Asml Netherlands B.v.

Paul Frank Luehrmann

Arie Jeffrey Den Boef

Maurits Van Der Schaar

Antoine Gaston Marie Kiers

Mircea Dusa

Arno Jan Bleeker

Henricus Petrus Maria Pellemans

Youri Johannes Laurentius Maria Van Dommelen

Cedric Desire Grouwstra

Markus Gerardus Martinus Van Kraaij

Markus Gerardus Martinus Maria Van Kraaij

Emil Peter Schmitt-Weaver

Paul Jacques Van Wijnen

Wim Tjibbo Tel

Alexander Ypma

Kars Zeger Troost

Cédric Désiré Grouwstra

Daan Maurits Slotboom

Stefan Geerte Kruijswijk

Wolfgang Helmut Henke

Marc Jurian Kea

Rard Willem De Leeuw

Richard Johannes Franciscus Van Haren

Everhardus Cornelis Mos

Pieter Willem Herman De Jager

Hugo Augustinus Joseph Cramer

Justin Lloyd Kreuzer

Hans Van Der Laan

Jean-Philippe Xavier Van Damme

Thomas Leo Maria Hoogenboom

Frank Bornebroek

Eduardus Johannes Gerardus Boon

Wolfgang Henke

Pavel Izikson

Jens Staecker

Maurits Van Der Sohaar

An apparatus and method to determine a property of a substrate by measuring, in the pupil plane of a high numerical aperture lens, an angle-resolved spectrum as a result of radiation being reflected off the substrate. The property may be angle and wavelength dependent and may include the intensity of TM- and TE-polarized radiation and their relative phase difference.

Method and apparatus for angular-resolved spectroscopic lithography characterization

A lithography system configured to apply a pattern to a substrate, the system including a lithography apparatus configured to expose a layer of the substrate according to the pattern, and a machine learning controller configured to control the lithography system to optimize a property of the pattern, the machine learning controller configured to be trained on the basis of a property measured by a metrology unit configured to measure the property of the exposed pattern in the layer and/or a property associated with exposing the pattern onto the substrate, and to correct lithography system drift by adjusting one or more selected from: the lithography apparatus, a track unit configured to apply the layer on the substrate for lithographic exposure, and/or a control unit configured to control an automatic substrate flow among the track unit, the lithography apparatus, and the metrology unit.

Lithography system and a machine learning controller for such a lithography system

A lithography tool is calibrated using a calibration substrate having a set of first marks distributed across its surface in a known pattern. The tool is operated to apply a pattern comprising a plurality of second marks at various positions on the substrate, each second mark overlying one of the first marks and being subject to an overlay error dependent on an apparatus-specific deviation. The second marks are applied by multiple exposures while the substrate remains loaded in the tool. An operating parameter of the apparatus is varied between the exposures. An overlay error is measured and used to calculate parameter-specific, apparatus-specific calibration data based on knowledge of the parameter variation used for each exposure.

Method of calibrating a lithographic apparatus, device manufacturing method and associated data processing apparatus and computer program product

A reticle is loaded into a lithographic apparatus. The apparatus performs measurements on the reticle, so as to calculate alignment parameters for transferring the pattern accurately to substrates. Tests are performed to detect possible contamination of the reticle or its support. Either operation proceeds with a warning, or the patterning of substrates is stopped. The test uses may use parameters of the alignment model itself, or different parameters. The integrity parameters may be compared against reference values reflecting historic measurements, so that sudden changes in a parameter are indicative of contamination. Integrity parameters may be calculated from residuals of the alignment model. In an example, height residuals are used to calculate parameters of residual wedge (Rx') and residual roll (Ryy&#x2032;). From these, integrity parameters expressed as height deviations are calculated and compared against thresholds.

Method of operating a lithographic apparatus, device manufacturing method and associated data processing apparatus and computer program product

A rework station and a metrology device(s) are incorporated into a lithographic processing cell so that a faulty substrate can be reworked directly and reprocessed without, for example, an overhead involved in changing masks, etc.

Lithographic processing cell, lithographic apparatus, track and device manufacturing method

A method of device inspection, the method comprising providing an asymmetric marker on a device to be inspected, the form of asymmetry of the marker being dependent upon the parameter to be inspected, directing light at the marker, obtaining a first measurement of the position of the marker via detection of diffracted light of a particular wavelength or diffraction angle, obtaining a second measurement of the position of the marker via detection of diffracted light of a different wavelength or diffraction angle, and comparing the first and second measured positions to determine a shift indicative of the degree of asymmetry of the marker.

Device inspection method and apparatus using an asymmetric marker

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Santa Fe, NM, United States of America

Paul Frank Luehrmann