At Sematech’s Litho Forum this week in Bolton Landing, N.Y., the proponents of various next-generation technologies are duking it out to demonstrate worthiness as water immersion successors. The session on high-index immersion lithography just wrapped up, and it ended with a solid thud.

EUV and double patterning sessions were presented in full yesterday, but high-index was split between yesterday afternoon and this morning. Although yesterday’s high-index presentations were interesting (including updates on resists, fluids and lens materials), today’s updates from the lithography tool manufacturers really got to the important question: Is high-index immersion lithography in fact feasible?

Granted, ASML and Canon did not go so far in their presentations. They both expressed some concerns, with the key potential showstopper being LuAG transparency and development, but they also expressed a certain optimism for the benefits of the technology. Nonetheless, ASML’s Harry Sewell and Canon’s Akiyoshi Suzuki seemed to indicate — as did Owa — that interest from their customers was luke warm, at best. That in itself will be a definite deterrent to developing high-index lithography tools.

It’s a shame really, because several good results were presented from various high-index groups, both in the presentations yesterday and last night’s poster session (check back later tonight or tomorrow for more results on our Lithography Channel). But it’s a case of too little, too late. The high-index folks are a scrappy bunch, though, so I’m guessing the fight is far from over.

But now it’s time for the session on nanoimprint lithography. Session chair Lloyd Litt, of Sematech, says he hopes his session is not as exciting as the high-index session. Indeed. But the nanoimprint proponents are another scrappy bunch…