https://nanyte.com/photoresists/az-p4400 · last updated 2026-09-28
- Manufacturer
- Merck KGaA (AZ Electronic Materials)
- Tone
- positive
- Chemistry
- DNQ-novolak
- Thickness
- 4–6 µm
- Developer
- AZ 400K at 1:4, or at 1:3 / AZ 421K (unbuffered) for films above 12 µm; AZ Developer 1:1 where aluminium must not be etched; AZ 340 is also listed
- Applications
- Electroplating / molding · Etch mask
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 | Published dose |
|---|---|---|---|
| AZ P4400 | 1000 | 8.5 | — |
| 1500 | 7.0 | — | |
| 2000 | 6.0 | — | |
| 2500 | 5.5 | — | |
| 3000 | 5.0 | — | |
| 3500 | 4.6 | — | |
| 4000 | 4.4 | — | |
| 4500 | 4.0 | — | |
| 5000 | 3.9 | — |
Values are the manufacturer’s starting points, not a guarantee — characterize on your own tool. Series digitized from a published figure are approximate (±10 %).
Published dose is the datasheet’s own thickness bracket, quoted as printed — the full table and its citation are in the exposure section. A thickness the table does not cover shows nothing, and a thickness within 10 % of a bracket edge shows every bracket it could fall in.
read from figure — the blue square markers legended 'P4400' on the 'Typical spin curves (150mm substrate)' chart, p.2 of the AZ P4000 Series technical datasheet, Rev. (08/21). Nine plotted markers at 500 rpm steps from 1000 to 5000 rpm; no numeric table accompanies the chart. Each point is read against the chart's 1 µm gridlines; treat each value as a figure read of about ±5 %.
- The highest trace on the chart, from about 8.5 µm at 1000 rpm to 3.9 µm at 5000 rpm; the rated 4.0-6.0 µm lands between roughly 2000 and 4500 rpm.
- The 1000 and 1500 rpm points sit above the 7.0 µm limit the sheet gives for spinning to equilibrium, so treat them as less repeatable than the rest.
- The chart is for a 150 mm substrate.
- The sheet notes that films up to 8.0 µm, depending on wafer size, can be spun to equilibrium from these curves, and that single films above 7.0 µm are not spun to equilibrium — thicker coats come from timed spread-and-spin programs or multiple coats.
- No dispense volume or acceleration is published for spins inside this range; the only coating sequence given is for films above 20 µm.
- Adhesion
- HMDS recommended — 'Substrates must be clean, dry, and free of organic residues. Oxide forming substrates (Si, etc.) should be HMDS primed prior to coating AZ P4000' (Substrate preparation, p.6). A soft bake towards 115 °C also improves adhesion to most metals.
- Rehydration
- Required for films thicker than 4.0 µm: hold between soft bake and exposure for typically 30-60 minutes, depending on film thickness, at 40-45 % relative humidity (Film rehydration, p.6). The p.3 reference process for a 12 µm AZ P4620 film uses a 30 min hold at 42 % RH.
Soft bake
- Soft bake
- 95–115 °C
- Rehydrate
- 30–60 min (films over 4 µm, 40–45 % RH)
- Notes
- No time is published for this grade. The process-considerations page gives 95-115 °C and calls bake conditions application specific; the typical-process box on p.1 prints the window as 90-115 °C, so the two pages differ by 5 °C at the low end, and the narrower one is carried. Temperatures towards 115 °C improve adhesion to most metals, and thicker films may need a ramped bake to stop solvent outgassing from raising bubbles.
SOURCE: Soft bake section, p.6, and typical process box, p.1, of the AZ P4000 Series technical datasheet, Rev. (08/21)
SOURCE: Film Rehydration, p.6 of the AZ P4000 Series technical…
Film Rehydration, p.6 of the AZ P4000 Series technical datasheet: "P4000 photoresist films thicker than 4.0µm require a rehydration hold between soft bake and exposure. Hold times are typically 30-60 minutes (depending upon film thickness) @ relative humidity 40-45%."
Exposure dose
AZ P4400's dose is published against film thickness, not as a single number. Read the row for the film you coat and run a dose array around it.
- As published
- No dose is given for AZ P4400 by name. The series table gives approximate Suss MA-200 aligner doses by film thickness: 90 mJ/cm² at 1.5 µm, 135 mJ/cm² at 3.5 µm and 800 mJ/cm² at 12 µm.
| Film thickness | Dose |
|---|---|
| 1.5 µm | 90 mJ/cm² |
| 3.5 µm | 135 mJ/cm² |
| 12 µm | 800 mJ/cm² |
SOURCE: 'Approximate exposure dose requirement vs. film thickness…
'Approximate exposure dose requirement vs. film thickness (Suss MA-200)' table, p.5 of the AZ P4000 Series technical datasheet, Rev. (08/21): 1.5 µm 90 mJ/cm², 3.5 µm 135 mJ/cm², 12 µm 800 mJ/cm². The table is published for the P4000 series as a whole, indexed by film thickness rather than by grade.
Development
- Developer
- AZ 400K at 1:4, or at 1:3 / AZ 421K (unbuffered) for films above 12 µm; AZ Developer 1:1 where aluminium must not be etched; AZ 340 is also listed
- Dilution
- AZ 400K 1:4 for better selectivity on thinner films, 1:3 for films above 12 µm; AZ Developer 1:1
- Method
- spray or immersion
- Developer family
- Buffered alkaline
Not published for this resist: Time, Rinse — characterize on-tool.
SOURCE: Developing section, p.6, and companion products, p.1, of the AZ P4000 Series technical datasheet, Rev. (08/21)
Hard bake, etch & strip
- Hard bake
- 100–110 °C
- Etch resistance
- 'Excellent substrate adhesion for wet etch applications' (p.1); a 100-110 °C hard bake 'improves adhesion in wet etch or plating applications and improves pattern stability in dry etch processes' (p.6).
- Stripper
- AZ 300T, AZ 400T or AZ Kwik Strip (companion products, p.1).
Not published for this resist: Descum, Storage — characterize on-tool.
SOURCE: Hard bake section, p.6, and dielectric insulator table, p.5, of the AZ P4000 Series technical datasheet, Rev. (08/21)
Where it's used
Practical notes from the datasheet
AZ P4400 is the 4-6 µm grade of the P4000 series (184 cSt at 23 °C), the thickest one charted on the sheet's spin curve and the last one below the thick-film AZ P4620. Almost its whole curve sits above the sheet's 4.0 µm rehydration threshold — only the fastest spin, about 3.9 µm at 5000 rpm, falls below it — so plan a 30-60 minute hold at 40-45 % RH between soft bake and exposure. The series dose table has no row at this thickness — 135 mJ/cm² at 3.5 µm and 800 mJ/cm² at 12 µm bracket it widely — so run a dose matrix. Soft bake at 95-115 °C, ramping up for the thicker end to avoid solvent bubbles; develop in AZ 400K 1:4 by spray or immersion. The plating-safe photoactive compound is the reason to choose this family for moulds of this height.
Grades in this family
Other grades in the AZ P4000 Series line differ mainly in coating thickness:
| Grade | Thickness |
|---|---|
| AZ P4110 | 1–3 µm |
| AZ P4210 | 2–4 µm |
| AZ P4330-RS | 3–5 µm |
| AZ P4400 (this page) | 4–6 µm |
| AZ P4620 | 6–20 µm |
| AZ P4903 | 10–30 µm |
Troubleshooting
Common failure modes for AZ P4400, 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.
Bubbles or cracks appear in AZ P4400 during exposure — what should I change?
The nitrogen released during exposure of a positive resist has to diffuse out before it builds up, and the thicker the film the harder that gets — AZ P4400 runs 4.0–6.0 µm. MicroChemicals lists the fixes: a full soft bake, since leftover solvent lets the N2 form bubbles (the datasheet's range is 95–115 °C); good adhesion, since bubbles form where adhesion is weak; and lower exposure intensity, or the exposure split into steps with pauses, so the N2 can outgas in time.
SOURCE: MicroChemicals 'Photolithography Trouble Shooter' application…
MicroChemicals 'Photolithography Trouble Shooter' application note — Bubbles in Resist Film After Exposure, p.14–15. AZ P4000 Series Technical datasheet (Merck, Rev. 08/21) — Thickness Grades, p.1; Soft Bake, p.6
Does every AZ P4400 film need the rehydration hold, even at the thin end?
In practice, yes. The datasheet requires a rehydration hold between soft bake and exposure for P4000 films thicker than 4.0 µm, and AZ P4400's rated range is 4.0–6.0 µm — on the spin curve it stays near or above 4 µm even at 4500 rpm. Hold typically 30–60 min depending on thickness, at 40–45 % relative humidity. MicroChemicals adds that even after a long enough hold, development rate drops significantly below about 40 % RH, so a dry cleanroom still slows the develop.
SOURCE: AZ P4000 Series Technical datasheet (Merck, Rev. 08/21) —…
AZ P4000 Series Technical datasheet (Merck, Rev. 08/21) — Thickness Grades, p.1; Typical Spin Curves, p.2; Film Rehydration, p.6. MicroChemicals 'Photolithography Trouble Shooter' application note — Development: Insufficient Development Rate, p.6
AZ P4400 profiles round off during hard bake or metal deposition — how hot is too hot?
The datasheet keeps hard bake at 100–110 °C to ensure minimal thermal distortion, and offers higher temperatures to crosslink the resin when the pattern is meant to stay as a permanent insulator. MicroChemicals puts the softening point of most positive AZ resists at 110–130 °C; if an evaporation source, a growing film or ion energy heats the resist past it during deposition or dry etch, the profile rounds, the sidewalls get coated and lift-off works worse or not at all.
SOURCE: AZ P4000 Series Technical datasheet (Merck, Rev. 08/21) — Hard…
AZ P4000 Series Technical datasheet (Merck, Rev. 08/21) — Hard Bake, p.6. MicroChemicals 'Photolithography Trouble Shooter' application note — Dry Etching: Resist Rounding/Flowing?, p.16; Lift-off: Resist Softening and Rounding during Coating?, p.18
AZ P4400 development slows down across a batch in the same bath — why?
The developer is being used up. MicroChemicals gives two mechanisms: CO2 from the air neutralises an open bath over time, and dissolved resist exhausts it — as a rule of thumb, about one part per thousand of resist in a typical developer significantly reduces the rate, and a 4–6 µm film puts a lot of resist into the bath. Refresh the bath on a schedule. For this thickness the datasheet recommends AZ 400K 1:4 for its selectivity; 1:3 and AZ 421K are for films above 12 µm.
SOURCE: MicroChemicals 'Photolithography Trouble Shooter' application…
MicroChemicals 'Photolithography Trouble Shooter' application note — Expired Developer? (Neutralization by CO2; Exhaustion by Developed Resist), p.7. AZ P4000 Series Technical datasheet (Merck, Rev. 08/21) — Developing, p.6
Sources & disclaimer
- Merck KGaA (AZ Electronic Materials) — AZ P4400 datasheet (Rev. (08/21)) · accessed 2026-09-10
- https://www.microchemicals.com/dokumente/datenblaetter/tds/merck/en/tds_az_p4620_photoresist.pdf — AZ P4620 Photoresist Data Package, 'Thick Photoresist Product Summary' (p.3): the table lists the 'P4000 Series' row with Platform 'DNQ' — the basis for classifying AZ P4400 as dnq-novolak.
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 2026-09-28.