Asml Netherlands B.v.

Koninklijke Philips Corporation N.v.

Tp Vision Holding B.v.

Martin Jacobus Johan Jak

Arie Jeffrey Den Boef

Kaustuve Bhattacharyya

Wouter Anthon Soer

Hendrik Jan Hidde Smilde

Maarten Marinus Johannes Wilhelmus Van Herpen

Vadim Yevgenyevich Banine

Maurits Van Der Schaar

Richard Johannes Franciscus Van Haren

Henricus Wilhelmus Maria Van Buel

Michael Kubis

Omer Abubaker Omer Adam

Martin Ebert

Xing Lan Liu

Andreas Fuchs

Christophe David Fouquet

Johannes Marcus Maria Beltman

Patricius Aloysius Jacobus Tinnemans

Nitesh Pandey

Patrick Warnaar

Andrei Mikhailovich Yakunin

Armand Eugene Albert Koolen

Gerbrand Van Der Zouw

Murat Bozkurt

Grzegorz Grzela

Hugo Augustinus Joseph Cramer

Simon Gijsbert Josephus Mathijssen

Gerben Johan Hekstra

Jurgen Jean Louis Hoppenbrouwers

Vasco Tomas Tenner

Jin Lian

Andrey Mikhailovich Yakunin

Erik Roelof Loopstra

Bartel Marinus Van De Sluis

Hugo Johan Cornelissen

Dirk Jan Broer

Ronald Dekker

Hans Van Der Laan

Ramon Pascal Van Gorkom

Dirk Kornelis Gerhardus De Boer

Michiel Adriaanszoon Klompenhouwer

Eduard Johannes Meijer

Theodorus Johannes Petrus Van Den Biggelaar

Te-Chih Huang

Richard Quintanilha

Erno Hermanus Antonius Langendijk

Denny Mathew

Leo Jan Velthoven

Oleg Belik

Lukasz Jerzy Macht

Mohammadreza Hajiahmadi

Claus Nico Cordes

Victor Emanuel Calado

Hendrik Jan Kettelarij

Kurt Gielissen

Samee Ur Rehman

Nalliah Raman

Galileo June Destura

Eugene Timmering

Aiqin Jiang

Arij Jonathan Rijke

Won-Jae Jang

Jinmoo Byun

Fredericus Christiaan Van Den Heuvel

MIchael Kubis

Samee Ur-Rehman

Bart Visser

Dirk Karel Margaretha Broddin

Wilhelmus Henricus Maria Van Beek

Petrus Elizabeth Maria Kuijpers

A diffraction measurement target that has at least a first sub-target and at least a second sub-target, and wherein (1) the first and second sub-targets each include a pair of periodic structures and the first sub-target has a different design than the second sub-target, the different design including the first sub-target periodic structures having a different pitch, feature width, space width, and/or segmentation than the second sub-target periodic structure or (2) the first and second sub-targets respectively include a first and second periodic structure in a first layer, and a third periodic structure is located at least partly underneath the first periodic structure in a second layer under the first layer and there being no periodic structure underneath the second periodic structure in the second layer, and a fourth periodic structure is located at least partly underneath the second periodic structure in a third layer under the second layer.

Metrology method, target and substrate

Disclosed is a method and associated apparatus for measuring a characteristic of interest relating to a structure on a substrate. The method comprises calculating a value for the characteristic of interest directly from the effect of the characteristic of interest on at least the phase of illuminating radiation when scattered by the structure, subsequent to illuminating said structure with said illuminating radiation.

Metrology apparatus and method for determining a characteristic of one or more structures on a substrate

An overlay metrology target (T) is formed by a lithographic process. A first image (740(0)) of the target structure is obtained using with illuminating radiation having a first angular distribution, the first image being formed using radiation diffracted in a first direction (X) and radiation diffracted in a second direction (Y). A second image (740(R)) of the target structure using illuminating radiation having a second angular illumination distribution which the same as the first angular distribution, but rotated 90 degrees. The first image and the second image can be used together so as to discriminate between radiation diffracted in the first direction and radiation diffracted in the second direction by the same part of the target structure. This discrimination allows overlay and other asymmetry-related properties to be measured independently in X and Y, even in the presence of two-dimensional structures within the same part of the target structure.

Method of measuring a structure, inspection apparatus, lithographic system and device manufacturing method

A method to determine a patterning process parameter, the method comprising: for a target, calculating a first value for an intermediate parameter from data obtained by illuminating the target with radiation comprising a central wavelength; for the target, calculating a second value for the intermediate parameter from data obtained by illuminating the target with radiation comprising two different central wavelengths; and calculating a combined measurement for the patterning process parameter based on the first and second values for the intermediate parameter.

Method to determine a patterning process parameter

A method including evaluating a plurality of substrate measurement recipes for measurement of a metrology target processed using a patterning process, against stack sensitivity and overlay sensitivity, and selecting one or more substrate measurement recipes from the plurality of substrate measurement recipes that have a value of the stack sensitivity that meets or crosses a threshold and that have a value of the overlay sensitivity within a certain finite range from a maximum or minimum value of the overlay sensitivity.

Metrology recipe selection

An overlay metrology target (T) is formed by a lithographic process. A first image (()) of the target structure is obtained using with illuminating radiation having a first angular distribution, the first image being formed using radiation diffracted in a first direction (X) and radiation diffracted in a second direction (Y). A second image ((R)) of the target structure using illuminating radiation having a second angular illumination distribution which the same as the first angular distribution, but rotated 90 degrees. The first image and the second image can be used together so as to discriminate between radiation diffracted in the first direction and radiation diffracted in the second direction by the same part of the target structure. This discrimination allows overlay and other asymmetry-related properties to be measured independently in X and Y, even in the presence of two-dimensional structures within the same part of the target structure.

Methods and apparatuses for measuring a plurality of structures formed on a substrate are disclosed. In one arrangement, a method includes obtaining data from a first measurement process. The first measurement process including individually measuring each of the plurality of structures to measure a first property of the structure. A second measurement process is used to measure a second property of each of the plurality of structures. The second measurement process includes illuminating each structure with radiation having a radiation property that is individually selected for that structure using the measured first property for the structure.

Method of measuring, device manufacturing method, metrology apparatus, and lithographic system

An apparatus and method for estimating a parameter of a lithographic process and an apparatus and method for determining a relationship between a measure of quality of an estimate of a parameter of a lithographic process are provided. In the apparatus for estimating the parameter a processor is configured to determine a quality of the estimate of the parameter relating to the tested substrate based on a measure of feature asymmetry in the at least first features of the tested substrate and further based on a relationship determined for a plurality of corresponding at least first features of at least one further substrate representative of the tested substrate, the relationship being between a measure of quality of an estimate of the parameter relating to the at least one further substrate and a measure of feature asymmetry in the corresponding first features.

Metrology in lithographic processes

A method including obtaining a fit of data for overlay of a metrology target for a patterning process as a function of a stack difference parameter of the metrology target; and using, by a hardware computer, a slope of the fit (i) to differentiate a metrology target measurement recipe from another metrology target measurement recipe, or (ii) calculate a corrected value of overlay, or (iii) to indicate that an overlay measurement value obtained using the metrology target should be used, or not be used, to configure or modify an aspect of the patterning process, or (iv) any combination selected from (i)-(iii).

Correction using stack difference

A method of determining an edge roughness parameter has the steps: () controlling a radiation system to provide a spot of radiation at a measurement position for receiving a substrate; () receiving a measurement signal from a sensor for measuring intensity of a forbidden diffraction order (such as a second order) being diffracted by a metrology target at the measurement position when the metrology target is illuminated by the spot of radiation, the metrology target comprising a repetitive pattern being configured by configuration of a linewidth/pitch ratio (of about 0.5) to control an amount of destructive interference that leads to forbidding of the diffraction order, the sensor being configured to provide the measurement signal based on the measured intensity; and () determining an edge roughness parameter based on the measured intensity of the forbidden diffraction order.

Determining edge roughness parameters

A method comprising: evaluating a plurality of polarization characteristics associated with measurement of a metrology target of a substrate processed using a patterning process, against one or more measurement quality parameters; and selecting one or more polarization characteristics from the plurality of polarization characteristics based on one or more of the measurement quality parameters.

Metrology method and apparatus

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's-Hertogenbosch, Netherlands

Martin Jacobus Johan Jak