Method of generating an examination recipe and system thereof

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10290087-B2
Application number	US-201715701371-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 11, 2017
Priority date	Sep 11, 2017
Publication date	May 14, 2019
Grant date	May 14, 2019

Abstract

There are provided system and method of generating an examination recipe usable for examining a specimen, the method comprising: capturing images from dies and obtaining noise map indicative of noise distribution on the images; receiving design data representative of a plurality of design groups each having the same design pattern; calculating a group score for each given design group, the group score calculated based on the noise data associated with the given design group and a defect budget allocated for area of the given design group; providing segmentation related to the dies, comprising: associating design groups with segmentation labels indicative of different noise levels based on the group score, thereby obtaining a set of die segments each corresponding to one or more design groups associated with the same segmentation label and segmentation configuration data; and generating an examination recipe using the segmentation configuration data.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A computerized system of generating an examination recipe usable for examining a specimen, the system comprising:
an examination tool configured to capture one or more images from one or more dies of the specimen and obtain a noise map indicative of noise distribution on the one or more images;
an I/O interface configured to receive design data of the one or more dies, the design data representative of a plurality of design groups each corresponding to one or more die regions having a same design pattern; and
a processing unit operatively connected to the examination tool and the I/O interface, the processing unit comprising a memory and a processor operatively coupled thereto, wherein the processing unit is configured to:
calculate a group score for each design group of the plurality of design groups, wherein the noise map is aligned with the design data such that each design group of the plurality of design groups is associated with noise data within one or more corresponding die regions, and wherein a group score of a given design group of the plurality of design groups is calculated based on the noise data associated with the given design group and a defect budget allocated for an area of the given design group;
provide segmentation related to the one or more dies by associating each design group with one segmentation label of a predefined set of segmentation labels indicative of different noise levels based on the group score calculated therefor, thereby obtaining a set of die segments each corresponding to one or more design groups associated with the same segmentation label and segmentation configuration data informative of the segmentation; and
generate an examination recipe using the segmentation configuration data.

2. The computerized system according to claim 1 , wherein the processing unit is further configured to register the design data with the noise map such that the noise map is aligned with the design data.

3. The computerized system according to claim 1 , wherein the noise map is indicative of statistical noise distribution on a plurality of images captured from a plurality of dies of at least the specimen.

4. The computerized system according to claim 1 , wherein the noise distribution comprises one or more noise characteristics of noises indicated in the noise map including locations of the noises.

5. The computerized system according to claim 1 , wherein the noise distribution comprises one or more noise characteristics of noises indicated in the noise map including locations of the noises and at least one of the following: strength and size of the noises.

6. The computerized system according to claim 1 , wherein noises indicated in the noise map comprise pattern-related noise.

7. The computerized system according to claim 1 , wherein the noise map comprises information related to planted defects, the planted defects being simulated defects added to the one or more images in predefined locations associated with a design pattern of interest (POI), and wherein the group score of the given design group comprising the design POI is calculated based on the information of planted defects.

8. The computerized system according to claim 1 , wherein the examination tool is an inspection tool configured to scan the specimen to capture the one or more images with sensitive examination configuration and wherein the noise map is obtained using a low detection threshold.

9. The computerized system according to claim 1 , wherein the group score is a threshold calculated by applying the defect budget allocated for the given design group on a noise histogram created based on the noise data associated with the given design group.

10. The computerized system according to claim 1 , wherein the calculating is further based on overlapping between the plurality of design groups.

11. The computerized system according to claim 1 , wherein the predefined set of segmentation labels are indicative of noise levels of quiet, noisy and very noisy.

12. The computerized system according to claim 1 , wherein the segmentation configuration data is used to configure a detection threshold for each die segment.

13. A computerized method of generating an examination recipe usable for examining a specimen, the method comprising:
capturing, by an examination tool, one or more images from one or more dies of the specimen and obtaining a noise map indicative of noise distribution on the one or more images;
receiving, by an I/O interface, design data of the one or more dies, the design data representative of a plurality of design groups each corresponding to one or more die regions having a same design pattern;
calculating, by a processing unit operatively connected to the inspection unit and the I/O interface, a group score for each design group of the plurality of design groups, wherein the noise map is aligned with the design data such that each design group of the plurality of design groups is associated with noise data within one or more corresponding die regions, and wherein group score of a given design group of the plurality of design groups is calculated based on the noise data associated with the given design group and a defect budget allocated for an area of the given design group;
providing, by the processing unit, segmentation related to the one or more dies by associating each design group with one segmentation label of a predefined set of segmentation labels indicative of different noise levels based on the group score calculated therefor, thereby obtaining a set of die segments each corresponding to one or more design groups associated with the same segmentation label and segmentation configuration data informative of the segmentation; and
generating, by the processing unit, an examination recipe using the segmentation configuration data.

14. The computerized method of claim 13 , wherein the examination tool is an inspection tool and the one or more images are captured by the inspection tool with sensitive examination configuration, and wherein the noise map is obtained using a low detection threshold.

15. The computerized method of claim 13 , wherein the noise map comprises information related to planted defects, the planted defects being simulated defects added to the one or more images in predefined locations associated with a design pattern of interest (POI), and wherein the group score of the given design group comprising the design POI is calculated based on the information of planted defects.

16. The computerized method of claim 13 , wherein the group score is a threshold calculated by applying the defect budget allocated for the given design group on a noise histogram created based on the noise data associated with the given design group.

17. The computerized method of claim 13 , wherein the associating is further based on overlapping between the plurality of design groups.

18. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium comprising instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform operations to generate an examination recipe usable for examining a specimen, the operations comprising:
obtaining one or more images from one or more dies of the specimen and obtaining a noise map indicative of noise distribution on the one or more images;
receiving design data of the one or more dies, the design data representative of a plurality of design groups each corresponding to one or more die regions having a same design pattern;
calculating a group score for each design group of the plurality of design gr

Assignees

• Applied Materials Israel Ltd

Inventors

• SHKALIM Ariel
• Amzaleg Moshe
• Neistein Eyal
• Tubul Shlomo
• Geshel Mark
• Cohen Elad

Classifications

• G06F30/367 Primary

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• G06T2207/30168

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• G06T2207/20224

  Image subtraction · CPC title

• G06T2207/30148

  Semiconductor; IC; Wafer · CPC title

• G06T7/0008

  checking presence/absence · CPC title