Asml Netherlands B.v.

Jan Wouter Bijlsma

Jen-Shiang Wang

Yen-Wen Lu

Youping Zhang

Eric Richard Kent

Guangqing Chen

Shufeng Bai

Paul Anthony Tuffy

Gertjan Zwartjes

Feng Chen

Matteo Alessandro Francavilla

A patterning process modeling method includes determining, with a front end of a process model, a function associated with process physics and/or chemistry of an operation within a patterning process flow; and determining, with a back end of the process model, a predicted wafer geometry. The back end includes a volumetric representation of a target area on the wafer. The predicted wafer geometry is determined by applying the function from the front end to manipulate the volumetric representation of the wafer. The volumetric representation of the wafer may be generated using volumetric dynamic B-trees. The volumetric representation of the wafer may be manipulated using a level set method. The function associated with the process physics and/or chemistry of the operation within the patterning process flow may be a velocity/speed function. Incoming flux on a modeled surface of the wafer may be determined using ray tracing.

Method for patterning process modelling

Methods and systems for automatically generating robust metrology targets which can accommodate a variety of lithography processes and process perturbations. Individual steps of an overall lithography process are modeled into a single process sequence to simulate the physical substrate processing. That process sequence drives the creation of a three-dimensional device geometry as a whole, rather than 'building' the device geometry element-by-element.

Process based metrology target design

Growing community of inventors

Eindhoven, Netherlands

Jan Wouter Bijlsma