Generating high resolution images from low resolution images for semiconductor applications

• US 10,648,924 B2
• Filed: 01/02/2017
• Issued: 05/12/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 01/04/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: KLA-Tencor Corporation
• Original Assignee: KLA-Tencor Corporation
• Inventors: Zhang, Jing, Chen, Grace Hsiu-Ling, Bhaskar, Kris, Wells, Keith, Bai, Nan, Gu, Ping, Gao, Lisheng
• Primary Examiner(s): Seth, Manav
• Application Number:
  US15/396,800
• Publication Number:
  US 20170193680A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,226 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 21/9501 Semiconductor wafers manufacturing processes per se of semiconductor devices implementing a measuring step H01L22/10
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2201/12 Circuits of general importance; Signal processing
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 18/2414 Smoothing the distance, e.g. radial basis function networks [RBFN]
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 3/4053 based on super-resolution, i.e. the output image resolution being higher than the sensor resolution
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 10/454 Integrating the filters into a hierarchical structure, e.g. convolutional neural networks [CNN]
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 10/82 using neural networks
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 2201/06 Recognition of objects for industrial automation
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 30/19173 Classification techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 30/2504 Coarse or fine approaches, e.g. resolution of ambiguities or multiscale approaches

Abstract

Methods and systems for generating a high resolution image for a specimen from one or more low resolution images of the specimen are provided. One system includes one or more computer subsystems configured for acquiring one or more low resolution images of a specimen. The system also includes one or more components executed by the one or more computer subsystems. The one or more components include a model that includes one or more first layers configured for generating a representation of the one or more low resolution images. The model also includes one or more second layers configured for generating a high resolution image of the specimen from the representation of the one or more low resolution images.

Claims

1. A system configured to generate a high resolution image for a specimen from one or more low resolution images of the specimen, comprising:

one or more computer subsystems configured for acquiring one or more low resolution images of a specimen; and

one or more components executed by the one or more computer subsystems, wherein the one or more components comprise;

a model, wherein the model comprises;

one or more first layers configured for generating a representation of the one or more low resolution images; and

one or more second layers configured for generating a high resolution image for the specimen from the representation of the one or more low resolution images, wherein the one or more low resolution images and the high resolution image have different image types, wherein the one or more low resolution images are generated by an optical based imaging system, wherein the optical based imagine system is configured to direct light to specimen and to detect light from the specimen due to illumination of the specimen by the optical based imagine system to thereby generate the one or more low resolution images, and wherein the high resolution image represents design data for the specimen or an image of the specimen generated by a high resolution electron beam system.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the model is a deep learning model.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the model is a machine learning model.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the model is a generative model.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the model is a neural network.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the model is a convolution neural network.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more first layers comprise one or more convolutional and pooling layers followed by an encoder, and wherein the one or more second layers comprise a decoder followed by one or more convolutional and pooling layers.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the representation of the one or more low resolution images generated by the one or more first layers comprises a compact representation of the one or more low resolution images.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more first layers comprise one or more first convolutional and pooling layers, and wherein the one or more second layers comprise one or more second convolutional and pooling layers.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more first layers comprise a discrete cosine transform layer, wherein the one or more first and second layers comprise a deep belief net, and wherein the one or more second layers comprise an inverse discrete cosine transform layer.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein the representation of the one or more low resolution images comprises a hidden representation generated by the deep belief net.

12. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more low resolution images are generated with a single mode of the optical based imaging system.

13. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more low resolution images are generated with multiple modes of the optical based imaging system.

14. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more low resolution images are generated with multiple values for a focus parameter of the optical based imaging system.

15. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more low resolution images are generated with multiple values for a spectral parameter of the optical based imaging system.

16. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more low resolution images are generated with multiple values for a polarization parameter of the optical based imaging system.

17. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more second layers are further configured for generating at least one additional high resolution image of the specimen from the representation of the one or more low resolution images, and wherein the high resolution image and the at least one additional high resolution image represent different images of the specimen generated by the high resolution electron beam system with different modes.

18. The system of claim 1, wherein the optical based imaging system is further configured as an inspection system.

19. The system of claim 1, wherein the specimen is a wafer.

20. The system of claim 1, wherein the specimen is a reticle.

21. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more computer subsystems are further configured for verifying a defect detected in the one or more low resolution images, and wherein said verifying is performed using the high resolution image.

22. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more computer subsystems are further configured for classifying a defect detected in the one or more low resolution images, and wherein said classifying is performed using the high resolution image.

23. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more computer subsystems are further configured for detecting defects on the specimen based on a combination of the one or more low resolution images and the high resolution image.

24. A system configured to generate a high resolution image for a specimen from one or more low resolution images of the specimen, comprising:

an imaging subsystem configured for generating one or more low resolution images of a specimen;

one or more computer subsystems configured for acquiring the one or more low resolution images; and

one or more components executed by the one or more computer subsystems, wherein the one or more components comprise;

a model, wherein the model comprises;

one or more first layers configured for generating a representation of the one or more low resolution images; and

one or more second layers configured for generating a high resolution image for the specimen from the representation of the one or more low resolution images, wherein the one or more low resolution images and the high resolution image have different image types, wherein the imaging subsystem is further configured as an optical based imaging subsystem, wherein the optical based imaging subsystem is configured to direct light to specimen and to detect light from the specimen due to illumination of the specimen by the optical based imaging subsystem to thereby generate the one or more low resolution images, and wherein the high resolution image represents design data for the specimen or an image of the specimen generated by a high resolution electron beam system.

25. A non-transitory computer-readable medium, storing program instructions executable on one or more computer systems for performing a computer-implemented method for generating a high resolution image for a specimen from one or more low resolution images of the specimen, wherein the computer-implemented method comprises:

acquiring one or more low resolution images of a specimen;

generating a representation of the one or more low resolution images by inputting the one or more low resolution images into one or more first layers of a model; and

generating a high resolution image for the specimen based on the representation, wherein generating the high resolution image is performed by one or more second layers of the model, wherein the one or more low resolution images and the high resolution image have different image types, wherein the one or more low resolution images are generated by an optical based imaging system, wherein the optical based imaging system is configured to direct light to specimen and to detect light from the specimen due to illumination of the specimen by the optical based imagine system to thereby generate the one or more low resolution images, wherein the high resolution image represents design data for the specimen or an image of the specimen generated by a high resolution electron beam system, wherein said acquiring, said generating the representation, and said generating the high resolution image are performed by one or more computer systems, wherein one or more components are executed by the one or more computer systems, and wherein the one or more components comprise the model.

26. A computer-implemented method for generating a high resolution image for a specimen from one or more low resolution images of the specimen, comprising:

acquiring one or more low resolution images of a specimen;

generating a representation of the one or more low resolution images by inputting the one or more low resolution images into one or more first layers of a model; and

generating a high resolution image for the specimen based on the representation, wherein generating the high resolution image is performed by one or more second layers of the model, wherein the one or more low resolution images and the high resolution image have different image types, wherein the one or more low resolution images are generated by an optical based imaging system, wherein the optical based imaging system is configured to direct light to specimen and to detect light from the specimen due to illumination of the specimen by the optical based imaging system to thereby generate the one or more low resolution images, wherein the high resolution image represents design data for the specimen or an image of the specimen generated by a high resolution electron beam system, wherein said acquiring, said generating the representation, and said generating the high resolution image are performed by one or more computer systems, wherein one or more components are executed by the one or more computer systems, and wherein the one or more components comprise the model.

27. A system configured to generate a high resolution image for a specimen from one or more low resolution images of the specimen, comprising:

one or more computer subsystems configured for acquiring one or more low resolution images of a specimen; and

one or more components executed by the one or more computer subsystems, wherein the one or more components comprise;

a model, wherein the model comprises;

one or more first layers configured for generating a representation of the one or more low resolution images; and

one or more second layers configured for generating a high resolution image for the specimen from the representation of the one or more low resolution images, wherein the one or more low resolution images and the high resolution image have different image types, wherein the one or more low resolution images are generated by an electron beam based imaging system, wherein the high resolution image represents design data for the specimen, and wherein the design data is information and data that is available prior to printing of the design on any physical specimens.