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US6757645B2
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US
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Visual inspection and verification system
Assignee: Synopsys Inc
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Filing: 1998-08-07
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Granted: 2004-06-29
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Expires: 2018-08-07
Abstract
Abstract A method and apparatus for inspecting a photolithography mask for defects is provided. The inspection method comprises providing a defect area image to an image simulator wherein the defect area image is an image of a portion of a photolithography mask, and providing a set of lithography parameters as a second input to the image simulator. The defect area image may be provided by an inspection tool which scans the photolithography mask for defects using a high resolution microscope and captures images of areas of the mask around identified potential defects. The image simulator generates a first simulated image in response to the defect area image and the set of lithography parameters. The first simulated image is a simulation of an image which would be printed on a wafer if the wafer were to be exposed to an illumination source directed through the portion of the mask. The method may also include providing a second simulated image which is a simulation of the wafer print of the portion of the design mask which corresponds to the portion represented by the defect area image. The method also provides for the comparison of the first and second simulated images in order to determine the printability of any identified potential defects on the photolithography mask. A method of determining the process window effect of any identified potential defects is also provided for.
Inventors
- 👤 Fang-Cheng Chang
- 👤 Yao-Ting Wang
- 👤 Yagyensh C. Pati
- 👤 Linard N. Karklin
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-07 12:27
CPC Classifications
G; G06; G06T; G06T7/00; G06T7/0002; G06T7/0004; G03; G03F; G03F1/00; G03F1/26; G03F1/68; G03F1/82; G03F1/84; G03F7/00; G03F7/70; G03F7/70425; G03F7/70433; G03F7/70441; G03F7/70483; G03F7/70491; G03F7/705; G06F; G06F30/00; G06F30/30; G06F30/39; G03F1/36; G06T2207/00; G06T2207/30; G06T2207/30108; G06T2207/30148
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 70
Claim 1
Independent Claim
228 words
A method of inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects, the method comprising: locating a portion of said mask which contains a potential defect; providing a defect area image as a first input, wherein said defect area image comprises an image of said portion of said mask; providing a first set of lithography parameters; generating a first simulated image in response to said first input, wherein said first simulated image comprises a simulation of an image which would be printed on a wafer if said wafer were exposed to an illumination source directed through said portion of said mask, wherein the characteristics of said illumination source comprise said first set of lithography parameters; providing a reference description of said portion of said mask; providing a reference image, wherein said reference image comprises a representation of an image that would be printed on a wafer if said wafer were exposed to an illumination source directed through a second mask, wherein the characteristics of said illumination source comprise said first set of lithography parameters, and wherein said second mask comprises a mask described by said reference description; generating a first process window related output in response to said first simulated image; generating a second process window related output in response to said reference image; and comparing said first process window related output with said second process window related output.
Claim 2
Independent Claim
228 words
A method of inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects, the method comprising: locating a portion of said mask which contains a potential defect; providing a defect area image as a first input, wherein said defect area image comprises an image of said portion of said mask; providing a first set of lithography parameters; generating a first simulated image in response to said first input, wherein said first simulated image comprises a simulation of an image which would be printed on a wafer if said wafer were exposed to an illumination source directed through said portion of said mask, wherein the characteristics of said illumination source comprise said first set of lithography parameters; providing a reference description of said portion of said mask; providing a reference image, wherein said reference image comprises a representation of an image that would be printed on a wafer if said wafer were exposed to an illumination source directed through a second mask, wherein the characteristics of said illumination source comprise said first set of lithography parameters, and wherein said second mask comprises a mask described by said reference description; generating a first process window related output in response to said first simulated image; generating a second process window related output in response to said reference image; and comparing said first process window related output with said second process window related output.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
86 words
The method of inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 1 wherein providing said defect area image comprises: providing a set of potential defect criteria; scanning said mask for features whose characteristics fall within said set of potential defect criteria; and generating said defect area image in response to said scanning of said mask, wherein said defect area image comprises an image of a portion of said mask comprising at least one feature whose characteristics fall within said set of potential defect criteria.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
51 words
The method of inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 2 wherein said mask is scanned by a device comprising one of a group of devices including an optical microscope, a scanning electron microscope, a focus ion beam microscope, an atomic force microscope and a near-field optical microscope.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
29 words
The method of inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 1 , wherein said defect area image comprises a digital representation of said defect area image.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
24 words
The method of inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 1 , wherein said illumination source comprises a visible illumination source.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
24 words
The method of inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 1 , wherein said illumination source comprises a non-visible illumination source.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
45 words
The method of inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 1 , wherein said first set of lithography parameters comprises data representing at least one parameter of a group of parameters including numerical aperture, wavelength, sigma, lens aberration, defocus and critical dimension.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
24 words
The method of inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 1 , wherein said mask comprises a bright field mask design.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
24 words
The method of inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 1 , wherein said mask comprises a dark field mask design.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
23 words
The method of inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 1 , wherein said mask comprises a phase shifting mask.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
105 words
The method of inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 1 , comprising: providing a set of photoresist process parameters as a third input; and generating a second simulated image in response to said third input, wherein said second simulated image comprises a simulation of an image which would be printed on said wafer if said wafer were exposed to an illumination source directed through said portion of said mask, wherein the characteristics of said illumination source comprise said first set of lithography parameters, and wherein said wafer comprises a coating of photoresist material characterized by said set of photoresist process parameters.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
52 words
The method of inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 11 wherein said set of photoresist process parameters comprises data representing at least one parameter of a group of parameters including thickness, contrast, pre-bake time, post-bake time, development time, photoresist concentration, developer solution concentration, and light absorption of photoresist.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
101 words
The method of inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 1 , wherein the step of generating said first simulated image has been calibrated to a set of photoresist process parameters such that said first simulated image comprises a simulation of an image which would be printed on said wafer if said wafer were exposed to an illumination source directed through said portion of said mask, wherein the characteristics of said illumination source comprise said first set of lithography parameters, and wherein said wafer comprises a coating of photoresist material characterized by said set of photoresist process parameters.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
75 words
The method of inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 11 comprising: providing a set of etching process parameters as a fourth input; and generating a third simulated image in response to said fourth input, wherein said third simulated image comprises a simulation of an image which would be transferred on said wafer if said wafer were etched in accordance with said etching process parameters after said exposure to said illumination source.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
40 words
The method of inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 14 wherein said set of etching process parameters comprises data representing at least one parameter of a group of parameters including etching time, etching method, and concentration.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
72 words
The method of inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 1 , wherein the step of generating said first simulated image has been calibrated to a set of etching process parameters such that said first simulated image comprises a simulation of an image which would be transferred on said wafer if said wafer were etched in accordance with said etching process parameters after said exposure to said illumination source.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
32 words
The method of inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 1 , wherein said reference description comprises a physical mask which has been determined to be free from defects.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
76 words
The method of inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 1 , wherein providing said reference image comprises generating said reference image in response to said reference description, wherein said reference image comprises a simulation of an image which would be printed on a wafer if said wafer were exposed to an illumination source directed through said second mask, wherein the characteristics of said illumination source comprise said first set of lithography parameters.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
41 words
The method of inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 18 wherein said reference description comprises data in a format comprising at least one of a group of data formats including GDS-II, MEBES, CFLAT, digitized and discretized data.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim
71 words
The method of inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 1 wherein generating said first process window related output comprises: providing a set of wafer image acceptance criteria; and generating a range of values for at least one optical parameter comprising said first set of lithography parameters, wherein within said range said first simulated image falls one of inside and outside said set of wafer image acceptance criteria.
Claim 22
Dependent Claim
64 words
The method of inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 20 wherein generating said second process window related output comprises: generating a second range of values for said at least one optical parameter comprising said first set of lithography parameters, wherein within said second range said reference image falls one of inside and outside said set of wafer image acceptance criteria.
Claim 23
Dependent Claim
43 words
The method of inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 21 wherein said first set of lithography parameters comprises data representing at least one of a group of parameters including numerical aperture, wavelength, sigma, lens aberration, defocus and critical dimension.
Claim 24
Dependent Claim
39 words
The method of inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 1 , wherein the method is performed by a machine executing a program of instructions tangibly embodied in a program storage device readable by said machine.
Claim 25
Dependent Claim
24 words
The method of inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 23 wherein said program storage device comprises a hard disk drive.
Claim 26
Dependent Claim
22 words
The method of inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 23 wherein said program storage device comprises a server.
Claim 27
Independent Claim
251 words
An apparatus for inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects, the apparatus comprising: data storage receiving a defect area image as a first input, wherein said defect area image comprises an image of said portion of said mask and receiving a first set of lithography parameters as a second input; and an image simulator that generates a first simulated image in response to said first input, wherein said first simulated image comprises a simulation of an image which would be printed on a wafer if said wafer were exposed to an illumination source directed through said portion of said mask, wherein the characteristics of said illumination source comprise said first set of lithography conditions; data storage receiving a reference description of said portion of said mask; and an image simulator that generates a reference image in response to said reference description, wherein said reference image comprises a representation of an image that would be printed on a wafer if said wafer were exposed to an illumination source directed through a second mask, wherein the characteristics of said illumination source comprise said first set of lithography conditions, and wherein said second mask comprises a mask described by said reference description; and an image comparator that compares said first simulated image with said reference image, wherein said image comparator generates a first process window related output and a second process window related output, and wherein said image comparator compares said first process window related output with said second process window related output.
Claim 28
Independent Claim
251 words
An apparatus for inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects, the apparatus comprising: data storage receiving a defect area image as a first input, wherein said defect area image comprises an image of said portion of said mask and receiving a first set of lithography parameters as a second input; and an image simulator that generates a first simulated image in response to said first input, wherein said first simulated image comprises a simulation of an image which would be printed on a wafer if said wafer were exposed to an illumination source directed through said portion of said mask, wherein the characteristics of said illumination source comprise said first set of lithography conditions; data storage receiving a reference description of said portion of said mask; and an image simulator that generates a reference image in response to said reference description, wherein said reference image comprises a representation of an image that would be printed on a wafer if said wafer were exposed to an illumination source directed through a second mask, wherein the characteristics of said illumination source comprise said first set of lithography conditions, and wherein said second mask comprises a mask described by said reference description; and an image comparator that compares said first simulated image with said reference image, wherein said image comparator generates a first process window related output and a second process window related output, and wherein said image comparator compares said first process window related output with said second process window related output.
Claim 29
Dependent Claim
83 words
The apparatus for inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 26 , comprising: a resource for receiving a set of potential defect criteria; a scanning resource which scans said mask for features whose characteristics fall within said set of potential defect criteria; and a resource for generating said defect area image, wherein said defect area image comprises an image of a portion of said mask comprising at least one feature whose characteristics fall within said set of potential defect criteria.
Claim 30
Dependent Claim
47 words
The apparatus for inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 27 wherein said scanning resource comprises one of a group of devices including an optical microscope, a scanning electron microscope, a focus ion beam microscope, an atomic force microscope and a near-field optical microscope.
Claim 31
Dependent Claim
29 words
The apparatus for inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 26 , wherein said defect area image comprises a digital representation of said defect area image.
Claim 32
Dependent Claim
24 words
The apparatus for inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 26 , Wherein said illumination source comprises a visible illumination source.
Claim 33
Dependent Claim
23 words
The apparatus for inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 26 Wherein said illumination source comprises a non-visible illumination source.
Claim 34
Dependent Claim
45 words
The apparatus for inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 26 , wherein said first set of lithography parameters comprises data representing at least one parameter of a group of parameters including numerical aperture, wavelength, sigma, lens aberration, defocus and critical dimension.
Claim 35
Dependent Claim
24 words
The apparatus for inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 26 , herein said mask comprises a bright field mask design.
Claim 36
Dependent Claim
24 words
The apparatus for inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 26 , wherein said mask comprises a dark field mask design.
Claim 37
Dependent Claim
23 words
The apparatus for inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 26 , wherein said mask comprises a phase shifting mask.
Claim 38
Dependent Claim
111 words
The apparatus for inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 26 , comprising: a resource for receiving a set of photoresist process parameters as a third input; and a resource for generating a second simulated image in response to said third input, wherein said second simulated image comprises a simulation of an image which would be printed on said wafer if said wafer were exposed to an illumination source directed through said portion of said mask, wherein the characteristics of said illumination source comprise said first set of lithography conditions, and wherein said wafer comprises a coating of photoresist material characterized by said set of photoresist process parameters.
Claim 39
Dependent Claim
52 words
The apparatus for inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 36 wherein said set of photoresist process parameters comprises data representing at least one parameter of a group of parameters including thickness, contrast, pre-bake time, post-bake time, development time, photoresist concentration, developer solution concentration, and light absorption of photoresist.
Claim 40
Dependent Claim
95 words
The apparatus for inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 26 wherein said image simulator has been calibrated to a set of photoresist process parameters such that said first simulated image comprises a simulation of an image which would be printed on said wafer if said wafer were exposed to an illumination source directed through said portion of said mask, wherein the characteristics of said illumination source comprise said first set of lithography conditions, and wherein said wafer comprises a coating of photoresist material characterized by said set of photoresist process parameters.
Claim 41
Dependent Claim
81 words
The apparatus for inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 36 comprising: a resource for receiving a set of etching process parameters as a fourth input; and a resource for generating a third simulated image in response to said fourth input, wherein said third simulated image comprises a simulation of an image which would be transferred on said wafer if said wafer were etched in accordance with said etching process parameters after said exposure to said illumination source.
Claim 42
Dependent Claim
40 words
The apparatus for inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 39 wherein said set of etching process parameters comprises data representing at least one parameter of a group of parameters including etching time, etching method, and concentration.
Claim 43
Dependent Claim
67 words
The apparatus for inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 26 , wherein said image simulator has been calibrated to a set of etching process parameters such that said first simulated image comprises a simulation of an image which would be transferred on said wafer if said wafer were etched in accordance with said etching process parameters after said exposure to said illumination source.
Claim 44
Dependent Claim
31 words
The apparatus for inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 26 wherein said reference description comprises a physical mask which has been determined to be free from defects.
Claim 45
Dependent Claim
83 words
The apparatus for inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 26 , wherein said resource for providing said reference image comprises said image simulator apparatus generating said reference image in response to said reference description, wherein said reference image comprises a simulation of an image which would be printed on a wafer if said wafer were exposed to an illumination source directed through said second mask, wherein the characteristics of said illumination source comprise said first set of lithography conditions.
Claim 46
Dependent Claim
41 words
The apparatus for inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 43 wherein said reference description comprises data in a format comprising at least one of a group of data formats including GDS-II, MEBES, CFLAT, digitized and discretized data.
Claim 47
Dependent Claim
71 words
The apparatus for inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 26 wherein generating said first process window related output comprises: providing a set of wafer image acceptance criteria; and generating a range of values for at least one optical parameter comprising said first set of lithography parameters, wherein within said range said first simulated image falls one of inside and outside said set of wafer image acceptance criteria.
Claim 48
Dependent Claim
64 words
The method of inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 45 wherein generating said second process window related output comprises: generating a second range of values for said at least one optical parameter comprising said first set of lithography parameters, wherein within said second range said reference image falls one of inside and outside said set of wafer image acceptance criteria.
Claim 49
Dependent Claim
43 words
The apparatus for inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 46 wherein said first set of lithography parameters comprises data representing at least one of a group of parameters including numerical aperture, wavelength, sigma, lens aberration, defocus and critical dimension.
Claim 50
Dependent Claim
48 words
The apparatus for inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 26 , the apparatus comprising a computer program product comprising a computer usable medium having a computer readable program code embodied therein for causing a computer to inspect a mask used in lithography for defects.
Claim 51
Dependent Claim
24 words
The apparatus for inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 48 wherein said computer usable medium comprises a hard disk drive.
Claim 52
Dependent Claim
22 words
The apparatus for inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects of claim 48 wherein said computer usable medium comprises a server.
Claim 53
Dependent Claim
248 words
A program storage device readable by a machine, tangibly embodying a program of instructions executable by said machine to perform method steps to inspect a mask used in lithography, the method comprising: supporting location of a portion of said mask which contains a potential defect; receiving a defect area image as a first input, wherein said defect area image comprises an image of said portion of said mask; receiving a first set of lithography parameters; generating a first simulated image in response to said first input, wherein said first simulated image comprises a simulation of an image which would be printed on a wafer if said wafer were exposed to an illumination source directed through said portion of said mask, wherein the characteristics of said illumination source comprise said first set of lithography parameters; providing a reference description of said portion of said mask; providing a reference image, wherein said reference image comprises a representation of an image that would be printed on a wafer if said wafer were exposed to an illumination source directed through a second mask, wherein the characteristics of said illumination source comprise said first set of lithography parameters, and wherein said second mask comprises a mask described by said reference description; generating a first process window related output in response to said first simulated image; generating a second process window related output in response to said reference image; and comparing said first process window related output with said second process window related output.
Claim 54
Dependent Claim
248 words
A program storage device readable by a machine, tangibly embodying a program of instructions executable by said machine to perform method steps to inspect a mask used in lithography, the method comprising: supporting location of a portion of said mask which contains a potential defect; receiving a defect area image as a first input, wherein said defect area image comprises an image of said portion of said mask; receiving a first set of lithography parameters; generating a first simulated image in response to said first input, wherein said first simulated image comprises a simulation of an image which would be printed on a wafer if said wafer were exposed to an illumination source directed through said portion of said mask, wherein the characteristics of said illumination source comprise said first set of lithography parameters; providing a reference description of said portion of said mask; providing a reference image, wherein said reference image comprises a representation of an image that would be printed on a wafer if said wafer were exposed to an illumination source directed through a second mask, wherein the characteristics of said illumination source comprise said first set of lithography parameters, and wherein said second mask comprises a mask described by said reference description; generating a first process window related output in response to said first simulated image; generating a second process window related output in response to said reference image; and comparing said first process window related output with said second process window related output.
Claim 55
Dependent Claim
97 words
The program storage device readable by a machine of claim 51 , wherein said generating of said first simulated image has been calibrated to a set of photoresist process parameters such that said first simulated image comprises a simulation of an image which would be printed on said wafer if said wafer were exposed to an illumination source directed through said portion of said mask, wherein the characteristics of said illumination source comprise said first set of lithography parameters, and wherein said wafer comprises a coating of photoresist material characterized by said set of photoresist process parameters.
Claim 56
Dependent Claim
68 words
The program storage device readable by a machine of claim 51 , wherein said generating of said first simulated image has been calibrated to a set of etching process parameters such that said first simulated image comprises a simulation of an image which would be transferred on said wafer if said wafer were etched in accordance with said etching process parameters after said exposure to said illumination source.
Claim 57
Dependent Claim
27 words
The program storage device readable by a machine of claim 51 , wherein the method further comprises analyzing said first simulated image for defects on said mask.
Claim 58
Dependent Claim
22 words
The program storage device readable by a machine of claim 51 , wherein said program storage device comprises a hard disk drive.
Claim 59
Dependent Claim
20 words
The program storage device readable by a machine of claim 51 , wherein said program storage device comprises a server.
Claim 60
Dependent Claim
262 words
A computer program product, comprising: a computer usable medium having a computer readable program code embodied therein for causing a computer to inspect a mask used in lithography for defects, the computer readable program code comprising: computer readable program code that reads a defect area image of a portion of said mask as a first input; computer readable program code that reads a first set of lithography parameters; computer readable program code that generates a first simulated image in response to said first input, wherein said first simulated image comprises a simulation of an image which would be printed on a wafer if said wafer were exposed to an illumination source directed through said portion of said mask, wherein the characteristics of said illumination source comprise said first set of lithography parameters; computer readable program code that receives a reference description of said portion of said mask; computer readable program code that provides a reference image, wherein said reference image comprises a simulation of an image that would be printed on a wafer if said wafer were exposed to an illumination source directed through a second mask, wherein the characteristics of said illumination source comprise said first set of lithography conditions, and wherein said second mask comprises a mask described by said reference description; and computer readable program code that generates a first process window related output in response to said first simulated image, generates a second process window related output in response to said reference image, and compares said first process window related output with said second process window related output.
Claim 61
Dependent Claim
262 words
A computer program product, comprising: a computer usable medium having a computer readable program code embodied therein for causing a computer to inspect a mask used in lithography for defects, the computer readable program code comprising: computer readable program code that reads a defect area image of a portion of said mask as a first input; computer readable program code that reads a first set of lithography parameters; computer readable program code that generates a first simulated image in response to said first input, wherein said first simulated image comprises a simulation of an image which would be printed on a wafer if said wafer were exposed to an illumination source directed through said portion of said mask, wherein the characteristics of said illumination source comprise said first set of lithography parameters; computer readable program code that receives a reference description of said portion of said mask; computer readable program code that provides a reference image, wherein said reference image comprises a simulation of an image that would be printed on a wafer if said wafer were exposed to an illumination source directed through a second mask, wherein the characteristics of said illumination source comprise said first set of lithography conditions, and wherein said second mask comprises a mask described by said reference description; and computer readable program code that generates a first process window related output in response to said first simulated image, generates a second process window related output in response to said reference image, and compares said first process window related output with said second process window related output.
Claim 62
Dependent Claim
97 words
The computer program product of claim 57 , wherein said computer readable program code that generates said first simulated image has been calibrated to a set of photoresist process parameters such that said first simulated image comprises a simulation of an image which would be printed on said wafer if said wafer were exposed to an illumination source directed through said portion of said mask, wherein the characteristics of said illumination source comprise said first set of lithography conditions, and wherein said wafer comprises a coating of photoresist material characterized by said set of photoresist process parameters.
Claim 63
Dependent Claim
68 words
The computer program product of claim 57 , wherein said computer readable program code that generates said first simulated image has been calibrated to a set of etching process parameters such that said first simulated image comprises a simulation of an image which would be transferred on said wafer if said wafer were etched in accordance with said etching process parameters after said exposure to said illumination source.
Claim 64
Dependent Claim
25 words
The computer program product of claim 57 , comprising a computer readable program code that analyzes said first simulated image for defects on said mask.
Claim 65
Dependent Claim
18 words
The computer program product of claim 57 , wherein said computer usable medium comprises a hard disk drive.
Claim 66
Dependent Claim
16 words
The computer program product of claim 57 , wherein said computer usable medium comprises a server.
Claim 67
Independent Claim
263 words
A method of inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects, the method comprising: providing a mask inspection tool; providing a set of potential defect criteria to the mask inspection tool; scanning said mask with said mask inspection tool for features whose characteristics fall within said set of potential defect criteria; generating a defect area image as a first input, wherein said defect area image comprises an image of a portion of said mask which contains a potential defect; providing a first set of lithography parameters; generating a first simulated image with said simulator apparatus in response to said first input, wherein said first simulated image comprises a simulation of an image which would be printed on a wafer if said wafer were exposed to an illumination source directed through said portion of said mask, wherein the characteristics of said illumination source comprise said first set of lithography parameters; providing a reference description of said portion of said mask; providing a reference image, wherein said reference image comprises a representation of an image that would be printed on a wafer if said wafer were exposed to an illumination source directed through a second mask, wherein the characteristics of said illumination source comprise said first set of lithography parameters, and wherein said second mask comprises a mask described by said reference description; generating a first process window related output in response to said first simulated image; generating a second process window related output in response to said reference image; and comparing said first process window related output with said second process window related output.
Claim 68
Independent Claim
263 words
A method of inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects, the method comprising: providing a mask inspection tool; providing a set of potential defect criteria to the mask inspection tool; scanning said mask with said mask inspection tool for features whose characteristics fall within said set of potential defect criteria; generating a defect area image as a first input, wherein said defect area image comprises an image of a portion of said mask which contains a potential defect; providing a first set of lithography parameters; generating a first simulated image with said simulator apparatus in response to said first input, wherein said first simulated image comprises a simulation of an image which would be printed on a wafer if said wafer were exposed to an illumination source directed through said portion of said mask, wherein the characteristics of said illumination source comprise said first set of lithography parameters; providing a reference description of said portion of said mask; providing a reference image, wherein said reference image comprises a representation of an image that would be printed on a wafer if said wafer were exposed to an illumination source directed through a second mask, wherein the characteristics of said illumination source comprise said first set of lithography parameters, and wherein said second mask comprises a mask described by said reference description; generating a first process window related output in response to said first simulated image; generating a second process window related output in response to said reference image; and comparing said first process window related output with said second process window related output.
Claim 69
Independent Claim
266 words
An apparatus for inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects, the apparatus comprising: an inspection tool, wherein said inspection tool locates a portion of said mask which contains a potential defect and generates a defect area image, wherein said defect area image comprises an image of said portion of said mask which contains said potential defect; a resource for receiving said defect area image as a first input; a resource for receiving a first set of lithography parameters; an image simulator that generates a first simulated image in response to said first input, wherein said first simulated image comprises a simulation of an image which would be printed on a wafer if said wafer were exposed to an illumination source directed through said portion of said mask, wherein the characteristics of said illumination source comprise said first set of lithography parameters; a resource for receiving a reference description of said portion of said mask; a resource for providing a reference image, wherein said reference image comprises a simulation of an image that would be printed on a wafer if said wafer were exposed to an illumination source directed through a second mask, wherein the characteristics of said illumination source comprise said first set of lithography parameters, and wherein said second mask comprises a mask described by said reference description; and a resource that generates a first process window related output in response to said first simulated image, generates a second process window related output in response to said reference image, and compares said first process window related output with said second process window related output.
Claim 70
Independent Claim
266 words
An apparatus for inspecting a mask used in lithography for defects, the apparatus comprising: an inspection tool, wherein said inspection tool locates a portion of said mask which contains a potential defect and generates a defect area image, wherein said defect area image comprises an image of said portion of said mask which contains said potential defect; a resource for receiving said defect area image as a first input; a resource for receiving a first set of lithography parameters; an image simulator that generates a first simulated image in response to said first input, wherein said first simulated image comprises a simulation of an image which would be printed on a wafer if said wafer were exposed to an illumination source directed through said portion of said mask, wherein the characteristics of said illumination source comprise said first set of lithography parameters; a resource for receiving a reference description of said portion of said mask; a resource for providing a reference image, wherein said reference image comprises a simulation of an image that would be printed on a wafer if said wafer were exposed to an illumination source directed through a second mask, wherein the characteristics of said illumination source comprise said first set of lithography parameters, and wherein said second mask comprises a mask described by said reference description; and a resource that generates a first process window related output in response to said first simulated image, generates a second process window related output in response to said reference image, and compares said first process window related output with said second process window related output.
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USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
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| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 2007-06-29 | 2007-12-29 | 2008-06-29 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 2011-06-29 | 2011-12-29 | 2012-06-29 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 2015-06-29 | 2015-12-29 | 2016-06-29 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |