Hitachi, Ltd.

Other

Yukio Matsuyama

Yuji Takagi

Maki Tanaka

Takashi Hiroi

Asahiro Kuni

Masahiro Watanabe

Hiroyuki Shinada

Mari Nozoe

Aritoshi Sugimoto

Toshifumi Honda

Chie Shishido

Ludwig Listl

Hisae Yamamura

Shunji Maeda

Hitoshi Kubota

Takanori Ninomiya

Mineo Nomoto

Guenter Doemens

Hideaki Sasazawa

Susumu Aiuchi

Hideaki Doi

Junzou Azuma

Hisafumi Iwata

Peter Mengel

Kozo Nakahata

Keiichi Okamoto

Toshiaki Ichinose

Haruhisa Sakamoto

Hiroya Hoshishiba

An inspection method and apparatus includes control of an acceleration voltage of an electron beam, irradiation of the electron beam to an object to be inspected mounted on a stage which is continuously moving at least in one direction, and detection of at least one of secondary electrons and reflected electrons emanated from the object in response to the irradiation. An image of the object is obtained from the detected electron by using positional information of the stage and inspection or measurement of the object is conducted using and obtained image. In the detection, an electric field in the vicinity of the object mounted on the stage is controlled so that at least one secondary electrons and the reflected electrons emanated from the object in response to the irradiation of the electron beam are decelerated.

Electron beam inspection method and apparatus and semiconductor manufacturing method and its manufacturing line utilizing the same

A method of detecting a defect includes of determining an image acquisition condition for irradiating a converged electron beam onto a specimen and detecting a secondary electron emanated from the specimen, acquiring an image by detecting the secondary electron emanated from the specimen in synchronism with the irradiation of the electron beam, processing the acquired image to detect a defect on the specimen, and outputting information regarding the detected defect. The image acquisition condition is determined based on plural images which are acquired by changing at least one of acceleration condition of the secondary electron and an electrical field in the vicinity of the specimen.

An inspection method and apparatus includes control of an acceleration voltage of an electron beam, irradiation of the electron beam to an object to be inspected mounted on a stage which is continuously moving at least in one direction, and detection of at least one of secondary electrons and reflected electrons emanated from the object in response to the irradiation. An image of the object is obtained from the detected electron by using positional information of the stage and inspection or measurement of the object is conducted using an obtained image. In the detection, an electric field in the vicinity of the object mounted on the stage is controlled so that at least one of the secondary electrons and the reflected electrons emanated from the object in response to the irradiation of the electron beam are decelerated.

The present invention provides a scanning electron microscope (SEM) or optical inspection method and apparatus which correct differences in brightness between comparison images and thus which is capable of detecting a fine defect with a high degree of reliability without causing any false defect detection. According to the present invention, the brightness values of a pattern, which should be essentially the same, contained in two detected images to be compared are corrected in such a manner that, even if there may be a brightness difference in a portion free from defects, the brightness difference is reduced to such a degree so that it can be recognized as a normal portion. Also, a limit for the amount of correction is furnished in advance, and correction exceeding such limit value is not performed. Such correction prevents the difference in brightness that should be permitted as non-defective from being falsely recognized as a defect without overlooking great differences in brightness due to a defect.

Visual inspection method and apparatus therefor

An inspection method and apparatus which controls an acceleration voltage of an electron beam, irradiates the electron beam to an object to be inspected mounted on a stage which is continuously moving at least in one direction, detects at least one of a secondary electron and a reflected electron emanated from the object by the irradiating, obtains an image of the object from the detected electron by using positional information of the stage, conducts inspection or measurement of the object using the image obtained, and outputs a result of the inspection or the measurement through a network system which is connected to a computer.

A defect judgement processing method and apparatus which can optimize image processing and defect judgement parameters for a detection image cut out by each inspection window to avoid erroneous judgement and defect missing and to realize reliable defect judgement. An image data generator cuts out ranges indicated by a plurality of predesignated inspection windows from a detected image and stores them in a memory, a window data generator generates window data having inspection conditions attached thereto with respect to the plurality of inspection windows and stores them in the memory, a feature extractor reads out detection images of the ranges indicated by the inspection windows from the memory and extracts a structural feature parameter therefrom on the basis of an image processing parameter conforming to the inspection condition obtained by the window data, and a defect judger performs its defect judging operation over the extracted structural feature parameter on the basis of a defect judgement parameter conforming to the inspection condition.

Defect judgement processing method and apparatus

A solder testing apparatus comprising image processing means for performing image processing on an image of an appearance of a soldered portion to identify shape characterizing amounts for the soldered portion; and defect determining means for performing good/bad determination on the soldered portion from data derived by the image processing means and data from test parameter storing means for storing shape characterizing amounts at design time, wherein tested-object standard shape estimating means is included for extracting shape characterizing amounts of a non-defective soldered portion by statistically processing shape characterizing amounts for soldered portions identified by the image processing means, and defect determining parameters stored in the test parameter storing means are updated based on standard shape values from the tested-object standard shape estimating means, so that a highly reliable test is realized by setting defect determining parameters based on actual shapes and dimensions of leads and pads of electronic components on a printed circuit board.

Solder testing apparatus

An electron beam inspection method including the steps of irradiating an electron beam to an object to be inspected, detecting at least one of a secondary electron and a reflected electron emanated from the object by the irradiation of the electron beam, and obtaining an image of the object from the detected electron. The method further includes the steps of controlling an electric field in a neighborhood of the object for filtering the at least one of the secondary and reflected electron emanated from the object so as to control the contrast of the image, detecting at least one of the secondary and reflected electron emanated from the object which passes through the electric field in the neighborhood of the object by the irradiation of the electron beam, and conducting inspection or measurement of the object on the basis of a detected signal of the detection in the controlled electric field.

An electron beam inspection method and apparatus. The method includes controlling acceleration voltage of electron beam and electric field on a sample, beam current, beam diameter, image detection rate, image dimensions, precharge, discharge, or a combination of them, exposing an object to the electron beam, detecting in a sensor a physical change generated from the object, and inspecting or measuring the object on the basis of a signal representing the detected physical change. The apparatus includes an electron source (potential E2) for generating an electron beam, a deflector for scanning generated electrons, an objective lens for focusing the electron beam upon the object, a grid (potential E1) disposed between the object and the objective lens, a wafer holder (potential E0) for holding the object, a sensor for detecting generated secondary electrons, a potential controller for controlling the potential E0, E1 and E2, and a storage for storing optimum potential conditions. By changing conditions of an electron optic system such as potential E0, E1 and E2, the acceleration voltage and electric field on the object are controlled. For a material located at least in an upper layer of a plurality of materials forming the object, the secondary electron yield ratio can be made nearly unity and appropriate contrast of an obtained image can be provided with minimized influence of charge up.

Electron beam inspection method and apparatus and semiconductor

A method for automatic focusing and three dimensional profile detection and an apparatus for automatic focusing and three dimensional profile detection have the purpose of detecting a three dimensional profile of the state of mounting of parts or soldering on a board without the affects of warp, even if the board of the detection object is warped, as if the surface of the board were on a flat plane. The board surface height is detected in a plurality of windows corresponding to stage scanning regions from a three dimensional profile signal of the part-mounted board detected by a height detection optical system. The board height or inclination in the next window is forecasted from the board surface height and the control history of stage height in the already-detected plurality of windows. Based on the forecasted board surface height or inclination, the speed or height in the Z direction of a Z-stage is controlled according to a feedforward method with scanning so as that the board surface and the focal plane of the height detection optical system are made coincident.

Method and apparatus for automatic focusing and a method and apparatus

The present invention relates to a method for producing a thin film substrate for forming a thin film circuit pattern on a substrate by repeating the lithography process using a photoresist and provides a method for producing a thin film having a high yield by preventing accumulation of faults at the time of thin film forming with high reliability and executing the inspection and repair process efficiently using the characteristics of the condition of generated faults. The method is constructed so as to inspect a resist pattern without exposure to light before etching the base layer in the inspection process of the lithography process using a photoresist, to particularly repair a lacking-fault part among detected fault parts, to execute inspection for an etching remnant in the thin metal film inspection and repair process after the etching ends, and to remove and repair etching remnants, if any.

Method for producing thin-film substrate

A defect inspection method and apparatus detect a defect which exists on the surface of a protection layer or a defect which exists in the protection layer and scatters the light on its surface, through the detection of the light which is derived from an illumination light and reflected on the protection layer surface and the light which is derived from a slit-formed illumination light and scattered in the area between the position where the light is incident to the transparent protection layer and the position where the surface of an element underneath the transparent protection layer is illuminated. An image process, which images two elements having the same appearance and compares the images, thereby to reduce inconsistent components emerging in portions other than a defective portion, is conducted through imaging under the bright field illumination and bright/dark field combined illumination, and the images are rendered the minimum filtering process based on 3-by-3 pixels and the defect judgement process based on comparison.

Method and apparatus for the inspection of defects

System for detecting pattern defects wherein images of corresponding portions of two originally identical patterns are detected and two image signals representing the images are registered with each other, a second image signal of the two registered signals is shifted by a predetermined number of pixels with respect to a first image signal, thus providing shifted second image signals. Differences in brightness between the first and second image signals as well as each of the shifted second image signals are calculated within intervals corresponding to pixels on one scanning line, thus providing a first group of difference image signals, preset values are added to and substracted from the first or second image signal to provide a sum image signal and a substraction image signal. Differences in brightness between the second or first image signal and each of the sum and substraction image signals are calculated within the intervals to provide a second group of at least two difference signals, normality of one of the two patterns is decided when the first group of difference signals and the second group of difference signals have coexistent positive and negative signs within one interval and a minimum of absolute values of the first group of difference signals and the second group of difference signals is calculated when the first and second group of difference signals have all either positive signs or negative signs within one interval, and the mimimum is detected as a true defect when the minimum exceeds a predetermined threshold.

Method and apparatus for detecting pattern defects

A pattern checking apparatus carries out the detection of candidate defects through a primary selection with a sensitivity high enough to detect any existing defect, and then carries out a detailed analysis by a controlling processor for a pattern including the periphery of the detected candidate defect through a secondary selection in which a candidate defect which is not a defect in a practical sense is removed from candidates, so that only real defects are detected.

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Yokohama, Japan

Yukio Matsuyama