Reticle fabrication method and semiconductor device fabrication method including the same

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11294290-B2
Application number	US-202016911819-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 25, 2020
Priority date	Dec 2, 2019
Publication date	Apr 5, 2022
Grant date	Apr 5, 2022

Abstract

Disclosed are reticle fabrication methods and semiconductor device fabrication methods. The reticle fabrication method includes performing a photolithography process on a test substrate using a first reticle having first patterns, measuring the test substrate to obtain measured images, designing a second reticle having second patterns, redesigning the second reticle based on a margin of the photolithography process, and manufacturing the redesigned second reticle. Redesigning the second reticle includes obtaining sample images from the measured images when the first patterns are the same as the second patterns, obtaining contour images that have contours of sample patterns in the sample images, overlapping the contours to obtain a contour overlay value, and comparing the contour overlay value with a reference value to determine defects of the second patterns.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A reticle fabrication method, comprising:
performing a photolithography process on a test substrate using a first reticle comprising first patterns;
measuring the test substrate to obtain measured images;
designing a second reticle comprising second patterns;
redesigning the second reticle based on a margin of the photolithography process to determine a redesigned second reticle; and
manufacturing the redesigned second reticle,
wherein redesigning the second reticle comprises:
obtaining sample images from the measured images, when the first patterns are same as the second patterns;
obtaining contour images that have contours of sample patterns in the sample images;
overlapping the contours of the contour images and combining the overlapped contour images into a first overlay image having a plurality of first overlapped contours;
overlapping a plurality of group images of a plurality of group regions in the first overlay image to obtain a second overlay image smaller than the first overlay image, the second overlay image including a plurality of second overlapped contours less than the first overlapped contours; and
overlapping a plurality of local images of a plurality of local regions in the second overlay image to obtain a third overlay image smaller than the second overlay image, the third overlay image including a third overlapped contour which has a critical dimension value corresponding to a difference between an inner and outer diameter of the third overlapped contour.

2. The reticle fabrication method of claim 1 , wherein redesigning the second reticle further comprises:
overlapping the contours to obtain a contour overlay value; and
comparing the contour overlay value with a reference value to determine whether defects of the second patterns are present,
wherein overlapping the contours to obtain the contour overlay value comprises overlapping the contour images to obtain a global overlay value of overlapped contour images.

3. The reticle fabrication method of claim 2 , wherein the first overlay image has first overlapped contours, and wherein the global overlay value comprises:
a first minimum area value among inner areas of respective ones of the first overlapped contours; and
a first minimum distance value between a pair of neighboring first overlapped contours.

4. The reticle fabrication method of claim 2 ,
wherein overlapping the contours to obtain the contour overlay value further comprises overlapping local images of a plurality of local regions in the second overlay image to obtain a local overlay value.

5. The reticle fabrication method of claim 4 , wherein the second overlay image has second overlapped contours, and wherein the local overlay value comprises:
a second minimum area value among inner areas of respective ones of the second overlapped contours; and
a second minimum distance value between a pair of neighboring second overlapped contours.

6. The reticle fabrication method of claim 5 ,
wherein a local region of the plurality of local regions is defined within a modeling distance from one of the second overlapped contours in the second overlay image, and
wherein the modeling distance is about 300 nm.

7. The reticle fabrication method of claim 4 ,
wherein the overlapped local images are combined into a third overlay image,
wherein the third overlay image has a third overlapped contour, and
wherein the local overlay value comprises a third minimum area value of the third overlapped contour.

8. The reticle fabrication method of claim 7 , wherein the third overlapped contour comprises:
an outer contour; and
an inner contour within a boundary of the outer contour,
wherein the local overlay value further comprises a critical dimension value that corresponds to a difference between a first radius of the outer contour and a second radius of the inner contour.

9. The reticle fabrication method of claim 1 , wherein redesigning the second reticle further comprises rearranging the second patterns when defects of the second patterns are present.

10. The reticle fabrication method of claim 1 , further comprising:
overlapping ones of the plurality of group images with each other to generate the second overlay image,
wherein the plurality of group regions comprise repetitive regions in the first overlay image.

11. The reticle fabrication method of claim 10 , wherein overlapping the plurality of local images of the plurality of local regions in the second overlay image to obtain the third overlay image comprises:
dividing the second overlay image into the plurality of local images with contours that are symmetrically arranged; and
overlapping ones of the plurality of local images to generate the third overlay image.

12. A reticle fabrication method, comprising:
performing a photolithography process on a test substrate using a first reticle comprising first patterns;
measuring the test substrate to obtain measured images;
designing a second reticle comprising second patterns; and
redesigning the second reticle based on a margin of the photolithography process to determine a redesigned second reticle,
wherein redesigning the second reticle comprises:
obtaining sample images from the measured images when the first patterns are same as the second patterns;
obtaining contour images that have contours of sample patterns in the sample images;
overlapping the contours of the contour images and combining the overlapped contour images into a first overlay image having a plurality of first overlapped contours;
overlapping a plurality of group images of a plurality of group regions in the first overlay image to obtain a second overlay image smaller than the first overlay image, the second overlay image including a plurality of second overlapped contours less than the first overlapped contours; and
overlapping a plurality of local images of a plurality of local regions in the second overlay image to obtain a third overlay image smaller than the second overlay image, the third overlay image including a third overlapped contour which has a critical dimension value corresponding to a difference between an inner and outer diameter of the third overlapped contour.

13. The reticle fabrication method of claim 12 , wherein redesigning the second reticle further comprises:
overlapping the contour images to obtain a global overlay value,
wherein the method further comprises overlapping group images of a plurality of group regions in the first overlay image to obtain a group overlay value.

14. The reticle fabrication method of claim 13 ,
wherein the method further comprises overlapping local images of a plurality of local regions in the second overlay image to obtain a local overlay value.

15. The reticle fabrication method of claim 14 ,
wherein the third overlay image comprises a third overlapped contour, and
wherein the local overlay value comprises a minimum area value that corresponds to an inner area of the third overlapped contour.

16. The reticle fabrication method of claim 15 , wherein the third overlapped contour comprises:
an outer contour; and
an inner contour within a boundary of the outer contour,
wherein the local overlay value further comprises a critical dimension value that corresponds to a difference between a first radius of the outer contour and a second radius of the inner contour.

17. A semiconductor device fabrication method, comprising:
performing a first photolithography process on a test substrate using a first reticle comprising first patterns;
measuring t

Assignees

• Samsung Electronics Co Ltd

Inventors

• Cho Woo-Yong
• Kim Sangwook
• Yang Jaewon

Classifications

• H10P76/2041

  Photolithographic processes · CPC title

• H10P50/695

  characterised by the process involved to create the mask, e.g. lift-off masks or sidewalls or to modify the mask · CPC title

• G03F1/70

  Adapting basic layout or design of masks to lithographic process requirements, e.g., second iteration correction of mask patterns for imaging · CPC title

• G03F7/706839

  Modelling, e.g. modelling scattering or solving inverse problems · CPC title

• G03F7/7065

  Defects, e.g. optical inspection of patterned layer for defects · CPC title