Kla Tencor Corporation

Kla Corporation

Ashok Varadarajan

Premchandra M Shankar

Tong Huang

Xuguang Jiang

JuHwan Rha

N R Girish

Vadim Romanovski

Wei Kang

Faisal Omer

Yiyu Zhang

Methods and systems for setting up alignment of a specimen are provided. One system includes computer subsystem(s) configured for acquiring two-dimensional (2D) images generated from output of a detector of an output acquisition subsystem at template locations in corresponding areas of printed instances on a specimen. The computer subsystem(s) determine offsets in x and y directions between the template locations using the 2D images and determine an angle of the specimen with respect to the output acquisition subsystem based on the offsets. If the angle is greater than a predetermined value, the computer subsystem(s) rotate the specimen and repeat the steps described above. If the angle is less than the predetermined value, the computer subsystem(s) store one of the 2D images for alignment of the specimen in a process performed on a specimen. The 2D images may include multi-mode images, which may be fused prior to determining the offsets.

Alignment of a specimen for inspection and other processes

Repeater defects on a wafer can be detected by fusing multiple die images. In an instance, multiple die images are statistically fused to form a die-fused image. Each of the die images can be of a different die on a wafer. A presence of a repeater defect is detected in the die-fused image. The die images can be generated using a laser-scanning system or other systems.

Repeater defect detection

An inspection method includes receiving a plurality of inspection images of a substrate. The method includes generating a first noise image from a first image from the first channel and an additional noise image from the additional image from the additional channel. The method further includes generating a first signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) image from the first noise image and an additional SNR image from the additional noise image and identifying one or more first pixel candidates in the first SNR image and in the additional SNR image. The method further includes combining image data from the first SNR image and image data from the additional SNR image at common pixel candidate sites based on the one or more identified first pixel candidates and the one or more identified additional pixel candidates to form a combined image used to detect defects on the substrate.

Method and system for detecting defects on a substrate

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Fremont, CA, United States of America

Ashok Varadarajan