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Tuning wafer inspection recipes using precise defect locations

  • US 9,224,660 B2
  • Filed: 08/27/2014
  • Issued: 12/29/2015
  • Est. Priority Date: 08/30/2013
  • Status: Active Grant
First Claim
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1. A method for determining one or more parameters of a wafer inspection process, comprising:

  • acquiring one or more optical images of an alignment target on a wafer generated by a wafer inspection system;

    separating defects detected on the wafer into different groups, wherein the different groups are located proximate to different subsets of alignment targets on the wafer;

    aligning the one or more optical images of the alignment target to their corresponding electron beam images generated by an electron beam defect review system;

    determining different local coordinate transformations for the different subsets of the alignment targets based on results of the aligning step, wherein the local coordinate transformations define relationships between coordinates determined by the electron beam defect review system and coordinates determined by the wafer inspection system;

    determining positions of the defects on the wafer in wafer inspection system coordinates based on coordinates of the defects determined by the electron beam defect review system and the different local coordinate transformations for the different groups into which the defects have been separated; and

    determining one or more parameters for an inspection process for the wafer based on defect images acquired at the determined positions by the wafer inspection system, wherein acquiring the one or more optical images, separating the defects, aligning the one or more optical images, determining the different local coordinate transformations, determining the positions of the defects, and determining the one or more parameters are performed with one or more computer systems.

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