Kla Tencor Corporation

Tencor Instruments

Kla-tencor Technologies Corporation

The Perkin-elmer Corporation

Kla-technor Corporation

George J Kren

Paul J Sullivan

Christopher F Bevis

David W Shortt

Daniel Ivanov Kavaldjiev

William R Wheeler

Kenneth P Gross

Rodney C Smedt

Hans J Hansen

Hubert Altendorfer

Karel Urbanek

Norbert Marxer

Christian Wolters

Stephen Biellak

Kurt Lindsay Haller

Dieter Mueller

Robinson Piramuthu

Mehdi Vaez-Iravani

Martin Plihal

Eliezer Rosengaus

Anatoly Romanovsky

Zhiwei Xu

David D Clementson

Patrick Huet

Juergen Reich

Jiri Pecen

Yan Xiong

Aleksey Petrenko

Cedric Affentauschegg

Armand P Neukermans

Rusmin Kudinar

Jaydeep K Sinha

Haiguang Chen

Shouhong Tang

Pradeep Vukkadala

Bret Whiteside

Brian C Leslie

Brian L Haas

Franklin R Koenig

Ali Salehpour

Jiayao Zhang

Louis Vintro

Dean R Denison

Soheil Saadat

Brian Haas

The disclosure is directed to a system and method of managing illumination energy applied to illuminated portions of a scanned wafer to mitigate illumination-induced damage without unnecessarily compromising SNR of an inspection system. The wafer may be rotated at a selected spin frequency for scanning wafer defects utilizing the inspection system. Illumination energy may be varied over at least one scanned region of the wafer as a function of radial distance of an illuminated portion from the center of the wafer and the selected spin frequency of the wafer. Illumination energy may be further applied constantly over one or more scanned regions of the wafer beyond a selected distance from the center of the wafer.

Illumination energy management in surface inspection

A method of providing high accuracy inspection or metrology in a bright-field differential interference contrast (BF-DIC) system is described. This method can include creating first and second beams from a first light beam. The first and second beams have round cross-sections, and form first partially overlapping scanning spots radially displaced on a substrate. Third and fourth beams are created from the first light beam or a second light beam. The third and fourth beams have elliptical cross-sections, and form second partially overlapping scanning spots tangentially displaced on the substrate. At least one portion of the substrate can be scanned using the first and second partially overlapping scanning spots as the substrate is rotated. Radial and tangential slopes can be determined using measurements obtained from the scanning using the first and second partially overlapping scanning spots. These slopes can be used to determine wafer shape or any localized topography feature.

Bright-field differential interference contrast system with scanning beams of round and elliptical cross-sections

Computer-implemented methods, computer-readable media, and systems for determining one or more characteristics of a wafer are provided.

Computer-implemented methods, computer-readable media, and systems for determining one or more characteristics of a wafer

Disclosed herein is a method and apparatus for automatic correction of beam waist position drift in real time, using wafer inspection data taken during normal tool operation. Also disclosed herein is an improved laser astigmatism corrector for use either internal or external to the laser.

Extending the lifetime of a deep UV laser in a wafer inspection tool

An inspection system may include, but is not limited to: an illumination subsystem for directing light to an inspection specimen comprising: a power attenuator subsystem configured for altering the power level of a light beam emitted by the illumination subsystem; and a power attenuation control subsystem configured to provide control signals to the power attenuator subsystem according to a detected level of light scattering by the inspection specimen upon illumination by the illumination subsystem. A method for scatterometry inspection may include, but is not limited to: directing light having a power level to an inspection specimen from a light source; detecting light scattered from the specimen; and modifying a power level of one or more intermediate light beams within the light source according to a level of light scattering by the specimen upon illumination by the light source.

Fast laser power control with improved reliability for surface inspection

An interferometer system and method may be used to measure substrate thickness or shape. The system may include two spaced apart reference flats having that form an optical cavity between two parallel reference surfaces. A substrate holder may be configured to place the substrate in the cavity with first and second substrate surfaces substantially parallel with corresponding first and second reference surfaces such that a space between the first or second substrate surface is three millimeters or less from a corresponding one of the reference surfaces or a damping surface. Interferometer devices may be located on diametrically opposite sides of the cavity and optically coupled thereto. The interferometers can map variations in spacing between the substrate surfaces and the reference surfaces, respectively, through interference of light optically coupled to and from to the cavity via the interferometer devices.

Method and apparatus for measuring shape or thickness information of a substrate

A system and method for in-line inspection of specimens such as semiconductor wafers is provided. The system provides scanning of sections of specimens having predetermined standardized characteristics using a diffraction grating that widens and passes nth order (n&#x3e;0) wave fronts to the specimen surface and a reflective surface for the transmitted light beam. Light energy is transmitted in a narrow swath across the portion of the surface having the standardized features. The wavefronts are combined using a second diffraction grating and passed to a camera system having a desired aspect ratio.

Copper CMP flatness monitor using grazing incidence interferometry

A light beam is directed towards a surface along a direction normal to the surface. The surface is caused to move so that the beam scans the surface along a spiral path. An ellipsoidal mirror is placed with its axis along the surface normal to collect light scattered by the surface and any anomalies at the surface at collection angles away from the surface normal. In some applications, a lens arrangement with its axis along the surface normal is also used to collect the light scattered by the surface and any anomalies. The light scattered by the mirror and lenses may be directed to the same or different detectors. Preferably light scattered by the surface within a first range of collection angles from the axis is detected by a first detector and light scattered by the surface within a second range of collection angles from the axis is detected by a second detector. The two ranges of collection angles are different, with one detector optimized to detect scattering from large particles and defects and the other detector optimized to detect light from small particles and defects.

Process and assembly for non-destructive surface inspections

A system for inspecting specimens such as semiconductor wafers is provided. The system provides scanning of dual-sided specimens using a damping arrangement which filters unwanted acoustic and seismic vibration, including an optics arrangement which scans a first portion of the specimen and a translation or rotation arrangement for translating or rotating the specimen to a position where the optics arrangement can scan the remaining portion(s) of the specimen. The system further includes means for stitching the scans together, thereby providing both damping of the specimen and the need for smaller and less expensive optical elements.

Method and apparatus for scanning, stitching, and damping measurements of a double-sided metrology inspection tool

Wafer inspection systems and methods are provided. One inspection system includes a module measurement cell coupled to a host inspection system by a wafer handler. The module measurement cell is configured to inspect a wafer using one or more modes prior to inspection of the wafer by the host inspection system. The one or more modes include backside inspection, edge inspection, frontside macro defect inspection, or a combination thereof. Another inspection system includes two or more low resolution electronic sensors arranged at multiple viewing angles. The sensors are configured to detect light returned from a wafer substantially simultaneously. A method for analyzing inspection data includes selecting a template corresponding to a support device that contacts a backside of a wafer prior to inspection of the backside of the wafer. The method also includes subtracting data representing the template from inspection data generated by inspection of the backside of the wafer.

Wafer inspection systems and methods for analyzing inspection data

An inspection tool embodiment includes an illumination source for directing a light beam onto a workpiece to generate scattered light that includes the ordinary scattering pattern of the workpiece as well as light scattered from defects of the workpiece. The embodiment includes a programmable light selection array that receives light scattered from the workpiece and selectively directs the light scattered from defects onto a photosensor which detects the defect signal. Processing circuitry receives the defect signal and conducts surface analysis of the workpiece that can include the characterizing of defects of the workpiece. The programmable light selection arrays can include, but are not limited to, reflector arrays and filter arrays. The invention also includes associated surface inspection methods.

Darkfield inspection system having a programmable light selection array

Growing community of inventors

Los Altos, CA, United States of America

George J Kren