Method and system for design of a reticle to be manufactured using variable shaped beam lithography

• US 9,274,412 B2
• Filed: 09/08/2014
• Issued: 03/01/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 09/01/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: D2S, Inc.
• Original Assignee: D2S, Inc.
• Inventors: Fujimura, Akira
• Primary Examiner(s): YOUNG, CHRISTOPHER G
• Application Number:
  US14/479,520
• Publication Number:
  US 20150020037A1
• Time in Patent Office: 540 Days
• Field of Search: 430/5, 430/30, 430/296, 430/942, 716/53
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B82Y 10/00 Nanotechnology for information processing, storage or transmission, e.g. quantum computing or single electron logic
• CPC Class Codes: B82Y 40/00 Manufacture or treatment of nanostructures
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 1/20 Masks or mask blanks for imaging by charged particle beam [CPB] radiation, e.g. by electron beam; Preparation thereof
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 1/36 Masks having proximity correction features; Preparation thereof, e.g. optical proximity correction [OPC] design processes
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 1/78 by charged particle beam [CPB], e.g. electron beam patterning of masks
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 7/2059 using a scanning corpuscular radiation beam, e.g. an electron beam
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 7/2063 for the production of exposure masks or reticles
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 7/70441 Optical proximity correction [OPC]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2119/18 Manufacturability analysis or optimisation for manufacturability
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 30/20 Design optimisation, verification or simulation optimisation, verification or simulation of circuit designs G06F30/30
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 30/398 Design verification or optimisation, e.g. using design rule check [DRC], layout versus schematics [LVS] or finite element methods [FEM] optical proximity correction [OPC] design processes G03F1/36
• CPC Class Codes: H01J 37/3174 Particle-beam lithography, e.g. electron beam lithography
• CPC Class Codes: Y02P 90/02 Total factory control, e.g. smart factories, flexible manufacturing systems [FMS] or integrated manufacturing systems [IMS]
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 430/143 Electron beam
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/24479 including variation in thickness

Abstract

A method for optical proximity correction (OPC) is disclosed, in which a set of VSB shots is determined, where the set of shots can approximately form a target reticle pattern that is an OPC-compensated version of an input pattern. The set of shots is simulated to create a simulated reticle pattern. A substrate image is calculated, based on using the simulated reticle pattern in an optical lithographic process to form the substrate image. A system for OPC is also disclosed.

Claims

1. A method for optical proximity correction (OPC) or mask data processing (MDP) comprising:

inputting an input pattern;

determining a plurality of charged particle beam shots that can approximately form a target pattern on a reticle, wherein the target pattern is an OPC-compensated version of the input pattern;

simulating a reticle pattern that will be produced on the reticle from the plurality of charged particle beam shots; and

calculating a substrate image which will be formed on a substrate using an optical lithographic process with the simulated reticle pattern, wherein the simulating and the calculating are performed on a computing hardware device.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising comparing the calculated substrate image with the input pattern, to create a comparison result.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein the comparing comprises a set of predetermined geometric rules.

4. The method of claim 2 wherein the comparing comprises a set of mathematical equations.

5. The method of claim 2 further comprising modifying a shot in the plurality of charged particle beam shots after the comparing.

6. The method of claim 5 wherein the modification optimizes the plurality of charged particle beam shots.

7. The method of claim 6 wherein the comparison result is used as an optimization criterion.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein each shot in the plurality of charged particle beam shots comprises an assigned dose, and wherein the doses of the charged particle beam shots vary with respect to each other before proximity effect correction.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein the simulation comprises particle beam simulation.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein the particle beam simulation includes at least one of a group consisting of forward scattering, backward scattering, resist diffusion, Coulomb effect, etching, fogging, loading and resist charging.

11. The method of claim 1 wherein the calculating comprises lithography simulation.

12. The method of claim 1 wherein at least two shots in the plurality of charged particle beam shots overlap.

13. The method of claim 1 wherein the target pattern is curvilinear.

14. A system for optical proximity correction (OPC) or mask data processing (MDP) comprising:

a device configured to input an input pattern;

a device configured to determine a plurality of charged particle beam shots that can approximately form a target pattern on a reticle, wherein the target pattern is an OPC-compensated version of the input pattern;

a device configured to simulate a reticle pattern that will be produced on the reticle from the plurality of charged particle beam shots; and

a device configured to calculate a substrate image which will be formed on a substrate using an optical lithographic process with the simulated reticle pattern.

15. The system of claim 14 further comprising a device configured to compare the substrate image with the input pattern.

16. The system of claim 15 further comprising a device configured to modify a shot in the plurality of charged particle beam shots based on the comparison of the substrate image with the input pattern.

17. The system of claim 16 wherein the modification optimizes the plurality of charged particle beam shots.

18. The system of claim 14 wherein the device configured to simulate performs particle beam simulation.

19. The method of claim 18 wherein the particle beam simulation includes at least one of a group consisting of forward scattering, backward scattering, resist diffusion, Coulomb effect, etching, fogging, loading and resist charging.

20. The system of claim 14 wherein the device configured to calculate performs lithography simulation.

21. The system of claim 14 wherein at least two shots in the plurality of charged particle beam shots overlap.