➀ High-NA EUV lithography faces significant challenges in 2nm node manufacturing due to photon absorption stochastics and reduced depth of focus, leading to edge roughness and resolution limitations;

➁ Multipatterning becomes mandatory for via connections below 10 nm, requiring up to four masks for source-drain contacts even with advanced lithography tools;

➂ Self-aligned patterning techniques and diagonal grid layouts are critical to minimize mask layers and address center-to-center spacing as small as 40 nm.