ALTA 4700DP, a new design laser mask pattern generator (LMPGs), is constructed with multi-core CPU server. Different from the traditional hardware-based data path LMPGs, the integrated software features of ALTA 4700DP provide the compensation function for critical dimension (CD) variation which caused from the post-exposure processing of the plate. The process includes the post-exposure bake, the developing of the photoresist, and the etching of the chrome. Through the correction of the density-dependent errors and process-footprint errors, the global CD uniformity can be improved.
KEYWORDS: Transmission electron microscopy, Photomasks, 3D modeling, Metrology, 3D metrology, Scanning electron microscopy, 3D image processing, Industry, 3D mask effects, Semiconducting wafers
Explore a method for measurement the sidewall angle of photomask patterns using the CD-SEM (critical dimension scanning electron microscope) device. This tool is widely used in the semiconductor industry for metrology CD measurements and is one of the most common inspection methods. The CDSEM tool ZX has advanced techniques that not only measure line width but also build a 3D model of the scan. The CDSEM tool measures the sidewall angle by determining the top and bottom positions of the photomask pattern, and using the data obtained from these positions, the distance of the horizontal and vertical can be calculated. These data are then used in an algorithmic equation to simulate the slope value and calculate the sidewall angle. To verify the correctness of the sidewall angle value obtained through CDSEM measurements, TEM (transmission electron microscopy) is used. TEM is an intuitive method that uses a high-energy electron beam to capture highresolution cross-sectional images of larger materials such as photomasks. TEM is a common method for analyzing the sidewall angle and thickness of thin films and is widely used in material science and nanotechnology. However, TEM's cross-section implementation is a destructive method and is not an ideal method for testing product photomasks. In this study, the simulated data from CDSEM and actual cross-sectional data from TEM are collected and integrated for crosscomparison to obtain the corresponding relationship.
Deep-ultraviolet (DUV) laser writer ALTA4700DP upgraded from ALTA4700. The new design laser mask pattern
generator (LMPGs), advance electronic design automation (EDA), and multi-core CPU server (up to hundreds of core)
are all constructed on the machine. The effective of machine (exposure time) and CD performance (uniformity, thr-pitch and corner rounding) of products are obvious reduced and improved, respectively.
In research, not only the CD performance of mask was obtained by CD-SEM but also the CD performance of wafer
was defined by AIMS simulation. The effect of corner rounding was proved by average CD and exposure intensity of
contact structure by both CD-SEM measurement and AIMS simulation.
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