公开(公告)号：US20240329543A1

公开(公告)日：2024-10-03

申请号：US18742869

申请日：2024-06-13

Applicant: KLA Corporation

Inventor： Andrew V. Hill ,  Vladimir Levinski ,  Daria Negri ,  Amnon Manassen ,  Yonatan Vaknin

IPC: G03F7/00 ,  G01B11/27

CPC classification number: G03F7/70633 ,  G01B11/272 ,  G03F7/70683 ,  G03F7/706849 ,  G03F7/706851

Abstract: An overlay metrology system may include illumination sources configured to generate one or more pairs of mutually coherent illumination beams and illumination optics to direct the pairs of illumination beams to an overlay target at common altitude incidence angles and symmetrically opposed azimuthal incidence angles, where the overlay target includes two or more grating structures distributed along one or more measurement directions. The system may further include imaging optics to image the overlay target onto detectors when implementing the metrology recipe, where an image of a particular one of the two or more grating structures includes a sinusoidal interference pattern generated exclusively with a single non-zero diffraction order of light from each of the illumination beams within the particular one of the pairs of illumination beams. The system may further include a controller to determine overlay measurements based on images of the overlay target.

公开(公告)号：US12107052B2

公开(公告)日：2024-10-01

申请号：US18312177

申请日：2023-05-04

Applicant: AUROS TECHNOLOGY, INC.

Inventor： Hyun Chul Lee ,  Hyun Jin Chang

IPC: H01L23/544 ,  G03F7/00 ,  G06T7/00

CPC classification number: H01L23/544 ,  G03F7/70633 ,  G03F7/70683 ,  G03F7/706837 ,  G03F7/706851 ,  G06T7/001 ,  G06T2207/30148 ,  G06T2207/30204 ,  H01L2223/54426

Abstract: An overlay mark forming a Moire pattern, an overlay measurement method using the overlay mark, an overlay measurement apparatus using the overlay mark, and a manufacturing method of a semiconductor device using the overlay mark are provided. The overlay mark for measuring an overlay based on an image is configured to determine a relative misalignment between at least two pattern layers. The overlay mark includes a first overlay mark including a pair of first grating patterns which has a first pitch along a first direction and which is rotationally symmetrical by 180 degrees, and includes a second overlay mark including a pair of second grating patterns and a pair of third grating patterns. The second grating patterns partially overlap the first grating patterns and are rotationally symmetrical by 180 degrees, and the third grating patterns partially overlap the first grating patterns and are rotationally symmetrical by 180 degrees.

公开(公告)号：US20240142884A1

公开(公告)日：2024-05-02

申请号：US18336308

申请日：2023-06-16

Applicant: SK hynix Inc.

Inventor： Joon Seuk LEE

IPC: G03F7/20 ,  G03F7/00

CPC classification number: G03F7/70633 ,  G03F7/70683 ,  G03F7/706849

Abstract: An image based overlay measuring method may include an overlay mark preparation step, an overlay signal generation step and an overlay measuring step. The overlay mark preparation step may include preparing an image based overlay mark including a lower pattern and an upper pattern. The lower pattern and the upper pattern may have an overlapped portion from a planar view. The overlay signal generation step may include generating a lower overlay signal from a lower non-overlapped region of the lower pattern and an upper overlay signal from an upper non-overlapped region of the upper pattern using image information of the image based overlay mark. The overlay measuring step may include comparing the lower overlay signal with the upper overlay signal to measure an overlay.

公开(公告)号：US11966166B2

公开(公告)日：2024-04-23

申请号：US17377648

申请日：2021-07-16

Applicant: ASML NETHERLANDS B.V.

Inventor： Franciscus Godefridus Casper Bijnen ,  Edo Maria Hulsebos ,  Henricus Johannes Lambertus Megens ,  Robert John Socha ,  Youping Zhang

IPC: G03F7/00 ,  G03F9/00 ,  G06F30/39

CPC classification number: G03F7/70425 ,  G03F7/705 ,  G03F7/70516 ,  G03F7/70633 ,  G03F7/70683 ,  G03F7/7085 ,  G03F9/7046 ,  G03F9/7088 ,  G06F30/39

Abstract: A measurement apparatus and method for determining a substrate grid describing a deformation of a substrate prior to exposure of the substrate in a lithographic apparatus configured to fabricate one or more features on the substrate. Position data for a plurality of first features and/or a plurality of second features on the substrate is obtained. Asymmetry data for at least a feature of the plurality of first features and/or the plurality of second features is obtained. The substrate grid based on the position data and the asymmetry data is determined. The substrate grid and asymmetry data are passed to the lithographic apparatus for controlling at least part of an exposure process to fabricate one or more features on the substrate.

公开(公告)号：US11876054B2

公开(公告)日：2024-01-16

申请号：US17323396

申请日：2021-05-18

Applicant: TAIWAN SEMICONDUCTOR MANUFACTURING COMPANY, LTD.

Inventor： Chen-Yu Chen ,  Ming-Feng Shieh ,  Ching-Yu Chang

IPC: H01L23/544 ,  G03F7/00 ,  H01L21/302 ,  H01L29/06 ,  H01L29/78

CPC classification number: H01L23/544 ,  G03F7/70633 ,  G03F7/70683 ,  H01L21/302 ,  H01L29/0649 ,  H01L29/78 ,  H01L2924/0002 ,  H01L2924/0002 ,  H01L2924/00

Abstract: An overlay mark includes a first feature extending in an X-direction, wherein the first feature is a first distance from a substrate. The overlay mark further includes a second feature extending in a Y-direction perpendicular to the X-direction, wherein the second feature is a second distance from the substrate, and the second distance is different from the first distance, wherein at least one of the first feature or the second feature comprises a conductive material. The overlay mark further includes a third feature extending in the X-direction and the Y-direction, wherein the third feature is a third distance from the substrate, and the third distance is different from the first distance and the second distance. The first distance, the second distance and the third distance from the substrate are along a Z-direction perpendicular to both the X-direction and the Y-direction.

公开(公告)号：US20240014078A1

公开(公告)日：2024-01-11

申请号：US18230115

申请日：2023-08-03

Applicant: ASML NETHERLANDS B.V.

Inventor： Adriaan Johan VAN LEEST ,  Anagnostis TSIATMAS ,  Paul Christiaan HINNEN ,  Elliott Gerard Mc NAMARA ,  Alok VERMA ,  Thomas THEEUWES ,  Hugo Augustinus Joseph CRAMER

IPC: H01L21/66 ,  G03F7/00 ,  G03F9/00 ,  G01N21/95

CPC classification number: H01L22/12 ,  G03F7/70683 ,  G03F7/70633 ,  G03F9/7003 ,  G01N21/9501

Abstract: A method of determining a parameter of a patterning process, the method including: obtaining a detected representation of radiation redirected by a structure having geometric symmetry at a nominal physical configuration, wherein the detected representation of the radiation was obtained by illuminating a substrate with a radiation beam such that a beam spot on the substrate was filled with the structure; and determining, by a hardware computer system, a value of the patterning process parameter based on optical characteristic values from an asymmetric optical characteristic distribution portion of the detected radiation representation with higher weight than another portion of the detected radiation representation, the asymmetric optical characteristic distribution arising from a different physical configuration of the structure than the nominal physical configuration.

公开(公告)号：US11846889B2

公开(公告)日：2023-12-19

申请号：US17436305

申请日：2020-02-20

Applicant: ASML NETHERLANDS B.V.

Inventor： Duan-Fu Stephen Hsu ,  Dezheng Sun

IPC: G03F7/00

CPC classification number: G03F7/70641 ,  G03F7/70625 ,  G03F7/70633 ,  G03F7/70683

Abstract: A diffraction pattern guided source mask optimization (SMO) method that includes determining a source variable region from a diffraction pattern. The source variable region corresponds to one or more areas of a diffraction pattern in a pupil for which one or more pupil variables are to be adjusted. The source variable region in the diffraction pattern includes a plurality of pixels in an image of a selected region of interest in the diffraction pattern. Determining the source variable region can include binarization of the plurality of pixels in the image such that individual pixels are either included in the source variable region or excluded from the source variable region. The method can include adjusting the one or more pupil variables for the one or more areas of the pupil that correspond to the source variable region; and rendering a final pupil based on the adjusted one or more pupil variables.

公开(公告)号：US11835867B2

公开(公告)日：2023-12-05

申请号：US17894783

申请日：2022-08-24

Applicant: KIOXIA CORPORATION

Inventor： Masakazu Hamasaki

IPC: G03F9/00 ,  G03F7/00

CPC classification number: G03F7/70683 ,  G03F9/7046

Abstract: According to one embodiment, a measuring device includes a support body, a first light source, a second light source, a first sensor, and a second sensor. The support body is configured to support an end portion of a measurement target. The first light source is disposed on a front surface side of the support body. The second light source is disposed on a rear surface side of the support body. An optical axis of the second light source coincides with an optical axis of the first light source. The first sensor is configured to acquire an image of a mark in the measurement target in accordance with light from the first light source. The second sensor is configured to acquire an image of the mark in the measurement target in accordance with light from the second light source.

公开(公告)号：US20230378085A1

公开(公告)日：2023-11-23

申请号：US18247861

申请日：2021-10-18

Applicant: EXAGAN SAS

Inventor： Matthieu NONGAILLARD ,  Thomas OHEIX

IPC: H01L23/544 ,  G03F7/00

CPC classification number: H01L23/544 ,  G03F7/70616 ,  G03F7/70541 ,  G03F7/70683 ,  H01L2223/54433 ,  H01L2223/5448

Abstract: The invention concerns a method of manufacturing an assembly of electronic components (3) on the front surface of a semiconductor wafer (1) comprising a plurality of field areas (4), each area (4) comprising at least one field (2) and each field (2) comprising at least one electronic component (3). The method comprises a plurality of photolithography steps to form a stack of layers forming each electronic component (3), each photolithography step comprises the application of a mask successively on each field (2) in photolithography equipment. One of the masks further comprises an identification pattern, said mask being called identification mask. At the photolithography step associated with the identification mask, as least one photolithographic parameter of the photolithography equipment is different for each field area (4), to expose the identification pattern differently in each field area (4).

公开(公告)号：US11809090B2

公开(公告)日：2023-11-07

申请号：US16996254

申请日：2020-08-18

Applicant: KLA Corporation

Inventor： Anna Golotsvan ,  Inna Steely-Tarshish ,  Mark Ghinovker ,  Rawi Dirawi

IPC: G01N21/47 ,  G03F7/00 ,  G01N23/2251

CPC classification number: G03F7/70633 ,  G01N21/47 ,  G01N23/2251 ,  G03F7/70608 ,  G03F7/70683 ,  G01N2223/07

Abstract: A metrology target includes a first set of pattern elements compatible with a first metrology mode along one or more directions, and a second set of pattern elements compatible with a second metrology mode along one or more directions, wherein the second set of pattern elements includes a first portion of the first set of pattern elements, and wherein the second set of pattern elements is surrounded by a second portion of the first set of pattern elements not included in the second set of pattern elements.