Calibration Of An Optical Metrology System For Critical Dimension Application Matching
Granted: September 19, 2013
Application Number:
20130245985
Methods and systems for matching critical dimension measurement applications at high precision across multiple optical metrology systems are presented. In one aspect, machine parameter values of a metrology system are calibrated based on critical dimension measurement data. In one further aspect, calibration of the machine parameter values is based on critical dimension measurement data collected by a target measurement system from a specimen with assigned critical dimension parameter…
RETICLE DEFECT INSPECTION WITH SYSTEMATIC DEFECT FILTER
Granted: September 12, 2013
Application Number:
20130236084
A stream of defect data is received from a reticle inspection system. The defect data identifies defects that were detected for a plurality of different portions of a reticle. Before reviewing the defect data to determine whether the reticle passes inspection and as the stream of defect data continues to be received, some of the defects are automatically grouped with other most recently one or more received defects on as form groups of substantially matching defects. Before reviewing the…
DETECTION OF THIN LINES FOR SELECTIVE SENSITIVITY DURING RETICLE INSPECTION USING PROCESSED IMAGES
Granted: September 12, 2013
Application Number:
20130236083
A detection method for a spot image based thin line detection is disclosed. The method includes a step for generating a band limited spot image from a transmitted and reflected optical image of the mask. The spot image is calibrated to minimize a plurality of optical aberrations from the spot image. The spot image is restored back to a mask image to allow at least one of: a more reliable segmentation between thin line and non-thin line areas on the mask image or a more accurate line…
Wafer Inspection with Multi-Spot Illumination and Multiple Channels
Granted: September 12, 2013
Application Number:
20130235374
Systems configured to inspect a wafer are provided. One system includes an illumination subsystem configured to illuminate a set of spots on a wafer and a collection subsystem configured to collect light from the set of spots. The collection subsystem separately images the light collected from each of the individual spots onto only a corresponding first detector of a first detection subsystem. The collection subsystem also images the light collected from at least some of the individual…
System and Method for Particle Control Near A Reticle
Granted: September 12, 2013
Application Number:
20130235357
Controlling particles near a reticle of a lithography or reticle inspection system may include generating a curtain of ultraviolet light about a reticle protection area of a reticle by illuminating a region surrounding the reticle protection area with ultraviolet light having sufficient energy to induce a charge on one or more particles traversing the curtain of ultraviolet light, generating an electric field in a region positioned between the generated curtain of ultraviolet light and…
Metrology Systems and Methods
Granted: September 5, 2013
Application Number:
20130229661
Various metrology systems and methods are provided. One metrology system includes a light source configured to produce a diffraction-limited light beam, an apodizer configured to shape the light beam in the entrance pupil of illumination optics, and optical elements configured to direct the diffraction-limited light beam from the apodizer to an illumination spot on a grating target on a wafer and to collect scattered light from the grating target. The metrology system further includes a…
VARIABLE PRESSURE FOUR-POINT COATED PROBE PIN DEVICE AND METHOD
Granted: September 5, 2013
Application Number:
20130229196
A variable pressure probe pin device, including: a housing with a channel having a first longitudinal axis; a probe at least partially disposed in the channel and including a plurality of probe pins configured to measure a property of a conductive layer; and a fluid pressure system configured to supply pressurized fluid o the channel to control a position of the probe within the channel. The housing or the probe is displaceable such that the plurality of probe pins contact the conductive…
Optical Metrology Using Targets With Field Enhancement Elements
Granted: August 29, 2013
Application Number:
20130222795
Methods and systems for enhancing metrology sensitivity to particular parameters of interest are presented. Field enhancement elements (FEEs) are constructed as part of a specimen to enhance the measurement sensitivity of structures of interest present on the specimen. The design of the FEEs takes into account measurement goals and manufacturing design rules to make target fabrication compatible with the overall device fabrication process. Measurement of opaque materials, high-aspect…
Method and System for Determining One or More Optical Characteristics of Structure of a Semiconductor Wafer
Granted: August 22, 2013
Application Number:
20130215420
Determination of one or more optical characteristics of a structure of a semiconductor wafer includes measuring one or more optical signals from one or more structures of a sample, determining a background optical field associated with a reference structure having a selected set of nominal characteristics based on the one or more structures, determining a correction optical field suitable for at least partially correcting the background field, wherein a difference between the measured…
TIME-VARYING INTENSITY MAP GENERATION FOR RETICLES
Granted: August 15, 2013
Application Number:
20130211736
An optical reticle inspection tool is used during a first inspection to obtain, for each set of one or more patch areas of the reticle, a reference average of multiple reference intensity values corresponding to light measured from sub-areas of each patch area. After using the reticle in photolithography processes, the optical reticle inspection tool is used during a second inspection to obtain, for each set of one or more patch areas, an average of multiple test intensity values…
Extended Defect Sizing Range for Wafer Inspection
Granted: August 15, 2013
Application Number:
20130208269
Various embodiments for extended defect sizing range for wafer inspection are provided.
PATTERN DATA SYSTEM FOR HIGH-PERFORMANCE MASKLESS ELECTRON BEAM LITHOGRAPHY
Granted: August 8, 2013
Application Number:
20130205267
One embodiment relates to a pattern data system for maskless electron beam lithography. The system includes a renderer that receives pre-exposure die image data, performs rendering of the pre-exposure die image data to generate raster data. The system further includes a plurality of data distributors communicatively coupled to the renderer. Each data distributor adapts the raster data to characteristics of an associated pattern writer. Other embodiments, aspects and feature are also…
Integrated Multi-Channel Analog Front End And Digitizer For High Speed Imaging Applications
Granted: August 1, 2013
Application Number:
20130194445
A module for high speed image processing includes an image sensor for generating a plurality of analog outputs representing an image and a plurality of HDDs for concurrently processing the plurality of analog outputs. Each HDD is an integrated circuit configured to process in parallel a predetermined set of the analog outputs. Each channel of the HDD can include an AFE for conditioning a signal representing one sensor analog output, an ADC for converting a conditioned signal into a…
Segmentation for Wafer Inspection
Granted: July 25, 2013
Application Number:
20130188859
Methods and systems for segmenting pixels for wafer inspection are provided. One method includes determining a statistic for individual pixels based on a characteristic of the individual pixels in an image acquired for a wafer by an inspection system. The method also includes assigning the individual pixels to first segments based on the statistic. In addition, the method includes detecting one or more edges between the first segments in an image of the first segments and generating an…
METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR MEASURING SHAPE AND THICKNESS VARIATION OF A WAFER
Granted: July 25, 2013
Application Number:
20130188179
The invention provides a new dual-sided Moiré wafer analysis system that integrates wafer flatness measurement capability with wafer surface defect detection capability. The invention may be, but is not necessarily, embodied in methods and systems for simultaneously applying phase shifting reflective Moiré wafer analysis to the front and back sides of a silicon wafer and comparing or combining the front and back side height maps. This allows wafer surface height for each side of the…
Apparatus And Method Of Measuring Roughness And Other Parameters Of A Structure
Granted: July 18, 2013
Application Number:
20130182263
Systems and methods are presented to enhance and isolate residual signals indicative of the speckle field based on measurements taken by optically based metrology systems. Structural irregularities such as roughness and topographical errors give rise to light scattered outside of the specularly reflected component of the diffracted light. The scattered light interferes constructively or destructively with the specular component in a high numerical aperture illumination and detection…
Generating a Wafer Inspection Process Using Bit Failures and Virtual Inspection
Granted: July 18, 2013
Application Number:
20130182101
Methods and systems for generating a wafer inspection process are provided. One method includes storing output of detector(s) of an inspection system during scanning of a wafer regardless of whether the output corresponds to defects detected on the wafer and separating physical locations on the wafer that correspond to bit failures detected by testing of the wafer into a first portion of the physical locations at which the defects were not detected and a second portion of the physical…
Plasma Cell for Providing VUV Filtering in a Laser-Sustained Plasma Light Source
Granted: July 18, 2013
Application Number:
20130181595
A plasma cell for use in a laser-sustained plasma light source includes a plasma bulb configured to contain a gas suitable for generating a plasma, the plasma bulb being substantially transparent to light emanating from a pump laser configured to sustain the plasma within the plasma bulb, wherein the plasma bulb is substantially transparent to at least a portion of a collectable spectral region of illumination emitted by the plasma, and a filter layer disposed on an interior surface of…
Stereo Extended Depth of Focus
Granted: July 11, 2013
Application Number:
20130176402
The disclosure is directed to providing high resolution stereoscopy with extended depth of focus. Wave front coding in optical paths going to a first detector and at least a second detector may be implemented to affect an intermediate set of images. The intermediate set of images may be filtered (i.e. decoded) to produce a filtered set of images with selected resolution and depth of focus properties. A first filtered image and a second filtered image may be substantially simultaneously…
INTERPOSER BASED IMAGING SENSOR FOR HIGH-SPEED IMAGE ACQUISITION AND INSPECTION SYSTEMS
Granted: July 11, 2013
Application Number:
20130176552
The present invention includes an interposer disposed on a surface of a substrate, a light sensing array sensor disposed on the interposer, the light sensing array sensor being back-thinned and configured for back illumination, the light sensing array sensor including columns of pixels, one or more amplification circuitry elements configured to amplify an output of the light sensing array sensor, the amplification circuits being operatively connected to the interposer, one or more…
