https://nanyte.com/photoresists/az-1505 · last updated 2026-07-26
- Manufacturer
- Merck (AZ Electronic Materials)
- Tone
- positive
- Chemistry
- DNQ-novolak
- Thickness
- 0.6–1.6 µm
- Developer
- AZ 300MIF, AZ 726MIF, AZ 917MIF, or AZ 400K
- Applications
- Etch mask · Electroplating / molding · General prototyping
Cross-checked — two independent extractions agree on the spin curve and the single-value figures.
- Substrate
- Resist
- Exposed
Spin coating
Data points
| Series | rpm | µm |
|---|---|---|
| AZ 1505 as supplied | 500 | 1.6 |
| 1000 | 1.1 | |
| 1500 | 0.95 | |
| 2000 | 0.85 | |
| 2500 | 0.80 | |
| 3000 | 0.65 | |
| 3500 | 0.60 | |
| 4000 | 0.60 |
Values are the manufacturer’s starting points, not a guarantee — characterize on your own tool. Series digitized from a published figure are approximate (±10 %).
read from figure, "SPIN CURVES (150mm Wafers)" chart, p.1 of AZ 1500 Series Technical Datasheet (Merck, Rev. 03/21); AZ 1505 identified by its blue diamond legend marker, distinct from AZ 1512 (magenta square), AZ 1518 (red triangle) and AZ 1529 (green circle) plotted on the same axes. The chart is the only source for these points — no numeric table accompanies it — so treat them as a figure read.
- Datasheet does not state spin ramp/acceleration, dispense volume, or static vs dynamic dispense for the spin-curve chart.
- Spin coating is named as one of several compatible coating methods (spray and roller coating are also mentioned, p.6 COATING) but no method-specific parameters are published beyond that.
- No edge-bead-removal recipe is given, only that AZ EBR Solvent or AZ EBR 70/30 are the companion EBR products (p.2).
- Adhesion
- HMDS recommended — "Oxide forming substrates (Si, etc.) should be primed with HMDS (hexamethyl disilazane) or other suitable primer prior to coating AZ 1500.1
Soft bake
- Soft bake
- 90–110 °C
- Notes
- Datasheet states soft bake temperature should be in the 90-110°C range (higher end improves adhesion to metals); bakes may be performed on hotplate or in a vented oven, but no single temperature, no time, and no specific method is given for AZ 1505.
SOURCE: TYPICAL PROCESS, p.1; PROCESS CONSIDERATIONS / SOFT BAKE, p.6
Exposure dose
Every exposure number printed in this sheet is captioned for AZ 1512 or AZ 1518; none of it is AZ 1505 data, and a figure taken on a thicker grade does not transfer. Run a dose array on your own tool to land the working dose.
- Post-exposure bake
- 105–115 °C
Not published for this resist: Dose at 365 nm, Dose at 405 nm — characterize on-tool.
Development
- Developer
- AZ 300MIF, AZ 726MIF, AZ 917MIF, or AZ 400K
- Dilution
- AZ 400K used 1:4 for tank immersion; dilution of the MIF developers is not stated in this datasheet.
- Time
- 60 s
- Developer family
- TMAH or buffered alkaline
Not published for this resist: Method, Rinse — characterize on-tool.
SOURCE: TYPICAL PROCESS, p.1; DEVELOPING, p.6
Hard bake, etch & strip
- Hard bake
- 100–110 °C
- Etch resistance
- Marketed for "demanding wet etch applications" with "excellent substrate adhesion"; no quantitative etch rate or resistance data is published in this datasheet.2
- Stripper
- AZ 300T, AZ 400T, or AZ Kwik Strip — removers designed for DNQ/novolac type photoresists.3
Not published for this resist: Descum, Storage — characterize on-tool.
SOURCE: HARD BAKE, p.6
Where it's used
Practical notes from the datasheet
AZ 1505 is the thinnest member of Merck's AZ 1500 series, a general-purpose positive DNQ/novolak-type resist family sold for demanding wet-etch masking where strong substrate adhesion matters (the datasheet's stripper guidance — removers "designed for DNQ/novolac type photoresists" — is the basis for this chemistry classification, since the document never states the chemistry as a standalone claim). Soft-bake, optional-PEB, and hard-bake temperatures are all given only as ranges (90-110°C, 105-115°C, 100-110°C respectively) rather than single set points, so a specific process must be optimized on-tool rather than read off this sheet verbatim. No exposure dose, PEB time, or storage/shelf-life data is published for AZ 1505 specifically — the only doses and resolution/depth-of-focus data in this datasheet were captured for the AZ 1512 and AZ 1518 grades, not AZ 1505. Develop is 60 s by puddle or immersion in a metal-ion-free (TMAH, e.g. AZ 300/726/917MIF) or inorganic (e.g. AZ 400K 1:4) developer, both explicitly supported. HMDS (or another suitable primer) is recommended ahead of coating on oxide-forming substrates such as silicon.
Grades in this family
Other grades in the AZ 1500 series line differ mainly in coating thickness:
Troubleshooting
Common failure modes for AZ 1505, answered from the manufacturer's datasheet and application notes. These are starting points — your substrate, tooling and environment shift the specifics, so calibrate on-tool.
What exposure dose should I use for AZ 1505?
This datasheet publishes no exposure dose for AZ 1505. The doses it does print — 80–100 mJ/cm² and 130–150 mJ/cm² — come from resolution and depth-of-focus figures captioned for AZ 1512 and AZ 1518 respectively, not AZ 1505, and must not be borrowed. The series is sensitive across 310–450 nm with 365–436 nm recommended; characterize a working dose on-tool.
SOURCE: AZ 1500 Series Technical Datasheet (Merck, Rev. 03/21) — EXPOSURE, p.6; grade-captioned test figures, p.3–5
How thick a film does AZ 1505 coat?
AZ 1505 is the thinnest grade in the AZ 1500 series. On the p.1 spin-speed chart (150 mm wafers) it coats about 1.6 µm at 500 rpm, falling to roughly 0.6 µm by 3,500–4,000 rpm. The datasheet's stated 0.5–6 µm figure is a whole-series span across all four grades, not AZ 1505 alone.
SOURCE: AZ 1500 Series Technical Datasheet (Merck, Rev. 03/21) — SPIN CURVES (150 mm Wafers), p.1
What soft bake does AZ 1505 need?
The datasheet gives only a series-wide range: soft-bake temperature should be 90–110°C, with the higher end improving adhesion to metals; the bake may be done on a hotplate or in a vented oven. No single temperature, time or method is stated for AZ 1505, so optimize the bake on-tool.
SOURCE: AZ 1500 Series Technical Datasheet (Merck, Rev. 03/21) — TYPICAL PROCESS, p.1; SOFT BAKE, p.6
Which developer and develop time should I use for AZ 1505?
Develop for 60 s by puddle or immersion. The datasheet offers metal-ion-free developers (AZ 300MIF, AZ 726MIF, AZ 917MIF) or AZ 400K used 1:4 for tank immersion. Both puddle and immersion are explicitly supported, so no single method is designated — pick to match your developer.
SOURCE: AZ 1500 Series Technical Datasheet (Merck, Rev. 03/21) — TYPICAL PROCESS, p.1; DEVELOPING, p.6
Does AZ 1505 need a post-exposure bake?
A PEB is optional. It is used to maximize process latitude and mitigate standing-wave effects from monochromatic exposure; when used, the temperature should be in the 105–115°C range. No time is published and no single value is given, so develop the PEB on-tool if your process needs it.
SOURCE: AZ 1500 Series Technical Datasheet (Merck, Rev. 03/21) — TYPICAL PROCESS, p.1; POST EXPOSURE BAKE, p.6
Sources & disclaimer
- Merck (AZ Electronic Materials) — AZ 1505 datasheet (Rev. (03/21)) · accessed 2026-07-10
- SUBSTRATE PREPARATION, p.6.
- APPLICATION, p.1.
- STRIPPING, p.7.
- Isaac et al.. Three-dimensional platinum nanoparticle-based bridges for ammonia gas sensing. Scientific Reports (2021). doi:10.1038/s41598-021-91975-wAZ1505 was spin-coated and patterned with circular openings down to the underlying metal tracks, defining the contact geometry for a platinum-nanoparticle ammonia gas sensor.
- Cabral et al.. Clean-Room Lithographical Processes for the Fabrication of Graphene Biosensors. Materials (2020). doi:10.3390/ma13245728AZ1505 was run at 600 nm and 1035 nm as a plasma-etch mask for graphene patterning and for passivation-stack RIE, with the authors reporting how the resist itself erodes under ECR and ICP plasma exposure.
- Heide et al.. Encoded diffractive optics for full-spectrum computational imaging. Scientific Reports (2016). doi:10.1038/srep33543A 0.6 um AZ1505 layer spin-coated on chrome formed the lithography step used to build encoded diffractive optical elements for computational imaging.
Manufacturer datasheet values are starting points; optimal parameters depend on your substrate, equipment and environment. Product names and trademarks belong to their respective owners. NANYTE is not affiliated with the manufacturers listed. Last updated 2026-07-26.