Carl Zeiss Sms Ltd.

Carl Zeiss Smt Gmbh

Thomas Scherübl

Michael Budach

Ulrich Matejka

Renzo Capelli

Dirk Beyer

Sascha Perlitz

Markus Waiblinger

Frederik Blumrich

Rigo Richter

Anthony Garetto

Jan Hendrik Peters

Eric Poortinga

Arne Seyfarth

Matthias Wächter

Hans Van Doornmalen

Herbert Gross

Steffen Weissenberg

Sandro FÖRSTER

A reflective mask inspection system comprises a short wavelength radiation source for irradiating a reflective mask. A detector system detects the short wavelength radiation reflected from the reflective mask and a controller compares reflectance images of the reflective mask from the detector to characterize the mask. The system analyzes the spatially resolved reflectance characteristics of the substrate from different angles with respect to normal to the substrate and/or at different angles of rotation of the substrate. This information can be used to then analyze the mask for buried defects and then characterize those defects. This technique improves over current systems that rely on atomic force microscopes, which can only provide surface information.

Method and system for EUV mask blank buried defect analysis

The invention relates to a method for determining a performance of a photolithographic mask at an exposure wavelength with the steps of scanning at least one electron beam across at least one portion of the photolithographic mask, measuring signals generated by the at least one electron beam interacting with the at least one portion of the photolithographic mask, and determining the performance of the at least one portion of the photolithographic mask at the exposure wavelength based on the measured signals.

Method for determining the performance of a photolithographic mask

In mask inspection, the defects that are of interest are primarily those that will also show up on wafer exposure. The aerial images generated in the resist and by emulation should be as identical as possible. This also applies to methods in which an overall structure that is divided into at least two substructures on at least two masks. A system and a method are provided for emulating a photolithographic process for generating on a wafer an overall structure that is divided into at least two substructures on at least two masks. The method includes generating aerial images of the at least two substructures, at least one of the aerial images being captured with a mask inspection microscope; correcting, by using a processing unit, errors in the at least one aerial image captured with a mask inspection microscope; and overlaying the aerial images of the at least two substructures to form an overall aerial image with the overall structure.

Method for emulation of a photolithographic process and mask inspection microscope for performing the method

A method for verifying repairs on masks for photolithography is provided. A mask fabricated based on a mask layout is inspected for defects, and the positions at which defects are found on the mask are stored in a position file. In a repair step, the defects are repaired and, for each repaired position, in a verification step, an aerial image of the mask is taken at that position and the aerial image is analyzed to determine whether at that position the mask meets tolerance criteria established for one or more selected target parameters, and if the tolerance criteria have been met, the repair is verified. The verification can include a) based on the position file, a desired structure is defined in the mask layout at the repaired position, b) an aerial image is simulated for the desired structure, c) the captured aerial image is compared with the simulated one, and d) based on the comparison, a decision is made as to whether the repair at that position is verified.

Verification method for repairs on photolithography masks

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Jena, Germany

Thomas Scherübl