Immersion Lithography with Using of Photostimulated Etching of Germanium Chalcogenide Films

The new effect of photo-stimulated dissolution of as-evaporated and annealed Ge-based chalcogenide glass (ChG) films was investigated. The etching rate increases with the illumination intensity, and its spectral dependence is correlated with absorption in the film at the absorption edge. The high-frequency diffraction gratings on germanium ChG - more environmentally acceptable compounds than traditionally used arsenic chalcogenides, were recorded by method of interference immersion photolithography with photoinduced etching.