Detailed Mesoscale Dynamic Simulation of Block Copolymer Directed Self-Assembly Processes: Application of Protracted Colored Noise Dynamics

Directed self-assembly (DSA) of block copolymers is a promising technique for producing sub-30 nm pitch regular patterns, and the development of these DSA techniques could benefit greatly from computer simulation of such methods. Current simulation methods such as mean field approaches suffer from a number of limitations that affect their accuracy and their level of detail. In this work a simulation approach based on the use of Protracted Colored Noise Dynamics (PCND) with coarse grained mesoscale polymer models based on statistical segment beads has been developed and studied. It has been shown that using PCND allows simulations to reach an equilibrium state at least 35 times faster than without PCND.