Mask and method of manufacturing semiconductor device

• US 6,440,614 B1
• Filed: 11/01/1999
• Issued: 08/27/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 11/11/1998
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: LAPIS Semiconductor Co., Ltd. (ROHM Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: OKI Electric Industry Company Limited
• Inventors: Sonoda, Akihiro
• Primary Examiner(s): Rosasco, S.
• Application Number:
  US09/431,033
• Publication Number:
  US 20020090557A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,030 Days
• Field of Search: 430/5, 430/322, 716/19, 716/20, 716/21, 250/492.22
• US Class Current: 430/5
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 1/36 Masks having proximity correction features; Preparation thereof, e.g. optical proximity correction [OPC] design processes

Abstract

In order to provide a mask and a method for manufacturing a semiconductor device that achieve consistency in the resist pattern dimensions, a main pattern 110 provided for the purpose of semiconductor element production and an additional pattern 120 provided for the purpose of exposure quantity adjustment are drawn at a reticle 100. At the reticle 100, the additional pattern 120 achieves a regularity almost identical to that of the main pattern 110. At the same time, the additional pattern 120 has a specific shift relative to the main pattern 110. By achieving an optimal degree of shift between the additional pattern and main pattern at the reticle 100, consistency in the resist pattern dimensions can be achieved without adversely affecting the process of element pattern formation.

Claims

1. A mask employed in lithography, having drawn thereupon a main pattern with a plurality of pattern elements in a specific arrangement, the main pattern being transferred onto a preset element formation area on a wafer, and an additional pattern formed around and completely separated from, so as to not touch said main pattern of pattern elements to adjust the exposure quantity, wherein:

said additional pattern includes a shift pattern of additional pattern elements arranged with a specific staggering relative to said main pattern of pattern elements.

2. A mask according to claim 1, wherein:

said shift pattern conforms to an arrangement rule identical to the rule for said specific arrangement.

3. A mask according to claim 1, wherein:

intervals over which the additional pattern elements constituting said shift pattern are arranged and intervals over which the pattern elements constituting said main pattern are arranged are equal to each other.

4. A mask according to claim 1, wherein:

sizes of the additional pattern elements constituting said shift pattern and the pattern elements constituting said main pattern are equal to each other.

5. A mask according to claim 1, wherein:

shapes of the additional pattern elements constituting said shift pattern and the pattern elements constituting said main pattern are identical to each other.

6. A mask according to claim 1, comprising:

a glass plate; and

a chrome film provided on said glass plate with a main pattern having a plurality of pattern elements and an additional pattern surrounding and separated from the pattern elements, formed thereupon by partially removing said chrome film.

7. A mask employed in lithography, having drawn thereupon a main pattern with a plurality of pattern elements in a specific arrangement, the main pattern being transferred onto a preset element formation area on a wafer, and an additional pattern formed around and completely separated from, so as to not touch said main pattern of pattern elements to adjust the exposure quantity, wherein:

said additional pattern includes a frame pattern surrounding and completely separated from, so as to not touch said main pattern.

8. A mask according to claim 7, comprising:

a glass plate; and

a chrome film provided on said glass plate with said main pattern and said additional pattern formed thereupon by partially removing said chrome film.

9. A mask employed in lithography, having drawn thereupon at least a main pattern having a plurality of pattern elements in a specific arrangement, the main pattern being transferred onto a preset element formation area on a wafer, and an additional pattern surrounding the main pattern to adjust an exposure quantity through the mask, the additional pattern having a plurality of pattern elements of varying sizes.

10. A mask according to claim 9, comprising:

a glass plate; and

a chrome film provided on said glass plate with said main pattern and said additional pattern formed thereupon by partially removing said chrome film.

11. A method for manufacturing a semiconductor device that includes a lithography process during which a main pattern having a plurality of pattern elements drawn for a mask is transferred onto a preset element formation area on a wafer, wherein:

during said lithography process, an additional pattern that includes a shift pattern having additional pattern elements having a specific staggering relative to said main pattern and is drawn around and completely separated from, so as to not touch said pattern elements of the main pattern of said mask, is employed to adjust the exposure quantity.

12. A method for manufacturing a semiconductor device according to claim 11, wherein:

said additional pattern elements of the shift pattern conforms to an arrangement rule identical to a rule for the pattern elements of said main pattern.

13. A method for manufacturing a semiconductor device according to claim 11, wherein:

intervals over which the additional pattern elements constituting said shift pattern are arranged and intervals over which the pattern elements constituting said main pattern are arranged are equal to each other in said mask.

14. A method for manufacturing a semiconductor device according to claim 11, wherein:

shapes of the additional pattern elements constituting said shift pattern and the pattern elements constituting said main pattern are identical to each other in said mask.

15. A method for manufacturing a semiconductor device according to claim 11, wherein:

sizes of the additional pattern elements constituting said shift pattern and the pattern elements constituting said main pattern are equal to each other in said mask.

16. A method for manufacturing a semiconductor device that includes a lithography process during which a main pattern having a plurality of pattern elements drawn for a mask is transferred onto a preset element formation area on a wafer, wherein:

during said lithography process, an additional pattern that includes a frame pattern is drawn around and completely separated from, so as to not touch the pattern elements of said main pattern of said mask to adjust the exposure quantity.

17. A method for manufacturing a semiconductor device that includes a lithography process during which a main pattern having a plurality of pattern elements drawn for a mask is transferred onto a preset element formation area on a wafer, wherein:

during said lithography process, an additional pattern that is disposed in a peripheral area surrounding the main pattern of said mask is transferred onto the wafer around the present element formation area to adjust an exposure quantity through the mask, the additional pattern having a plurality of pattern elements of varying sizes.

18. A mask employed in lithography, comprising:

a main pattern for transfer onto a preset element formation area on a wafer, the main pattern having a matrix of main pattern elements that are disposed in parallel rows which are spaced apart by a first distance, the main pattern elements in the rows being aligned with main pattern elements in other rows; and

an additional pattern disposed outside the matrix of main pattern elements to adjust an exposure quantity through the mask, the additional pattern comprising a row of additional pattern elements, the row of additional pattern elements being parallel to the rows of main pattern elements and being spaced apart from an outer row of the main pattern elements by a second distance, the second distance being different from the first distance.

19. A mask according to claim 18, wherein the additional pattern elements are aligned with the main pattern elements.

20. A mask according to claim 18, wherein the second distance is greater than the first distance.

21. A mask according to claim 18, wherein the main pattern elements and the additional pattern elements are all substantially the same size.

22. A mask according to claim 18, wherein the main pattern elements and the additional pattern elements comprise regions of metal film on a vitreous substrate.

23. A mask according to claim 22, wherein the metal is chrome and the vitreous substrate is glass.