Inspection device for inspecting wafer and method of inspecting wafer using the same

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10474133-B2
Application number	US-201715724758-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 4, 2017
Priority date	Nov 29, 2016
Publication date	Nov 12, 2019
Grant date	Nov 12, 2019

Abstract

An inspection device includes a first processor, a second processor, and a server. The first processor detects first coordinates of first feature points from first images in a first image set. The second processor detects second coordinates of second feature points from second images in a second image set. The server generates reference coordinates based on the first coordinates and the second coordinates. The reference coordinates are transmitted to the first processor and the second processor. The first and second image sets correspond to scanned swaths on a wafer.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An inspection device, comprising:
a first processor to detect first coordinates of first feature points from first images in a first image set, the first coordinates of the first feature points including 1-st to n-th first coordinates, where n is a natural greater than one;
a second processor to detect second coordinates of second feature points from second images in a second image set, the second coordinates of the second feature points including 1-st to n-th second coordinates; and
a server to generate 1-st to n-th reference coordinates based on the 1-st to n-th first coordinates and the 1-st to n-th second coordinates, respectively, and to transmit the 1-st to n-th reference coordinates to the first processor and the second processor, wherein the first and second image sets correspond to a same scanned swath on a wafer, wherein:
the 1-st reference coordinate is generated using the 1-st first coordinate and the 1-st second coordinate, and
the n-th reference coordinate is generated using the n-th first coordinate and the n-th second coordinate.

2. The inspection device as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the first processor is to:
align locations of the 1-st to n-th first coordinates to correspond to the 1-st to n-th reference coordinates respectively, and
align remaining coordinates of the first images in accordance with movement of the locations of the 1-st to n-th first coordinates to generate first aligned images.

3. The inspection device as claimed in claim 2 , wherein the first processor is to:
set one of the first aligned images as a reference image,
set the remaining images, except the reference image among the first images aligned, as target images, and
align the target images based on the reference image.

4. The inspection device as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the second processor is to:
align locations of the 1-st to n-th second coordinates to correspond to the 1-st to n-th reference coordinates respectively, and
align remaining coordinates of the second images in accordance with movement of the locations of the 1-st to n-th second coordinates to generate second aligned images.

5. The inspection device as claimed in claim 4 , wherein the second processor is to:
set one of the aligned second images as a reference image,
set the remaining images, except the reference image among the aligned second images, as target images, and
align the target images based on the reference image.

6. The inspection device as claimed in claim 1 , wherein:
each of X coordinates of the 1-st to n-th reference coordinates is calculated as an average value of each of X coordinates of the 1-st to n-th first coordinates and each of X coordinates of the 1-st to n-th second coordinates, and
each of Y coordinates of the 1-st to n-th reference coordinates is calculated as an average value of each of Y coordinates of the 1-st to n-th first coordinates and each of Y coordinates of the 1-st to n-th second coordinates.

7. The inspection device as claimed in claim 1 , wherein:
each of X coordinates of the 1-st to n-th reference coordinates is calculated as a median value of each of X coordinates of the 1-st to n-th first coordinates and each of X coordinates of the 1-st to n-th second coordinates, and
each of Y coordinates of the 1-st to n-th reference coordinates is calculated as a median value of each of Y coordinates of the 1-st to n-th first coordinates and each of Y coordinates of the 1-st to n-th second coordinates.

8. The inspection device as claimed in claim 1 , wherein:
the same inspection swath is one of a plurality of inspection swaths that extend in a first direction on a plurality of dies of the wafer, and
the remaining inspection swaths, except the one inspection swath among the plurality of inspection swaths, extend in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction on the plurality of dies of the wafer.

9. An inspection method, comprising:
receiving, from an image sensor, a plurality of image sets generated by scanning one inspection swath of a plurality of inspection swaths on a test wafer;
detecting, by a first processor, first coordinates of first feature points from first images in a first image set among the plurality of image sets, the first coordinates of the first feature points including 1-st to n-th first coordinates, where n is a natural number greater than one;
detecting, by a second processor, second coordinates of second feature points from second images in a second image set among the plurality of image sets, the second coordinates of the second feature points including 1-st to n-th second coordinates;
generating, by a server, 1-st to n-th reference coordinates based on the 1-st to n-th first coordinates and the 1-st to n-th second coordinates, respectively;
generating, by the first processor, first aligned images by aligning locations of the 1-st to n-th first coordinates to correspond to the 1-st to n-th reference coordinates; and
generating, by the second processor, second aligned images by aligning locations of the 1-st to n-th second coordinates to correspond to the 1-st to n-th reference coordinates, wherein:
the 1-st reference coordinate is generated using the 1-st first coordinate and the 1-st second coordinate, and
the n-th reference coordinate is generated using the n-th first coordinate and the n-th second coordinate.

10. The method as claimed in claim 9 , further comprising:
setting, by the first processor, one of the first aligned images as a reference image;
setting, by the first processor, remaining images, except the reference image among the first aligned images, as target images; and
generating, by the first processor, new first images by aligning the target images based on the reference image.

11. The method as claimed in claim 10 , further comprising:
setting, by the second processor, one of the second aligned images as a reference image;
setting, by the second processor, the remaining images, except the reference image among the second aligned images, as target images; and
generating, by the second processor, new second images by aligning the target images based on the reference image.

12. The method as claimed in claim 11 , further comprising:
storing, by a memory of an inspection device, the new first images and the new second images.

13. The method as claimed in claim 11 , further comprising:
detecting, by the server, defects of the test wafer by comparing the new first images with the new second images.

14. The method as claimed in claim 13 , further comprising:
providing, to a photolithography system, information corresponding to the defects,
changing a photolithography condition based on information corresponding to the defects, and
performing a photolithography process on a wafer based on the changed photolithography condition.

15. The method as claimed in claim 9 , wherein the aligned first coordinates and the aligned second coordinates are equal to the reference coordinates.

16. An apparatus, comprising:
first logic circuit to detect first coordinates of first feature points from first images the first coordinates of the first feature points including 1-st to n-th first coordinates, where n is a natural number greater than one;
second logic circuit to detect second coordinates of second feature points from second images, the first and second images corresponding to a same scanned swath on a wafer, the second coordinates of the second feature points including 1-st to n-th second coordinates;
third logic circuit to generate 1-st to n-th reference coordinates based on th

Assignees

• Samsung Electronics Co Ltd

Inventors

• Lee Janghee
• Jeong Yoo Jin
• Park Sangbong
• Jeon Byeonghwan

Classifications

• H10P72/0616

  Monitoring of warpages, curvatures, damages, defects or the like · CPC title

• H10P74/203 Primary

  Structural properties, e.g. testing or measuring thicknesses, line widths, warpage, bond strengths or physical defects · CPC title

• H10P74/23

  characterised by multiple measurements, corrections, marking or sorting processes · CPC title

• G05B19/4097 Primary

  characterised by using design data to control NC machines, e.g. CAD/CAM (G05B19/4093 takes precedence) · CPC title

• G03F7/70516

  Calibration of components of the microlithographic apparatus, e.g. light sources, addressable masks or detectors · CPC title