Immersion lithography defectivity analysis at DUV inspection wavelength

E. Golan; D. Meshulach; N. Raccah; J. Ho. Yeo; O. Dassa; S. Brandl; C. Schwarz; B. Pierson; W. Montgomery

doi:10.1117/12.712400

5 April 2007 Immersion lithography defectivity analysis at DUV inspection wavelength

E. Golan, D. Meshulach, N. Raccah, J. Ho. Yeo, O. Dassa, S. Brandl, C. Schwarz, B. Pierson, W. Montgomery

Proceedings Volume 6518, Metrology, Inspection, and Process Control for Microlithography XXI; 65180S (2007) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.712400
Event: SPIE Advanced Lithography, 2007, San Jose, California, United States

Abstract

Significant effort has been directed in recent years towards the realization of immersion lithography at 193nm wavelength. Immersion lithography is likely a key enabling technology for the production of critical layers for 45nm and 32nm design rule (DR) devices. In spite of the significant progress in immersion lithography technology, there remain several key technology issues, with a critical issue of immersion lithography process induced defects. The benefits of the optical resolution and depth of focus, made possible by immersion lithography, are well understood. Yet, these benefits cannot come at the expense of increased defect counts and decreased production yield. Understanding the impact of the immersion lithography process parameters on wafer defects formation and defect counts, together with the ability to monitor, control and minimize the defect counts down to acceptable levels is imperative for successful introduction of immersion lithography for production of advanced DR's. In this report, we present experimental results of immersion lithography defectivity analysis focused on topcoat layer thickness parameters and resist bake temperatures. Wafers were exposed on the 1150i-α-immersion scanner and 1200B Scanner (ASML), defect inspection was performed using a DUV inspection tool (UVision^TM, Applied Materials). Higher sensitivity was demonstrated at DUV through detection of small defects not detected at the visible wavelength, indicating on the potential high sensitivity benefits of DUV inspection for this layer. The analysis indicates that certain types of defects are associated with different immersion process parameters. This type of analysis at DUV wavelengths would enable the optimization of immersion lithography processes, thus enabling the qualification of immersion processes for volume production.

Citation Download Citation

E. Golan, D. Meshulach, N. Raccah, J. Ho. Yeo, O. Dassa, S. Brandl, C. Schwarz, B. Pierson, and W. Montgomery "Immersion lithography defectivity analysis at DUV inspection wavelength", Proc. SPIE 6518, Metrology, Inspection, and Process Control for Microlithography XXI, 65180S (5 April 2007); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.712400

ACCESS THE FULL ARTICLE

INSTITUTIONAL
Select your institution to access the SPIE Digital Library.

SELECT YOUR INSTITUTION

PERSONAL
Sign in with your SPIE account to access your personal subscriptions or to use specific features such as save to my library, sign up for alerts, save searches, etc.

PERSONAL SIGN IN

No SPIE Account? Create one

PURCHASE THIS CONTENT

SUBSCRIBE TO DIGITAL LIBRARY

50 downloads per 1-year subscription

Members: $195

Non-members: $335 ADD TO CART

25 downloads per 1 - year subscription

Members: $145

Non-members: $250 ADD TO CART

PURCHASE SINGLE ARTICLE

Includes PDF, HTML & Video, when available