The present invention provides a silicone skeleton-containing polymer including a silicone skeleton shown by the following formula (1) and having a weight average molecular weight of 3,000 to 500,000.

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This can provide a silicone skeleton-containing polymer that can easily form a fine pattern with a large film thickness, and can form a cured material layer (cured film) that is excellent in various film properties such as crack resistance and adhesion properties to a substrate, electronic parts, and a semiconductor device, particularly a base material used for a circuit board, and has high reliability as a film to protect electric and electronic parts and a film for bonding substrates; and a photo-curable resin composition that contains the polymer, a photo-curable dry film thereof, a laminate using these materials, and a patterning process.

A method for manufacturing a cured product pattern of a curable composition includes the steps of, in sequence, depositing a droplet of the curable composition onto a substrate; bringing a mold having an uneven pattern formed in a surface thereof into contact with the curable composition; curing the curable composition; and releasing a cured product of the curable composition from the mold. The mold has a recess having a bottom surface and a stair structure arranged to form an opening surface that becomes wider from the bottom surface toward the surface of the mold. In the contact step, the curable composition comes into contact with the stair portion after a top of the droplet comes into contact with the bottom surface.

A transfer film includes a temporary support; and a photosensitive layer, in which the photosensitive layer includes a polymer A containing a constitutional unit represented by Formula A1, a constitutional unit derived from a monomer having an alicyclic structure, and a constitutional unit having a radically polymerizable group, a radically polymerizable compound, and a photopolymerization initiator, a content of the constitutional unit represented by Formula A1 is 10% by mass or more with respect to a total mass of the polymer A, a content of the constitutional unit derived from the monomer having the alicyclic structure is 15% by mass or more with respect to a total mass of the polymer A, and a glass transition temperature of a homopolymer of the monomer having the alicyclic structure is 120° C. or higher. ##STR00001##

A method includes providing a first multilayer structure including a substrate, a thin film, and a first photoresist layer; providing a second multilayer structure including a mold having a microstructure pattern, and a second photoresist layer; combining the first multilayer structure and the second multilayer structure so that the first photoresist layer is in contact with the second photoresist layer; and applying pressure and temperature. An article including a microstructure pattern is also disclosed.

A bottom antireflective coating composition and a method for forming a photoresist relief image. The coating composition comprises a resin containing a structural unit represented by the Formula (1), a structural unit represented by the Formula (2), and a structural unit represented by the Formula (3):

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The structural unit represented by the Formula (1), the structural unit represented by the Formula (2), and the structural unit represented by the Formula (3) is present in the resin in a molar ratio of (0.1-1000):(0.1-1000):1.

Provided is a method for purifying an alkylene glycol monoalkyl ether carboxylic acid ester (AGAECE) for photoresist processing, wherein the method comprises the step of distillation after passing industrial AGAECE through a porous adsorbent impregnated with a basic material, and it is possible to obtain a semiconductor-grade high-purity AGAECE maintaining a low acid value and high purity according to the present invention.

Provided is a method of producing a cured product pattern, including: a first step (arranging step) of arranging a layer formed of a curable composition (α1′) that is the components of the curable composition (α1) except the component (D) serving as a solvent on a substrate; and a second step (applying step) of applying droplets of a curable composition (α2) discretely onto the layer formed of the curable composition (α1), the curable composition (α1) having a number concentration of particles each having a particle diameter of 0.07 μm or more of less than 2,021 particles/mL, and the curable composition (α1′) having a surface tension larger than that of the curable composition (α2).

A shadow mask for patterned vapor deposition of an organic light-emitting diode (OLED) material includes a ceramic membrane under tensile stress with a plurality of through-apertures forming an aperture array through which a vaporized deposition material can pass. A multilayer peripheral support is attached to a rear surface with a hollow portion beneath the aperture array. A compressively-stressed interlayer balances the tensile stress of the ceramic membrane. A shadow mask module with multiple shadow masks is also provided and includes a rigid carrier having plural windows with a shadow mask positioned in each window. To make the module, shadow mask blanks are affixed to each carrier window followed by etching of apertures and support layers. In this way extremely flat masks with precise aperture patterns are formed.

Disclosed herein are methods of purifying compounds useful for the deposition of high purity tin oxide and high purity compounds purified by those methods. Such compounds are those of the Formula as follows R.sub.x—Sn-A.sub.4-x, wherein: A is selected from the group consisting of (Y.sub.aR′.sub.z) and a 3- to 7-membered N-containing heterocyclic group; each R group is independently selected from the group consisting of an alkyl or aryl group having from 1 to 10 carbon atoms; each R′ group is independently selected from the group consisting of an alkyl, acyl or aryl group having from 1 to 10 carbon atoms; x is an integer from 0 to 4; a is an integer from 0 to 1; Y is selected from the group consisting of N, O, S, and P; and z is 1 when Y is O, S or when Y is absent and z is 2 when Y is N or P.

An apparatus for transferring a substrate is provided. A unit for transferring a substrate, includes a support structure, a first hand to place the substrate, a second hand stacked with the first hand and placing the substrate, a first guide rail guiding movement of a first support rod to support the first hand in the support structure, a second guide rail guiding movement of a second support rod in the support structure to support the second hand, and a pressure reducing member reducing pressure of an exhaust fluid passage provided in the support structure. The exhaust fluid passage includes a first fluid passage communicating with the first guide rail, a second fluid passage communicating with the second guide rail, and a third fluid passage formed by combining the first fluid passage with the second fluid passage. The pressure reducing member reduces pressure of the third fluid passage.