METHOD OF GENERATING A RECIPE FOR A MANUFACTURING TOOL AND SYSTEM THEREOF

• US 20130326443A1
• Filed: 05/29/2012
• Published: 12/05/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 05/29/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Applied Materials Israel Limited (Applied Materials Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Applied Materials Israel Limited (Applied Materials Incorporated)
• Inventors: Geshel, Mark
• Granted Patent: US 8,640,060 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 716/110
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 21/9501 Semiconductor wafers manufacturing processes per se of semiconductor devices implementing a measuring step H01L22/10
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 7/70475 Stitching, i.e. connecting image fields to produce a device field, the field occupied by a device such as a memory chip, processor chip, CCD, flat panel display

Abstract

There is provided a computer-implemented method of creating a recipe for a manufacturing tool and a system thereof. The method comprises: upon obtaining data characterizing periodical sub-arrays in one or more dies, generating candidate stitches; identifying one or more candidate stitches characterized by periodicity characteristics satisfying, at least, a periodicity criterion, thereby identifying periodical stitches among the candidate stitches; and aggregating the identified periodical stitches and the periodical sub-arrays into periodical arrays, said periodical arrays to be used for automated recipe creation.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

generating candidate stitches from design data, wherein the design data characterizes periodical sub-arrays in one or more dies;

identifying periodical stitches among the candidate stitches;

aggregating, by a computer, the periodical stitches and the periodical sub-arrays to create periodical arrays; and

causing a recipe to be generated using the periodical arrays created based on the design data.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein generating candidate stitches comprises:

identifying pairs of neighboring periodical sub-arrays matching a proximity criterion and characterized by compatible periodicity in a selected direction; and

generating for each such identified pair of neighboring periodical sub-arrays a rectangle defining respective candidate stitch area.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein a pair of periodical sub-arrays is characterized by compatible periodicity in a given direction if max {C1,C2} is divisible by min{C1,C2}, where C1 and C2 are, respectively, periodicity values characterizing said periodical sub-arrays in said given direction.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein a pair of periodical sub-arrays is characterized by compatible periodicity in a given direction if the least common multiple of periodicity values characterizing said sub-arrays in said given direction are below a predefined threshold.

5. The method of claim 2, wherein a candidate stitch satisfies the periodicity criterion if characterized in a given direction by a periodicity value Cs=K*LCM, where the multiplier K is a positive integer number and LCM is the least common multiple of periodicity values characterizing the respective neighboring periodical sub-arrays in said given direction.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein identifying periodical stitches among the candidate stitches comprises identifying within the candidate stitch areas one or more periodical fragments satisfying the periodicity criteria.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein identifying periodical stitches among the candidate stitches further comprises identifying periodical stitches satisfying a fragmentation criterion.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein a periodical stitch satisfies a fragmentation criterion if a number of periodical fragments in the periodical stitch is less than a fragmentation threshold and a size of each fragment in the respective direction is not less than a fragment size threshold.

9. The method of claim 2, wherein aggregating the periodical stitches and the periodical sub-arrays to create the periodical arrays comprises:

associating the sub-arrays in each said identified pair into a linked sub-array;

generating a maximal periodical group comprising one or more sub-arrays and stitches therebetween, wherein said group is characterized by that any pair of neighboring sub-arrays in the group is a linked sub-array with periodical stitches therebetween, and all such sub-arrays are included in said group;

obtaining one or more non-overlapping uniformed maximal periodical groups; and

aggregating sub-arrays and periodical stitches belonging to the same uniformed maximal periodical group into a single aggregated periodical array and assigning to this array the periodicity value characterizing the respective group.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein the non-overlapping uniformed maximal periodical groups are characterized by periodicity values equal to all sub-arrays in a respective group.

11. A system comprising:

a processor;

a memory accessible by the processor, said memory storing machine instructions that cause the processor to perform the following functions;

generating candidate stitches from design data, wherein the design data characterizes periodical sub-arrays in one or more dies;

identifying periodical stitches among the candidate stitches;

aggregating the periodical stitches and the periodical sub-arrays to create periodical arrays; and

cause a recipe to be generated using the periodical arrays created based on the design data.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein generating candidate stitches comprises:

identifying pairs of neighboring periodical sub-arrays matching a proximity criterion and characterized by compatible periodicity in a selected direction; and

generating for each such identified pair of neighboring periodical sub-arrays a rectangle defining respective candidate stitch area.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein a pair of periodical sub-arrays is characterized by compatible periodicity in a given direction if max {C1,C2} is divisible by min{C1,C2}, where C1 and C2 are, respectively, periodicity values characterizing said periodical sub-arrays in said given direction.

14. The system of claim 12, wherein a pair of periodical sub-arrays is characterized by compatible periodicity in a given direction if the least common multiple of periodicity values characterizing said sub-arrays in said given direction are below a predefined threshold.

15. The system of claim 12, wherein a candidate stitch satisfies the periodicity criterion if characterized in a given direction by a periodicity value Cs=K*max{Cy1,Cy2}, where the multiplier K is a positive integer number and where C1 and C2 are, respectively, periodicity values characterizing the respective neighboring periodical sub-arrays in said given direction.

16. The system of claim 11, wherein identifying periodical stitches among the candidate stitches comprises identifying within the candidate stitch areas one or more periodical fragments satisfying the periodicity criteria.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein identifying periodical stitches among the candidate stitches further comprises identifying periodical stitches satisfying a fragmentation criterion.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein a periodical stitch satisfies a fragmentation criterion if a number of periodical fragments in the periodical stitch is less than a fragmentation threshold and a size of each fragment in the respective direction shall is not less than a fragment size threshold.

19. The system of claim 12, wherein aggregating the periodical stitches and the periodical sub-arrays to create the periodical arrays comprises:

associating the sub-arrays in each said identified pair into a linked sub-array;

generating a maximal periodical group comprising one or more sub-arrays and stitches therebetween, wherein said group is characterized by that any pair of neighboring sub-arrays in the group is a linked sub-array with periodical stitches therebetween, and all such sub-arrays are included in said group;

obtaining one or more non-overlapping uniformed maximal periodical groups; and

aggregating sub-arrays and periodical stitches belonging to the same uniformed maximal periodical group into a single aggregated periodical array and assigning to this array the periodicity value characterizing the respective group.

20. A non-transitory computer readable medium including instructions that, when executed by a processing system, cause the processing system to perform operations comprising:

generating candidate stitches from design data, wherein the design data characterizes periodical sub-arrays in one or more dies;

identifying periodical stitches among the candidate stitches;

aggregating, by the processing system, the periodical stitches and the periodical sub-arrays to create periodical arrays; and

causing a recipe to be generated using the periodical arrays created based on the design data.