Patent · US Expired

Method and structure for calibrating scatterometry-based metrology tool used to measure dimensions of features on a semiconductor device

US6742168B1 · kind B1 · utility

15Cited by
20References
32Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventor

Key dates

Filing dateMar 19, 2002
Grant dateMay 25, 2004
Priority date
Expiry dateJun 21, 2022

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC G)Physics
  • CPC primaryG01N21/4788
  • WIPO fieldMeasurement
  • WIPO sectorInstruments

Abstract

The present invention is generally directed to a method and a structure for calibrating a scatterometry-based metrology tool used to measure dimensions of features on a semiconductor device. In one illustrative embodiment, the method comprises measuring a critical dimension of at least one production feature formed above a wafer using a scatterometry tool, measuring at least one of a plurality of grating structures formed above the wafer using the scatterometry tool, each of the grating structures having a different critical dimension, and correcting the measured critical dimension of the at least one production feature based upon the measurement of the at least one grating structure. In further embodiments, the method comprises forming a plurality of production features above a wafer, forming a plurality of grating structures above the wafer, each of the grating structures comprised of a plurality of features each having a target critical dimension that thereby defines a critical dimension of the grating structure, each of the grating structures having a different critical dimension, measuring a critical dimension of at least one of the production features using a scatterometry to…

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