Measuring critical dimensions of a semiconductor structure

• US 8,798,966 B1
• Filed: 01/03/2007
• Issued: 08/05/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 01/03/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kla-Tencor Technologies Corporation (KLA Corporation)
• Original Assignee: KLA-Tencor Corporation (KLA Corporation)
• Inventors: Hench, John, Wack, Daniel, Ratner, Edward, Veldman, Andrei, Shi, Yaoming
• Primary Examiner(s): PATEL, SHAMBHAVI K
• Application Number:
  US11/648,965
• Time in Patent Office: 2,771 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 703/2
• CPC Class Codes: G01B 11/02 for measuring length, width or thickness G01B11/08 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01B 2210/56 Measuring geometric parameters of semiconductor structures, e.g. profile, critical dimensions or trench depth
• 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 21/956 Inspecting patterns on the surface of objects contactless testing of electronic circuits G01R31/308; testing currency G07D; manufacturing processes per se of semiconductor devices implementing a measuring step H01L22/10
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/261 by simulating additional hardware, e.g. fault simulation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 13/105 where the programme performs an input/output emulation function
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 30/00 Computer-aided design [CAD]
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 22/12 for structural parameters, e.g. thickness, line width, refractive index, temperature, warp, bond strength, defects, optical inspection, electrical measurement of structural dimensions, metallurgic measurement of diffusions electrical measurement of diffusions H01L22/14

Abstract

One embodiment relates to a method of model-based optical metrology. An area of a geometrical structure of dispersive materials on a substrate is illuminated with polarized incident electromagnetic radiation using an illuminator of a scatterometer apparatus. Spectral components of the incident electromagnetic radiation reflected from the area are measured using a detector of the scatterometer apparatus. Using a computer for the scatterometer apparatus, parameter values are determined that minimize an objective function which represents a difference between the measured spectral components and computed spectral components based on a parameterized model of the geometrical structure. Steps for determining the parameter values that minimize the objective function include: computing a solution to state equations driven by a function representing the incident electromagnetic radiation, and computing a solution to an adjoint to the state equations. Other embodiments and features are also disclosed.

Claims

1. A method of model-based optical metrology to measure a critical dimension of a grating layer, the method comprising:

illuminating an area of a geometrical structure of dispersive materials with incident electromagnetic radiation from an illuminator of a scatterometer apparatus, wherein the incident electromagnetic radiation is polarized;

measuring spectral components of the incident electromagnetic radiation reflected from the area using a detector of the scatterometer apparatus; and

using a computer for the scatterometer apparatus to determine parameter values for the semiconductor structure that minimize an objective function J which depends on differences between the measured spectral components and computed spectral components based on a parameterized geometrical model of the geometrical structure,

wherein steps for determining the parameter values that minimize the objective function include;

computing ∇

_pJ where p is a parameterized vector of the parameter values, wherein the parameter values comprise ƒ and

h, where h is a height of the grating layer, and ƒ

is a critical dimension fraction comprising the critical dimension divided by a pitch of the grating layer.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

computing a solution to state equations driven by a function representing the incident electromagnetic radiation, wherein the state equations are derived from Maxwell'"'"'s equations with dispersive materials, and wherein the solution to the state equations provides reflection and transmission coefficients and coefficients describing boundary conditions.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein computing the solution to the state equations is performed in the frequency domain.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein computing the solution to the state equations is performed using a banded matrix linear system solver.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

computing a solution to an adjoint to the state equations, wherein the adjoint to the state equations has a source function which is a derivative of a measurement function as a function of the solution of the state equations, wherein computing the solution to the adjoint to the state equations is performed by re-using LU-decomposition factors from the banded matrix linear system solver.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the objective function J comprises

7. The method of claim 6, wherein α

is proportional to x_m^Hcc^Tx_m−

x_e^Hss^Tx_e, and β

is proportional to 2(x_e^Hsc^Tx_m), where x_m is a magnetic state vector, x_e is an electric state vector, c and s are vectors which are proportional to vector e_r0 which extracts the zeroth order reflection coefficient from the state vectors x_m and x_e.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the vector c=cos(η

)e_r0 and the vector s=sin(η

)e_r0, where η

is an analyzer angle.

9. The method of claim 2, wherein the steps for determining the parameter values that minimize the objective function further include:

computing a mapping between derivatives of the state equations with respect to the parameter values and derivatives of the state equations with respect to geometric parameters, wherein the geometric parameters describe geometric shapes within the geometrical structure.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the geometric parameters comprise trapezoid height, width and wall angle.

11. The method of claim 5, wherein the computation of the solution to the state equations is performed in the time domain.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the steps for determining the parameter values that minimize the objective function further include:

computing a derivative of the objective function with respect to control parameters.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the computation of the derivative of the objective function with respect to the control parameters involves computing an inner product between the state and adjoint equations.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the grating layer is patterned along one dimension.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein the grating layer is patterned in two dimensions.

16. The method of claim 11, where the geometrical structure possesses mirror symmetry, and the adjoint equations are computed from the state equations by conjugation—

with no additional, separate solution of Maxwell'"'"'s Equations.

17. An apparatus for optical metrology for measuring a critical dimension of a grating layer, the apparatus comprising:

a polarized illuminator configured to illuminate an area of a geometrical structure of dispersive materials with incident polarized electromagnetic radiation;

a detector for measuring spectral components of the incident electromagnetic radiation reflected from the area; and

a data processing system comprising

computer-readable code configured to determine parameter values that minimize an objective function J which depends on differences between the measured spectral components and computed spectral components based on a parameterized model of the geometrical structure, wherein the objective function J comprises

18. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the data processing system further comprises:

computer-readable code configured to compute a solution to state equations driven by a function representing the incident electromagnetic radiation, wherein the state equations are derived from Maxwell'"'"'s equations with dispersive materials,

wherein said code configured to compute the solution to the state equations is configured to make computations in a frequency domain.

19. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein the data processing system further comprises:

computer-readable code configured to compute a solution to an adjoint to the state equations, wherein the adjoint to the state equations has a source function which is a derivative of a measurement function as a function of the solution of the state equations,

wherein the code configured to compute the solution to the state equations includes code configured to use a banded matrix linear system solver, and

wherein the code configured to compute the adjoint to the state equations includes code configured to re-use LU-decomposition factors from the banded matrix linear system solver.

20. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein α

is proportional to x_m^Hcc^Tx_m−

x_e^Hss^Tx_e, and β

is proportional to 2(x_e^Hsc^Tx_m), where x_m is a magnetic state vector, x_e is an electric state vector, c and s are vectors which are proportional to vector e_r0 which extracts the zeroth order reflection coefficient from the state vectors x_m and x_e.

21. The apparatus of claim 20, wherein the vector c=cos(η

)e_r0 and the vector s=sin(η

)e_r0, where η

is an analyzer angle.

22. The apparatus of claim 20, wherein the data processing system further comprises:

computer-readable code configured to compute a mapping between derivatives of the state equations with respect to the parameter values and derivatives of the state equations with respect to geometric parameters, wherein the geometric parameters describe geometric shapes within the geometrical structure.

23. The apparatus of claim 22, wherein the geometric parameters comprise trapezoid height, width and wall angle.

24. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the computer-readable code configured to compute the solution to the state equations is configured to make computations in a time domain.

25. The apparatus of claim 24, wherein the data processing system further comprises:

computer-readable code configured to compute a derivative of the objective function with respect to control parameters.

26. The apparatus of claim 25, wherein the code configured to compute the derivative of the objective function includes code configured to compute an inner product between the state and adjoint equations.

27. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the grating layer is patterned along one dimension.

28. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the grating layer is patterned in two-dimensions.

29. A method for estimating a critical dimension of a grating layer from spectroscopic measurements, the method comprising:

using an illuminator of a scatterometer apparatus to illuminate an area of a geometrical structure of dispersive materials with incident electromagnetic radiation;

measuring spectral components of the incident electromagnetic radiation reflected from the area using a detector of the scatterometer apparatus;

using a computer for the scatterometer apparatus to compute a solution to state equations driven by a function representing the incident electromagnetic radiation, wherein the state equations are derived from Maxwell'"'"'s equations with dispersive materials;

using the computer for the scatterometer apparatus to compute a solution to an adjoint to the state equations, wherein the adjoint to the state equations has a source function which is a derivative of a measurement function as a function of the solution of the state equations; and

using the computer for the scatterometer apparatus to determine parameter values for the semiconductor structure that minimize an objective function J which depends on differences between the measured spectral components and computed spectral components based on a parameterized geometrical model of the geometrical structure,

wherein steps for determining the parameter values that minimize the objective function include;

computing ∇

_pJ where p is a parameterized vector of the parameter values, wherein the parameter values comprise ƒ and

h, where h is a height of the grating layer, and ƒ

is a critical dimension fraction comprising the critical dimension divided by a pitch of the grating layer.

30. The method of claim 29, wherein regression is used to compute the solution to the state equations and hence to estimate the critical dimension.

31. The method of claim 29, wherein a library is produced and then used to compute the solution to the state equations and hence to estimate the critical dimension.

32. The method of claim 29, where a combination of a library and regression are used to compute the solution to the state equations and hence to estimate the critical dimension.

33. The method of claim 29, wherein time to compute each iteration of the solution to the state equations at a given level of accuracy scales slower with an increasing number of parameters than computing each iteration of the solution to the state equations at the given level of accuracy by finite difference derivatives.

34. The method of claim 29, wherein with an increasing number of parameters N, a computation time per iteration at a given level of accuracy increases at a rate slower than N to the third power.

35. The method of claim 34, wherein the computation time per iteration at the given level of accuracy increases linearly with N.