FLARE CORRECTION METHOD, METHOD FOR MANUFACTURING MASK FOR LITHOGRAPHY, AND METHOD FOR MANUFACTURING SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICE

• US 20110065027A1
• Filed: 08/26/2010
• Published: 03/17/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 09/15/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: INANAMI, Ryoichi, Kyoh, Suigen
• Granted Patent: US 8,227,151 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 430/5
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 1/70 Adapting basic layout or design of masks to lithographic process requirements, e.g., second iteration correction of mask patterns for imaging
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 7/70558 Dose control, i.e. achievement of a desired dose
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 7/70941 Stray fields and charges, e.g. stray light, scattered light, flare, transmission loss

Abstract

In one embodiment, a flare correction method is disclosed. The method can acquire a flare point spread function. The method can calculate a pattern density distribution in a first region of the mask, the distance from the pattern being equal to or shorter than a predetermined value in the first region. The method can calculate pattern coverage in a second region of the mask, the distance from the pattern being longer than the predetermined value. The method can calculate a first flare distribution with respect to the pattern by performing convolution integration between the flare point spread function corresponding to the first region and the pattern density distribution. The method can calculate a flare value corresponding to the second region by multiplying a value of integral of the flare point spread function corresponding to the second region by the pattern coverage. The method can calculate a second flare distribution by adding the flare value to the first flare distribution. In addition, the method can correct the pattern based on the second flare distribution.

Claims

1. A flare correction method comprising:

acquiring a flare point spread function indicating a relationship between an intensity of flare light convolved into exposing light that has passed through a pattern formed in a mask and a projection optical system, and a distance from the pattern;

calculating a pattern density distribution in a first region of the mask, the distance from the pattern being equal to or shorter than a predetermined value in the first region;

calculating pattern coverage in a second region of the mask, the distance from the pattern being longer than the predetermined value;

calculating a first flare distribution with respect to the pattern by performing convolution integration between the flare point spread function corresponding to the first region and the pattern density distribution;

calculating a flare value corresponding to the second region by multiplying a value of integral of the flare point spread function corresponding to the second region by the pattern coverage;

calculating a second flare distribution by adding the flare value to the first flare distribution; and

correcting the pattern based on the second flare distribution.

2. The flare correction method according to claim 1, wherein the pattern density distribution is created by dividing the first region into meshes, and calculating a pattern density in each divided region.

3. The flare correction method according to claim 1, wherein the first flare distribution is calculated by performing convolution integration between the flare point spread function corresponding to a fourth region and the pattern density distribution corresponding to the fourth region, the fourth region being obtained by excluding a third region from the first region, the distance from the pattern in the third region being equal to or shorter than an optical radius that is a calculation region of each calculation in an optical proximity-effect correction.

4. The flare correction method according to claim 3, wherein the pattern density distribution is created by dividing the fourth region into meshes, and calculating a pattern density in each divided region.

5. The flare correction method according to claim 4, wherein a mesh size of the divided meshes is equal to or larger than a size of the third region.

10. A method for manufacturing a mask for lithography, comprising manufacturing the mask with the use of a mask pattern corrected by the flare correction method according to claim 1.

11. A method for manufacturing a semiconductor device, comprising forming a pattern on a semiconductor substrate by performing an exposure with the use of a mask having a mask pattern corrected by the flare correction method according to claim 1.

6. A flare correction method comprising:

acquiring a flare point spread function indicating a relationship between an intensity of flare light convolved into exposing light that has passed through a pattern formed in a mask and a projection optical system, and a distance from the pattern;

calculating a first pattern density distribution by dividing one chip of a plurality of identical chips formed in the mask into meshes, and determining a pattern density in each divided region, a size of the meshes being a first size;

calculating a first flare distribution of the one chip by performing convolution integration between the first pattern density distribution and the flare point spread function;

calculating a first correction pattern by performing a model-based correction on patterns in the one chip, based on the first flare distribution;

calculating a second pattern density distribution by dividing the mask into meshes, and determining a pattern density in each divided region, a size of the meshes being a second size;

calculating a second flare distribution of the mask by performing convolution integration between the second pattern density distribution and the flare point spread function; and

calculating a second correction pattern by performing a rule-based correction on a mask pattern in which a plurality of chips having the first correction pattern are arranged, based on the second flare distribution.

7. The flare correction method according to claim 6, wherein

a pattern resizing amount is determined based on correspondence relationship between a flare amount and a pattern size variation in the rule-based correction, and

the second correction pattern is calculated by adding the resizing amount to the first correction pattern.

8. The flare correction method according to claim 6, wherein the first flare distribution is calculated by performing convolution integration in a region where a distance from a center of the one chip is equal to or shorter than a diagonal line of the one chip.

9. The flare correction method according to claim 6, wherein the second flare distribution is calculated by performing convolution integration in a region where a distance from a center of the mask is equal to or shorter than a diagonal line of the mask.

12. A method for manufacturing a semiconductor device by forming a pattern on a semiconductor substrate through an exposure with the use of a mask having a mask pattern corrected by the flare correction method according to claim 6,

the method comprising:

creating a flare map based on an arrangement layout of the corrected mask pattern to be transferred onto the semiconductor substrate; and

controlling an exposure dosage based on the flare map.