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16 September 2016 Scanning coherent diffractive imaging methods for actinic extreme ultraviolet mask metrology
Patrick Helfenstein, Istvan Mohacsi, Rajendran Rajeev, Yasin Ekinci
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Journal of Micro/Nanolithography, MEMS, and MOEMS, Vol. 15, Issue 3, 034006 (September 2016). https://doi.org/10.1117/1.JMM.15.3.034006
Abstract
For the successful implementation of extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography in the upcoming technology nodes, a major challenge to overcome is the stable and reliable detection and characterization of mask defects. We have recently presented a reflective mode EUV mask scanning lensless imaging tool (RESCAN) which was installed at the XIL-II beamline of the swiss light source and showed reconstructed aerial images of test patterns on EUV masks. RESCAN uses scanning coherent diffractive imaging (SCDI) methods to obtain actinic aerial images of EUV photomasks and was designed for 80 nm onmask resolution. Our SCDI algorithm reconstructs the measured sample by iteratively solving the phase problem using overdetermined diffraction data gathered by scanning across the specimen with a finite illumination. It provides the phase and amplitude aerial images of EUV photomasks with high resolution without the need to use high numerical aperture (NA) lenses. Contrary to scanning microscopy and full-field microscopy, where the resolution is limited by the spot size or NA of the lens, the achievable resolution with our method depends on the detector noise and NA of the detector. To increase the resolution of our tool, we upgraded RESCAN with a detector and algorithms. Here, we present the results obtained with the tool that is capable of up to 40-nm onmask resolution. We believe that the realization of our prototype marks a significant step toward overcoming the limitations imposed by methods relying on imaging optics and shows a viable solution for actinic mask metrology.
CC BY: © The Authors. Published by SPIE under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 Unported License. Distribution or reproduction of this work in whole or in part requires full attribution of the original publication, including its DOI.
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Patrick Helfenstein, Istvan Mohacsi, Rajendran Rajeev, and Yasin Ekinci "Scanning coherent diffractive imaging methods for actinic extreme ultraviolet mask metrology," Journal of Micro/Nanolithography, MEMS, and MOEMS 15(3), 034006 (16 September 2016). https://doi.org/10.1117/1.JMM.15.3.034006
Published: 16 September 2016
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Cited by 17 scholarly publications.
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KEYWORDS
Extreme ultraviolet
Photomasks
Coherence imaging
Sensors
Metrology
Diffraction
Reconstruction algorithms
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