Patent application number | Description | Published |
20090021718 | Method, Computer Program, Apparatus and System Providing Printing for an Illumination Mask for Three-Dimensional Images - A method able to provide illumination source parameters for illumination of a lithographic mask in order to project a three-dimensional image into a resist system. Source intensities of incident beams are determined using a near linear program and responsive to an allowed range of variation. Computer program, apparatus and system are detailed and variations are described. | 01-22-2009 |
20090185740 | CALCULATING IMAGE INTENSITY OF MASK BY DECOMPOSING MANHATTAN POLYGON BASED ON PARALLEL EDGE - A method, system, computer program product and table lookup system for calculating image intensity for a mask used in integrated circuit processing are disclosed. A method may comprise: decomposing a Manhattan polygon of the mask into decomposed areas based on parallel edges of the Manhattan polygon along only one dimension; determining a convolution of each decomposed area based on a table lookup; determining a sum of coherent systems contribution of the Manhattan polygon based on the convolutions of the decomposed areas; and outputting the determined sum of coherent system contribution for analyzing the mask. | 07-23-2009 |
20100003605 | SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR PROJECTION LITHOGRAPHY WITH IMMERSED IMAGE-ALIGNED DIFFRACTIVE ELEMENT - A novel system and method and computer program product for exposing a photoresist film with patterns of finer resolution than can physically be projected onto the film in an ordinary image formed at the same wavelength. A hologram structure containing a set of resolvable spatial frequencies is first formed above the photoresist film. If necessary the photoresist is then sensitized. An illuminating wavefront containing a second set of resolvable spatial frequencies is projected through the hologram, forming a new set of transmitted spatial frequencies that expose the photoresist. The transmitted spatial frequencies include sum frequencies of higher frequency than is present in the hologram or illuminating wavefront, increasing the resolution of the exposing pattern. These high spatial frequency transmitted waves can be evanescent, or they can propagate at a steeper obliquity in a higher index medium than is possible in a projected image. A further method is described for designing lithographic masks to fabricate the hologram and to project the illuminating wavefront. In other embodiments, a simple personalization based on Talbot fringes and plasmonic interference is performed. | 01-07-2010 |
20100153901 | Determining manufacturability of lithographic mask by reducing target edge pairs used in determining a manufacturing penalty of the lithographic mask - The manufacturability of a lithographic mask employed in fabricating instances of a semiconductor device is determined. Target edge pairs are selected from mask layout data of the lithographic mask to determine a manufacturing penalty in making the lithographic mask. The mask layout data includes polygons, where each polygon has edges, and where each target edge pair is defined by two of the edges of one or more of the polygons. The number of the target edge pairs is reduced to decrease computational volume in determining the manufacturing penalty in making the lithographic mask. The manufacturability of the lithographic mask, including the manufacturing penalty in making the lithographic mask, is determined based on the target edge pairs as reduced in number. The manufacturability of the lithographic mask is output. The manufacturability of the lithographic mask is dependent on the manufacturing penalty in making the lithographic mask. | 06-17-2010 |
20100153902 | DETERMINING MANUFACTURABILITY OF LITHOGRAPHIC MASK BY SELECTING TARGET EDGE PAIRS USED IN DETERMINING A MANUFACTURING PENALTY OF THE LITHOGRAPHIC MASK - The manufacturability of a lithographic mask employed in fabricating instances of a semiconductor device is determined. Target edges are selected from mask layout data of the lithographic mask. The mask layout data includes polygons distributed over cells, where each polygon has edges. The cells include a center cell, two vertical cells above and below the center cell, and two horizontal cells to the left and right of the center cell. Target edge pairs are selected for determining a manufacturing penalty in making the lithographic mask, in a manner that decreases the computational volume in determining the manufacturing penalty. The manufacturability of the lithographic mask, including the manufacturing penalty in making the lithographic mask, is determined based on the target edge pairs selected. The manufacturability of the lithographic mask is output. The manufacturability of the lithographic mask is dependent on the manufacturing penalty in making the lithographic mask. | 06-17-2010 |
20100153903 | DETERMINING MANUFACTURABILITY OF LITHOGRAPHIC MASK USING CONTINUOUS DERIVATIVES CHARACTERIZING THE MANUFACTURABILITY ON A CONTINUOUS SCALE - The manufacturability of a lithographic mask employed in fabricating instances of a semiconductor device is determined. Target edge pairs are selected from mask layout data of the lithographic mask, for determining a manufacturing penalty in making the lithographic mask. The mask layout data includes polygons, where each polygon has a number of edges. Each target edge pair is defined by two of the edges of one or more of the polygons. The manufacturability of the lithographic mask, including the manufacturing penalty in making the lithographic mask, is determined. Determining the manufacturing penalty is based on the target edge pairs as selected. Determining the manufacturability of the lithographic mask uses continuous derivatives characterizing the manufacturability of the lithographic mask on a continuous scale. The manufacturability of the lithographic mask is output. The manufacturability of the lithographic mask is dependent on the manufacturing penalty in making the lithographic mask. | 06-17-2010 |
20120008134 | METHOD TO MATCH EXPOSURE TOOLS USING A PROGRAMMABLE ILLUMINATOR - Programmable illuminators in exposure tools are employed to increase the degree of freedom in tool matching. A tool matching methodology is provided that utilizes the fine adjustment of the individual source pixel intensity based on a linear programming (LP) problem subjected to user-specific constraints to minimize the difference of the lithographic wafer data between two tools. The lithographic data can be critical dimension differences from multiple targets and multiple process conditions. This LP problem can be modified to include a binary variable for matching sources using multi-scan exposure. The method can be applied to scenarios that the reference tool is a physical tool or a virtual ideal tool. In addition, this method can match different lithography systems, each including a tool and a mask. | 01-12-2012 |
20120017194 | METHOD FOR FAST ESTIMATION OF LITHOGRAPHIC BINDING PATTERNS IN AN INTEGRATED CIRCUIT LAYOUT - The present invention provides a lithographic difficulty metric that is a function of an energy ratio factor that includes a ratio of hard-to-print energy to easy-to-print energy of the diffraction orders along an angular coordinate θ | 01-19-2012 |
20120047471 | DYNAMIC PROVISIONAL DECOMPOSITION OF LITHOGRAPHIC PATTERNS HAVING DIFFERENT INTERACTION RANGES - A method for obtaining mask and source patterns for printing integrated circuit patterns includes providing initial representations of a plurality of mask and source patterns. The method identifies long-range and short-range factors in the representations of the plurality of mask and source patterns, and provides a plurality of clips including a specified number of mask patterns. Short-range factors having overlapping ranges for each of the clips are specified. The method includes determining an initial processing priority for the plurality of clips, and determining a patterning relationship between integrated circuit patterns and the mask and source patterns. A primary objective is determined which expresses the printability of the integrated circuit patterns in terms of the patterning relationship. The method defines and iteratively solves a master problem employing the primary objective to generate values for the long-range factors, and solves subproblems employing a second objective for generating values for the short-range factors. | 02-23-2012 |
20120077130 | METHOD FOR GENERATING A PLURALITY OF OPTIMIZED WAVEFRONTS FOR A MULTIPLE EXPOSURE LITHOGRAPHIC PROCESS - A simplified version of a multiexpose mask optimization problem is solved in order to find a compressed space in which to search for the solution to the full problem formulation. The simplification is to reduce the full problem to an unconstrained formulation. The full problem of minimizing dark region intensity while maintaining intensity above threshold at each bright point can be converted to the unconstrained problem of minimizing average dark region intensity per unit of average intensity in the bright regions. The extrema solutions to the simplified problem can be obtained for each source. This set of extrema solutions is then assessed to determine which features are predominantly printed by which source. A minimal set of extrema solutions serves as a space of reduced dimensionality within which to maximize the primary objective under constraints. The space typically has reduced dimensionality through selection of highest quality extrema solutions. | 03-29-2012 |
20130071774 | SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR PROJECTION LITHOGRAPHY WITH IMMERSED IMAGE-ALIGNED DIFFRACTIVE ELEMENT - A novel system and method and computer program product for exposing a photoresist film with patterns of finer resolution than can physically be projected onto the film in an ordinary image formed at the same wavelength. A hologram structure containing a set of resolvable spatial frequencies is first formed above the photoresist film. An illuminating wavefront containing a second set of resolvable spatial frequencies is projected through the hologram, forming a new set of transmitted spatial frequencies that expose the photoresist. The transmitted spatial frequencies include sum frequencies of higher frequency than is present in the hologram or illuminating wavefront, increasing the resolution of the exposing pattern. A further method is described for designing lithographic masks to fabricate the hologram and to project the illuminating wavefront. In other embodiments, a simple personalization based on Talbot fringes and plasmonic interference is performed. | 03-21-2013 |
20130185045 | ANALYZING A PATTERNING PROCESS USING A MODEL OF YIELD - Techniques are presented that include accessing results of forward simulations of circuit yield, the results including at least circuit yield results including simulated device shapes. Using the circuit yield results, high-level traits of at least the simulated device shapes are determined. Based on the determined high-level traits and using the circuit yield results, a compact model for predicted yield is constructed, the compact model including a plurality of adjustable parameters, and the constructing the compact model for predicted yield including adjusting the adjustable parameters until at least one first predetermined criterion is met. An optimization problem is constructed including at least the compact model for yield, an objective, and a plurality of constraints. Using the optimization problem, the objective is modified subject to the plurality of constraints until at least one second predetermined criterion is met. | 07-18-2013 |
20130185046 | Analyzing A Patterning Process Using A Model Of Yield - Techniques are presented that include accessing results of forward simulations of circuit yield, the results including at least circuit yield results including simulated device shapes. Using the circuit yield results, high-level traits of at least the simulated device shapes are determined. Based on the determined high-level traits and using the circuit yield results, a compact model for predicted yield is constructed, the compact model including a plurality of adjustable parameters, and the constructing the compact model for predicted yield including adjusting the adjustable parameters until at least one first predetermined criterion is met. An optimization problem is constructed including at least the compact model for yield, an objective, and a plurality of constraints. Using the optimization problem, the objective is modified subject to the plurality of constraints until at least one second predetermined criterion is met. | 07-18-2013 |
20130263063 | MASK DESIGN METHOD, PROGRAM, AND MASK DESIGN SYSTEM - A method, an article of manufacture, and a system for designing a mask. The method for designing a mask is implemented by a computer device having a memory, a processor device communicatively coupled to the memory, and a module configured to carry out the method including the steps of: generating an optical domain representation from a design pattern and an imaging light; and optimizing the optical domain representation under a constraint that values of negative excursions at predetermined evaluation points must be greater than or equal to predetermined negative threshold values assigned to the predetermined evaluation points; where: the optical domain representation is a variable representation of a wavefront; the imaging light is light that is transmitted through the mask; the negative excursions are in an object domain representation of the optical domain representation; and the predetermined evaluation points are in the object domain representation. | 10-03-2013 |
20140268075 | SOURCE, TARGET AND MASK OPTIMIZATION BY INCORPORATING COUNTOUR BASED ASSESSMENTS AND INTEGRATION OVER PROCESS VARIATIONS - Methods and systems for determining a source shape, a mask shape and a target shape for a lithography process are disclosed. One such method includes receiving source, mask and target constraints and formulating an optimization problem that is based on the source, mask and target constraints and incorporates contour-based assessments for the target shape that are based on physical design quality of a circuit. Further, the optimization problem is solved by integrating over process condition variations to simultaneously determine the source shape, the mask shape and the target shape. In addition, the determined source shape and mask shape are output | 09-18-2014 |
20140282291 | SOURCE-MASK OPTIMIZATION FOR A LITHOGRAPHY PROCESS - Systems and methods for optimizing a source shape and a mask shape for a lithography process are disclosed. One such method includes performing a mask optimization for the lithography process in accordance with a set of parameters including at least one variable representation, at least one objective and problem constraints. Further, a light source optimization for the lithography process is performed in accordance with the set of parameters. In addition, a joint light source-mask optimization is performed in accordance with the set of parameters. The method further includes iterating at least one of the mask optimization or the light source optimization by changing at least one of the variable representation, the objective or the problem constraints to maximize a common process window for the lithography process. | 09-18-2014 |