate including a photoresist pattern. The method also includes exposing the substrate with the shrink material layer to an activating radiation via a grey-tone mask that provides a predetermined light transmittance profile for the activating radiation. The method also includes removing at least a portion of the shrink material layer.

Abstract: Disclosed herein are techniques for fabricating a straight or slanted surface-relief grating with a uniform or non-uniform grating depth. According to certain embodiments, a gray-tone photoresist includes a novolac resin, a diazonaphthoquinone (DNQ) dissolution inhibitor, and one or more crosslinking agents for crosslinking the novolac resin at an elevated temperature to increase a glass transition temperature of the gray-tone photoresist and/or lower an etch rate of the gray-tone photoresist. After gray-tone photo exposure and development, the gray-tone photoresist is baked at the elevated temperature to crosslink. The crosslinked gray-tone photoresist has a higher density and a higher glass transition temperature, and thus would not become flowable to cause ripples or other surface roughness during the etching.

Abstract: A nanocomposite includes a plurality of nanoparticles, where each nanoparticle of the plurality of nanoparticles includes a TiO2 nanoparticle core characterized by a diameter between about 1 nm and about 20 nm and a surface .OH density below about 6.OH/nm2, and a nanoparticle shell conformally formed on surfaces of the TiO2 nanoparticle core. The nanoparticle shell is continuous and is thinner than about 2 nm. The nanoparticle shell includes a transparent material with a refractive index greater than about 1.7 for visible light. A valence band of the nanoparticle shell is more than about 0.1 eV lower than a valence band of the TiO2 nanoparticle core. A conduction band of the nanoparticle shell is more than about 0.5 eV higher than a conduction band of the TiO2 nanoparticle core.

Abstract: An optical device includes an overcoat layer on a surface-relief grating. The overcoat layer is formed by a process including: depositing a layer of a first resin material that is curable by heat or electromagnetic radiation on a surface-relief grating that includes a plurality of grating ridges and a plurality of grating grooves to at least partially fill the plurality of grating grooves, curing the layer of the first resin material, depositing a layer of a second resin material that is curable by heat or electromagnetic radiation and has a higher flowability than the first resin material on the layer of the first resin material, annealing the layer of the second resin material to allow the second resin material to flow and form a planar top surface, and curing the layer of the second resin material.

Abstract: An optical device includes a substrate, a surface-relief grating including grooves and ridges formed on or in the substrate, and an overcoat layer in the grooves of the surface-relief grating. The ridges of the surface-relief grating or the overcoat layer includes a plurality of clusters of metal oxide (e.g., TiO2 or NbOx) nanoparticles. Each cluster of the plurality of clusters of metal oxide nanoparticles includes metal oxide nanoparticles dispersed in an inorganic barrier that isolates the metal oxide nanoparticles from other materials of the optical device. The ridges of the surface-relief grating or the overcoat layer is made of a resin material that includes a resin with inorganic content, and/or TiOx or NbOx nanoparticles including inorganic-containing ligands. A high-energy treatment process can remove organics surrounding the metal oxide nanoparticles and form the barrier layers that surround clusters of metal oxide nanoparticles.

Abstract: An optical device includes a substrate, a first surface-relief grating including grooves and ridges formed on or in the substrate, a first overcoat layer in the grooves of the first surface-relief grating, and a first antireflective layer on the first overcoat layer. The ridges of the first surface-relief grating include high-refractive index, photoactive metal oxide nanoparticles and a material of the first overcoat layer in regions between the metal oxide nanoparticles, or the first overcoat layer includes the metal oxide nanoparticles and a material of the first antireflective layer in regions between the metal oxide nanoparticles. Methods of fabricating the optical device are also described.

Abstract: A multi-layer waveguide display includes a base waveguide layer, one or more grating couplers on one or two surfaces of the base waveguide layer, an overcoat layer on each grating coupler of the one or more grating couplers and filling grating grooves of the grating coupler, and a first waveguide layer stack on a first side of the base waveguide layer. The first waveguide layer stack includes one or more polymer layers. Each of the one or more polymer layers is characterized by a respective refractive index lower than the refractive index of the base waveguide layer. Each polymer layer is formed in a plurality of process cycles, where each process cycle includes dispensing a two-dimensional array of droplets of a resin material to form a thin layer and cross-linking the thin layer to form a sublayer of the polymer layer.

Abstract: A formulation for inkjet printing includes one or more solvents and a plurality of nanoparticles mixed with the one or more solvents. The plurality of nanoparticles has a first refractive index greater than 1.9. A method includes depositing a layer of the formulation by inkjet printing onto a substrate having a non-flat. The method thereby forms coating of the formulation having a first surface conforming to the non-flat surface of the substrate and a second surface, opposite to the first surface, being a flat surface. An optical device includes a surface relief grating and a coating layer disposed on the surface relief grating. The coating layer includes a plurality of nanoparticles having a refractive index greater than 1.45 and a resin. The plurality of nanoparticles has functional ligands cross-linked with the resin.

Abstract: A photoresist underlayer composition comprising a poly(arylene ether); an additive of formula (14): D-(L1-Ar—[X]n)m??(14); and a solvent, wherein, in formula (14), D is a substituted or unsubstituted C1-60 organic group, optionally wherein D is an organic acid salt of the substituted or unsubstituted C1-60 organic group; each L1 is independently a single bond or a divalent linking group, when L1 is a single bond, D may be a substituted or unsubstituted C3-30 cycloalkyl or substituted or unsubstituted C1-20 heterocycloalkyl that is optionally fused with Ar, each Ar is independently a monocyclic or polycyclic C5-60 aromatic group, each X is independently —OR30, —SR31, or —NR32R33, m is an integer of 1 to 6, each n is independently an integer of 0 to 5, provided that a sum of all n is 2 or greater, and R30 to R33 are as provided herein.

Abstract: Polyarylene resins and compositions containing them are useful as underlayers in semiconductor manufacturing processes.

Abstract: Coating compositions comprise: a curable compound comprising: a core chosen from a C6 carbocyclic aromatic ring, a C2-5 heterocyclic aromatic ring, a C9-30 fused carbocyclic aromatic ring system, a C4-30 fused heterocyclic aromatic ring system, C1-20 aliphatic, and C3-20 cycloaliphatic, and three or more substituents of formula (1) wherein at least two substituents of formula (1) are attached to the aromatic core; and wherein: Ar1 is chosen from a C6 carbocyclic aromatic ring, a C2-5 heterocyclic aromatic ring, a C9-30 fused carbocyclic aromatic ring system, and a C4-30 fused heteroocyclic aromatic ring system; Z is a substituent independently chosen from OR1, protected hydroxyl, carboxyl, protected carboxyl, SR1, protected thiol, —O—C(?O)—C1-6 alkyl, halogen, and NHR2; wherein each R1 is independently chosen from H, C1-10 alkyl, C2-10 unsaturated hydrocarbyl, and C5-30 aryl; each R2 is independently chosen from H, C1-10 alkyl, C2-10 unsaturated hydrocarbyl, C5-30 aryl, C(?O)—R1, and S(?O)2—R1; x is an in

Abstract: Compounds having three or more alkynyl moieties substituted with an aromatic moiety having one or more of certain substituents are useful in forming underlayers useful in semiconductor manufacturing processes.

Abstract: A method of manufacturing a semiconductor device comprising: providing a semiconductor device substrate having a relief image on a surface of the substrate, the relief image having a plurality of gaps to be filled; applying a coating composition to the relief image to provide a coating layer, wherein the coating composition comprises (i) a polyarylene oligomer comprising as polymerized units one or more first monomers having two or more cyclopentadienone moieties and one or more second monomers having an aromatic moiety and two or more alkynyl moieties; wherein the polyarylene oligomer has a Mw of 1000 to 6000 Da, a PDI of 1 to 2, and a molar ratio of total first monomers to total second monomers of 1:>1; and (ii) one or more organic solvents; curing the coating layer to form a polyarylene film; patterning the polyarylene film; and transferring the pattern to the semiconductor device substrate.

Abstract: A resist underlayer composition including a polymer having a polymer backbone and a substituted or unsubstituted fullerene group pendant to the polymer backbone, and a solvent in an amount of from 50 to 99.9 weight % based on the total resist underlayer composition.

Abstract: A resist underlayer composition including a polyarylene ether, an additive polymer that is different from the polyarylene ether, and a solvent, wherein the additive polymer includes an aromatic or heteroaromatic group having at least one protected or free functional group selected from hydroxy, thiol, and amino.

Abstract: Polyester compositions are disclosed herein, as well as methods of making and using such polyesters. In some embodiments, the polyesters are formed from monomers derived from natural oils. In some embodiments, the polyesters have lower glass transition temperatures than polyesters of comparable molecular weight.

Abstract: Compounds having three or more alkynyl moieties substituted with an aromatic moiety having one or more of certain substituents are useful in forming underlayers useful in semiconductor manufacturing processes.