Asml Netherlands B.v.

Paul Christiaan Hinnen

Hugo Augustinus Joseph Cramer

Anagnostis Tsiatmas

Thomas Theeuwes

Elliott Gerard McNamara

Alok Verma

Adriaan Johan Van Leest

Arie Jeffrey Den Boef

Richard Johannes Franciscus Van Haren

Henry Megens

Shu-jin Wang

Maurits Van Der Schaar

Hubertus Johannes Gertrudus Simons

Frank Staals

Andre Bernardus Jeunink

Franciscus Bernardus Maria Van Bilsen

Hoite Pieter Theodoor Tolsma

Jacobus Burghoorn

Jeroen Huijbregtse

Sicco Ian Schets

Ramon Navarro Y Koren

Hermanus Gerardus Van Horssen

Allan Reuben Dunbar

Johny Rutger Schuurhuis

Brian Young Bok Lee

Maria Isabel De La Fuente Valentin

Wim Tjibbo Tel

Kaustuve Bhattacharyya

Martijn Maria Zaal

Nitesh Pandey

Marinus Jochemsen

Reiner Maria Jungblut

Anton Bernhard Van Oosten

Zili Zhou

Mark John Maslow

Christian Marinus Leewis

Mir Homayoun Shahrjerdy

Joost Jeroen Ottens

Marcus Adrianus Van De Kerkhof

Patrick Warnaar

Hendrik Jan Hidde Smilde

Youping Zhang

Michael Kubis

Youri Johannes Laurentius Maria Van Dommelen

Murat Bozkurt

Seyed Iman Mossavat

Lambertus Gerardus Maria Kessels

Bastiaan Onne Fagginger Auer

Olger Victor Zwier

Peter David Engblom

Gonzalo Roberto Sanguinetti

Koenraad Remi André Maria Schreel

Samee Ur Rehman

Jean-Pierre Agnes Henricus Marie Vaessen

Joannes Jitse Venselaar

Marco Johannes Annemarie Pieters

Sanjay Lalbahadoersing

Nicolas Mauricio Weiss

Thomai Zacharopoulou

Koen Van Witteveen

Kuo-Feng Pao

Simon Gijsbert Josephus Mathijssen

Antoine Gaston Marie Kiers

Robert John Socha

Armand Eugene Albert Koolen

Markus Gerardus Martinus Maria Van Kraaij

Johannes Anna Quaedackers

Laurentius Cornelius De Winter

Gerbrand Van Der Zouw

Carlo Cornelis Maria Luijten

Maikel Robert Goosen

Adrianus Franciscus Petrus Engelen

Robertus Cornelis Martinus De Kruif

Peter Clement Paul Vanoppen

Roy Anunciado

Mariya Vyacheslavivna Medvedyeva

Roland Pieter Stolk

Eelco Van Setten

Eric Jos Anton Brouwer

Jeroen Van Dongen

Martinus Hubertus Maria Van Weert

Elliott Gerard Mc Namara

Jan Hendrik Den Besten

Hugo Cramer

A method including: obtaining a detected representation of radiation redirected by each of a plurality of structures from a substrate additionally having a device pattern thereon, wherein each structure has an intentional different physical configuration of the respective structure than the respective nominal physical configuration of the respective structure, wherein each structure has geometric symmetry at the respective nominal physical configuration, wherein the intentional different physical configuration of the structure causes an asymmetric optical characteristic distribution and wherein a patterning process parameter measures change in the physical configuration; and determining a value, based on the detected representations and based on the intentional different physical configurations, to setup, monitor or correct a measurement recipe for determining the patterning process parameter.

Method and apparatus to determine a patterning process parameter

Methods of controlling a patterning process are disclosed. In one arrangement, tilt data resulting from a measurement of tilt in an etching path through a target layer of a structure on a substrate is obtained. The tilt represents a deviation in a direction of the etching path from a perpendicular to the plane of the target layer. The tilt data is used to control a patterning process used to form a pattern in a further layer.

Method of controlling a patterning process, device manufacturing method

A method of determining a parameter of a patterning process, the method including: obtaining a detected representation of radiation redirected by a structure having geometric symmetry at a nominal physical configuration, wherein the detected representation of the radiation was obtained by illuminating a substrate with a radiation beam such that a beam spot on the substrate was filled with the structure; and determining, by a hardware computer system, a value of the patterning process parameter based on optical characteristic values from an asymmetric optical characteristic distribution portion of the detected radiation representation with higher weight than another portion of the detected radiation representation, the asymmetric optical characteristic distribution arising from a different physical configuration of the structure than the nominal physical configuration.

A method of determining overlay of a patterning process, the method including: illuminating a substrate with a radiation beam such that a beam spot on the substrate is filled with one or more physical instances of a unit cell, the unit cell having geometric symmetry at a nominal value of overlay; detecting primarily zeroth order radiation redirected by the one or more physical instances of the unit cell using a detector; and determining, by a hardware computer system, a non-nominal value of overlay of the unit cell from values of an optical characteristic of the detected radiation.

Method and apparatus to determine a patterning process parameter using a unit cell having geometric symmetry

A method of determining overlay of a patterning process, the method including: obtaining a detected representation of radiation redirected by one or more physical instances of a unit cell, wherein the unit cell has geometric symmetry at a nominal value of overlay and wherein the detected representation of the radiation was obtained by illuminating a substrate with a radiation beam such that a beam spot on the substrate was filled with the one or more physical instances of the unit cell; and determining, from optical characteristic values from the detected radiation representation, a value of a first overlay for the unit cell separately from a second overlay for the unit cell that is also obtainable from the same optical characteristic values, wherein the first overlay is in a different direction than the second overlay or between a different combination of parts of the unit cell than the second overlay.

A method involving determining a contribution that one or more process apparatuses make to a characteristic of a substrate after the substrate has been processed according to a patterning process by the one or more process apparatuses by removing from values of the characteristic of the substrate a contribution of a lithography apparatus to the characteristic and a contribution of one or more pre-lithography process apparatuses to the characteristic.

Method and system to monitor a process apparatus

A metrology target includes: a first structure arranged to be created by a first patterning process; and a second structure arranged to be created by a second patterning process, wherein the first structure and/or second structure is not used to create a functional aspect of a device pattern, and wherein the first and second structures together form one or more instances of a unit cell, the unit cell having geometric symmetry at a nominal physical configuration and wherein the unit cell has a feature that causes, at a different physical configuration than the nominal physical configuration due to a relative shift in pattern placement in the first patterning process, the second patterning process and/or another patterning process, an asymmetry in the unit cell.

Methods of determining information about a patterning process. In a method, measurement data from a metrology process applied to each of a plurality of metrology targets on a substrate is obtained. The measurement data for each metrology target includes at least a first contribution and a second contribution. The first contribution is from a parameter of interest of a patterning process used to form the metrology target. The second contribution is from an error in the metrology process. The method further includes using the obtained measurement data from all of the plurality of metrology targets to obtain information about an error in the metrology process, and using the obtained information about the error in the metrology process to extract a value of the parameter of interest for each metrology target.

Method of determining information about a patterning process, method of reducing error in measurement data, method of calibrating a metrology process, method of selecting metrology targets

A method including: computing a value of a first variable of a pattern of, or for, a substrate processed by a patterning process by combining a fingerprint of the first variable on the substrate and a certain value of the first variable; and determining a value of a second variable of the pattern based at least in part on the computed value of the first variable.

Separation of contributions to metrology data

A method of measuring overlay uses a plurality of asymmetry measurements from locations (LOI) on a pair of sub-targets () formed on a substrate (W). For each sub-target, the plurality of asymmetry measurements are fitted to at least one expected relationship () between asymmetry and overlay, based on a known bias variation deigned into the sub-targets. Continuous bias variation in one example is provided by varying the pitch of top and bottom gratings (P/P). Bias variations between the sub-targets of the pair are equal and opposite (P/P). Overlay (OV) is calculated based on a relative shift (xs) between the fitted relationships for the two sub-targets. The step of fitting asymmetry measurements to at least one expected relationship includes wholly or partially discounting measurements () that deviate from the expected relationship and/or fall outside a particular segment of the fitted relationship.

Metrology method, patterning device, apparatus and computer program

Disclosed is a method of measuring focus performance of a lithographic apparatus, and corresponding patterning device and lithographic apparatus. The method comprises using the lithographic apparatus to print one or more first printed structures and second printed structures. The first printed structures are printed by illumination having a first non-telecentricity and the second printed structures being printed by illumination having a second non-telecentricity, different to said first non-telecentricity. A focus dependent parameter related to a focus-dependent positional shift between the first printed structures and the second printed structures on said substrate is measured and a measurement of focus performance based at least in part on the focus dependent parameter is derived therefrom.

Methods and patterning devices and apparatuses for measuring focus performance of a lithographic apparatus, device manufacturing method

A method of configuring a parameter determination process, the method including: obtaining a mathematical model of a structure, the mathematical model configured to predict an optical response when illuminating the structure with a radiation beam and the structure having geometric symmetry at a nominal physical configuration; using, by a hardware computer system, the mathematical model to simulate a perturbation in the physical configuration of the structure of a certain amount to determine a corresponding change of the optical response in each of a plurality of pixels to obtain a plurality of pixel sensitivities; and based on the pixel sensitivities, determining a plurality of weights for combination with measured pixel optical characteristic values of the structure on a substrate to yield a value of a parameter associated with change in the physical configuration, each weight corresponding to a pixel.

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Veldhoven, Netherlands

Paul Christiaan Hinnen