Substrate inspection apparatus

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10067067-B2
Application number	US-201615203317-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 6, 2016
Priority date	Sep 9, 2015
Publication date	Sep 4, 2018
Grant date	Sep 4, 2018

Abstract

A substrate inspection apparatus may include a light source, which is configured to emit an incident light. The substrate inspection apparatus may further include a support, a detector, and a light adjuster. The supporting base configured to support a substrate, the detector configured to detect a defect on the substrate, and the light adjuster configured to allow the incident light to be reflected. The detector may be configured to collect a scattering signal. The scattering signal is generated from an optical interaction between an evanescent wave and the defect on the substrate, and to detect the defect. The evanescent wave may be generated when the incident light is totally and/or substantially reflected by the light adjuster.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A substrate inspection apparatus comprising:
a light source configured to emit an incident light;
a support configured to support a substrate;
a detector configured to detect a defect on the substrate based on a generated scattering signal received by the detector; and
a light adjuster configured to substantially totally reflect the incident light, the generated scattering signal is generated based on an optical interaction between an evanescent wave and the defect on the substrate, the evanescent wave is generated when the incident light is reflected by the light adjuster,
wherein the light adjuster comprises a reflection prism; and a moveable base configured to change a position of the reflection prism,
wherein the moveable base is configured to move the reflection prism from an inspection position to a waiting position, the inspection position is when the reflection prism is between the substrate and the detector, the waiting position is when the reflection prism is not between the substrate and the detector.

2. The substrate inspection apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the light adjuster is between the detector and the substrate.

3. The substrate inspection apparatus of claim 2 , wherein
the light adjuster and a top surface of the substrate are separated from each other by a distance, and
the evanescent wave is configured to reach the top surface but not pass through the top surface.

4. The substrate inspection apparatus of claim 3 , wherein a range of the distance is from 150 nm (nanometer) to 300 nm.

5. The substrate inspection apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising:
a controller configured to,
extract information on the defect from the generated scattering signal, and
control the light adjuster to perform a first inspection process and a second inspection process, the first inspection process includes the reflection prism at the waiting position, and the second inspection process includes the reflection prism at the inspection position.

6. The substrate inspection apparatus of claim 5 , wherein the controller is further configured to,
determine whether there is a first region within the defect during the first inspection process, the first region is an abnormal region which includes a size larger than a desired size, and
perform the second inspection process on a second region of the substrate, the second region is different from the abnormal region.

7. The substrate inspection apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the light adjuster comprises:
a light-condenser configured to reflect the incident light within the light-condenser; and
a filter configured to remove a reflected fraction of the incident light.

8. The substrate inspection apparatus of claim 7 , wherein the filter comprises:
a transmissive part configured to have the incident light incident into an inner space of the light adjuster; and
a filter part configured to limit propagation of the reflected fraction from the inner space to the light adjuster.

9. The substrate inspection apparatus of claim 8 , wherein
the filter part is inside the filter, the filter part having a center spaced apart from a central axis of the inner space, and
the transmissive part having a center on the central axis of the inner space, and the transmissive part configured to surround the filter.

10. The substrate inspection apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising:
a controller configured to,
control the light source,
the light adjuster,
perform a first inspection process and a second inspection process, and
extract information on the defect based on the generated scattering signal collected by the light adjuster,

wherein,
the light source includes,
a first light source configured to emit a first incident light towards the substrate, and
a second light source configured to emit a second incident light towards the light adjuster, and

the controller is further configured to,
emit the first incident light to the substrate during the first inspection process, and
emit the second incident light to the light adjuster during the second incident inspection process.

11. The substrate inspection apparatus of claim 10 , wherein the controller is further configured to,
determine whether there is a first region within the defect during the first inspection process, the first region is an abnormal region which includes a size larger than a desired size, and
perform the second inspection process on a second region of the substrate, the second region is different from the abnormal region.

12. A substrate inspection apparatus, comprising:
a support configured to support a substrate;
a light source configured to emit an incident light towards an inspection region of the substrate;
a light adjuster including a reflector, the reflector positioned over the inspection region, and the reflector configured to allow the incident light to be substantially totally reflected;
a detector configured to collect a first scattering signal, the first scattering signal generated based on an optical interaction between an evanescent wave and a defect on the inspection region, the evanescent wave generated when the incident light is reflected; and
a controller configured to,
control the support, the light source, the light adjuster, and the detector, wherein the light adjuster and the substrate are separated from each other by a distance, the distance is a reachable distance for the evanescent wave,
perform a first inspection process and a second inspection process, the first inspection process is performed before the second inspection process,
irradiate the inspection region with the incident light and collect a second scattering signal generated from an optical interaction between the incident light and the defect during the second inspection process, and
irradiate the reflector with the incident light and collect the first scattering signal during the second inspection process.

13. The substrate inspection apparatus of claim 12 , wherein the controller is further configured to,
determine whether there is a first region within the defect, the first region is an abnormal region which includes a size larger than a desired size based on the second scattering signal, and
control the detector to exclude the abnormal region from the inspection region during the second inspection process.

14. A substrate inspection apparatus comprising:
a light source configured to emit an incident light;
a support configured to support a substrate;
a detector configured to detect a defect on the substrate based on a generated scattering signal received by the detector; and
a light adjuster configured to substantially totally reflect the incident light, the generated scattering signal is generated based on an optical interaction between an evanescent wave and the defect on the substrate, the evanescent wave is generated when the incident light is reflected by the light adjuster,
wherein the light adjuster comprises a light-condenser configured to reflect the incident light within the light-condenser; and a filter configured to remove a reflected fraction of the incident light,
wherein the filter comprises a transmissive part configured to have the incident light incident into an inner space of the light adjuster; and a filter part configured to limit propagation of the reflected fraction from the inner space to the light adjuster.

15. The substrate inspection apparatus of claim 14 , further comprising:
a controller configured to,
control the light source,
the light adjuster,
perform a first inspection process and a second insp

Assignees

• Samsung Electronics Co Ltd

Inventors

• Lee Seongsil
• Ahn Jeongho

Classifications

• G01N21/8806 Primary

  Specially adapted optical and illumination features · CPC title

• G01N21/956

  Inspecting patterns on the surface of objects {(contactless testing of electronic circuits G01R31/308; testing currency G07D; manufacturing processes per se of semiconductor devices implementing a measuring step H10P74/20)} · CPC title

• G01N2201/0636

  Reflectors · CPC title