The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.

The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.

Date of Patent:
Aug. 16, 2016

Filed:

Mar. 07, 2013
Applicant:

Kla-tencor Corporation, Milpitas, CA (US);

Inventors:

Carl E. Hess, Los Altos, CA (US);

Rui-fang Shi, Cupertino, CA (US);

Assignee:

KLA-Tencor Corporation, Milpitas, CA (US);

Attorney:
Primary Examiner:
Int. Cl.
CPC ...
G01N 21/00 (2006.01); G01N 21/95 (2006.01); G03F 1/84 (2012.01); G01M 11/00 (2006.01); G01N 21/956 (2006.01);
U.S. Cl.
CPC ...
G01N 21/95 (2013.01); G01M 11/00 (2013.01); G01N 21/95607 (2013.01); G03F 1/84 (2013.01); G01N 2021/9511 (2013.01); G01N 2021/95676 (2013.01); G01N 2201/062 (2013.01); G01N 2201/06113 (2013.01); G01N 2201/10 (2013.01);
Abstract

An optical reticle inspection tool is used during an inspection to obtain, for each local area, an average of multiple reflected intensity values corresponding to light reflected from a plurality of sub-areas of each local area of the reticle. The optical reticle inspection tool is also used during the inspection to obtain, for each local area, an average of multiple transmitted intensity values corresponding to light transmitted through the sub-areas of each local area of the reticle. A combined intensity map is generated by combining, for each local area, the average of multiple reflected intensity values and the average of multiple transmitted intensity values such that a reticle pattern of the reticle is cancelled from the combined intensity map if the reticle has not degraded and such that the reticle pattern of the reticle is not cancelled out of the combined intensity map if the reticle has degraded.


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