Semiconductor device inspecting apparatus

• US 6,614,244 B2
• Filed: 12/10/2001
• Issued: 09/02/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 12/08/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Topcon Corporation
• Original Assignee: Fab Solutions, Inc. (KLA Corporation)
• Inventors: Yamada, Keizo, Itagaki, Yousuke, Ushiki, Takeo, Tsujide, Tohru
• Primary Examiner(s): Cuneo, Kamand
• Assistant Examiner(s): Nguyen, Jimmy
• Application Number:
  US10/006,363
• Publication Number:
  US 20020070738A1
• Time in Patent Office: 631 Days
• Field of Search: 324/750, 324/751, 324/752, 324/753, 324/158.1, 324/73.1, 250/310, 250/311, 356/384, 438/14, 438/17, 438/18, 355/72, 355/43
• US Class Current: 324/754.22
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 31/307 of integrated circuits

Abstract

A semiconductor device inspecting apparatus capable of a high-precision nondestructive inspection with a reduction of external noises, by using a value of an area having no hole as a background value for a correction when measuring an average current, measuring the current in a current differential input amplifier constitution, automatically judging whether a result of the measurement is caused by a defect of the device or of the equipment on the basis of a measured current waveform, measuring a current value of electron beams, and storing and reusing a waiting time between irradiation with electron beams and stabilization of the current measurement value.

Claims

1. A semiconductor device inspecting apparatus, comprising:

an electron gun for irradiating a area on a sample with electron beams to be inspected where a semiconductor device is formed;

an electron beam control section for controlling these electron beams;

current measuring equipment for measuring compensation current of secondary electrons generated by electron beams which have passed through contact holes in the inspected area and reached an underlying conductive layer;

a data processor for determining a reference for judging whether an inspected area is good or bad, which is a current value obtained by using said current measuring equipment when irradiating an area having one or more contact holes treated as the inspected area sequentially or collectively with electron beams; and

a storage device for storing said data processing result,

wherein said storage device stores a background value, which is a current value obtained when irradiating an area made of the same material and having the same structure except that it has no contact hole in the same sample as for the area having the contact holes in said inspected area and the data processor performs data processing of subtracting said background value stored in the storage device from the current value obtained by said current measuring equipment when irradiating said area having one or more contact holes treated as the inspected area.

2. A semiconductor device inspecting apparatus, comprising:

an electron gun for irradiating a area on a sample with electron beams to be inspected where a semiconductor device is formed;

current measuring equipment for measuring compensation current of secondary electrons generated by electron beams having reached an underlying conductive layer in said inspected area;

a data processor for determining a reference for judging whether an inspected area is good or bad, which is a current value obtained by using said current measuring equipment when irradiating an area having one or more contact holes treated as the inspected area sequentially or collectively with electron beams; and

a storage device for storing said data processing result,

wherein said current measuring equipment has a first current/voltage exchanger connected to an electrode on which the sample is placed, a second current/voltage exchanger connected to an opposite electrode arranged in the vicinity of the sample to be inspected, and a differential amplifier for determining a difference between a measurement value of said first current/voltage exchanger and a measurement value of said second current/voltage exchanger; and

wherein the differential amplifier is connected to the data processor.

3. The apparatus according to claim 2, wherein said opposite electrode is a part of a cabinet for containing the sample to be inspected.

4. The apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising an electrode bias source for applying an electrode bias to a portion between said opposite electrode and said second current/voltage exchanger.

5. The apparatus according to claim 2, wherein a gain or an offset of said differential amplifier is externally settable.

6. A semiconductor device inspecting apparatus, comprising:

an electron gun for irradiating a area on a sample with electron beams to be inspected where a semiconductor device is formed;

an electron beam control section for controlling these electron beams;

current measuring equipment for measuring compensation current of secondary electrons generated by electron beams having reached an underlying conductive layer in said inspected area;

a data processor for determining a reference for judging whether an inspected area is good or bad, which is a current value obtained by using said current measuring equipment when irradiating an area having one or more contact holes treated as the inspected area sequentially or collectively with electron beams; and

a storage device for storing said data processing result,

wherein said data processor compares a current waveform obtained by using the current measuring equipment with a standard waveform previously stored in said storage device as a standard waveform when irradiating the predetermined area having one or more contact hole'"'"'s on the semiconductor device with electron beams by using said electron gun and, if the comparison result exceeds the predetermined range, determines whether it is caused by a defect of the inspected area or of the inspecting apparatus.

7. The apparatus according to claim 6, wherein said data processor which determines the defect when the comparison result exceeds the predetermined range compares a current waveform obtained by using said current measuring equipment when irradiating a predetermined area having one or more contact holes on a standard sample which has obtained said standard waveform on said current measuring equipment with electron beams again with the standard waveform previously stored in said storage device as a standard waveform, determines a defect of the inspection apparatus if a result of the comparison exceeds the predetermined range or determines a defect of the semiconductor device to be inspected if a result of said comparison is within the predetermined range with giving an alarm on a display unit.

8. The apparatus according to claim 6, wherein said standard waveform previously stored in the storage device has a transient waveform pattern including overshoots at a rising edge and a falling edge of the waveform and a subsequent damped oscillation and wherein said data processor determines a defect of the apparatus when said comparison result exceeds the predetermined range.

9. The apparatus according to claim 6, wherein said standard waveform previously stored in the storage device has a pattern for a comparison in a rise time, an overshoot amount, an overshoot period, a flat period, an undershoot amount, an undershoot period, a zero-point offset, and a frequency analysis value of the waveform and wherein said data processor determines a defect of the apparatus when said comparison result exceeds the predetermined range.

10. A semiconductor device inspecting apparatus, comprising:

an electron gun for irradiating a area on a sample with electron beams to be inspected where a semiconductor device is formed;

an electron beam control section for controlling these electron beams;

current measuring equipment for measuring compensation current of secondary electrons generated by electron beams having reached an underlying conductive layer in said inspected area;

a data processor for determining a reference for judging whether an inspected area is good or bad, which is a current value obtained by using said current measuring equipment when irradiating an area having one or more contact holes treated as the inspected area sequentially or collectively with electron beams; and

a storage device for storing said data processing result,

wherein said storage device stores a current value of the electron beams having reached the inspected area from said electron gun for irradiating the electron beams by using a detector for a beam measurement of the current value; and

wherein said data processor corrects the current value obtained by using said current measuring equipment when irradiating an area having one or more contact holes treated as the inspected area sequentially or collectively with electron beams on the basis of the measurement value of the beam measurement.

11. The apparatus according to claim 10, further comprising a detector arranged in an electron beam irradiation position instead of the sample to be inspected at one or more of the time points before, during, and after the inspection of the sample to be inspected where the semiconductor device is formed or before, during, or after the inspection of an individual inspected area on the sample to be inspected.

12. A semiconductor device inspecting apparatus, comprising:

an electron gun for irradiating a area on a sample with electron beams to be inspected where a semiconductor device is formed;

an electron beam control section for controlling these electron beams;

current measuring equipment for measuring compensation current of secondary electrons generated by electron beams having reached an underlying conductive layer in said inspected area;

a data processor for determining a reference for judging whether an inspected area is good or bad, which is a current value obtained by using said current measuring equipment when irradiating an area having one or more contact holes treated as the inspected area sequentially or collectively with electron beams; and

a storage device for storing said data processing result,

wherein said data processor reads and processes a current value in an area where the current is stabilized after the irradiation with the electron beams among measurement values obtained by using said current measuring equipment.

13. The apparatus according to claim 12, wherein said processor for reading and processing the current value in the area in which the current is stabilized after the irradiation with the electron beams among measurement values obtained by using said current measuring equipment comprises said storage device for storing a waiting time between the irradiation with the electron beams and the stabilization of the current and means for reading the current value after an elapse of the waiting time stored in said storage means after the irradiation with the electron beams.