Exposure method using electron beam and substrate manufacturing method using the same

• US 9,709,893 B2
• Filed: 01/08/2016
• Issued: 07/18/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 02/02/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Lee, Sook Hyun, Tamamushi, Shuichi, Choi, Jin, Shin, So-Eun, Shin, Inkyun
• Primary Examiner(s): Vinh, Lan
• Application Number:
  US14/990,818
• Publication Number:
  US 20160223903A1
• Time in Patent Office: 557 Days
• Field of Search: 216 41, 216 48, 216 49, 430296, 430297, 430313
• 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 7/32 Liquid compositions therefor, e.g. developers

Abstract

An exposure method includes designing a target pattern to be formed on a substrate, producing a first dose map having first dose values of beams of energy, e.g., electron beams, creating from the first dose map a second dose map having second dose values different from the first dose values, and irradiating regions of a layer of photoresist on the substrate with overlapping beams to expose the regions to doses of energy having values based on the second dose values. The photoresist layer may then be developed and used an etch mask. The etch mask may be used to etch a mask layer on a transparent substrate to form a reticle.

Claims

1. An exposure method comprising:

providing a substrate having a layer of photoresist thereon;

designing a target pattern to be formed on the substrate;

creating a first dose map of first dose values, wherein the first dose values are representative of doses of energy of beams emitted by a light source of an exposure apparatus, and the first dose map includes a representation of a corrected version of the target pattern;

creating a second dose map of second dose values, different from the first dose values, wherein at least some of the second dose values correspond to values of doses of energy produced by overlapping ones of the beams;

controlling the light source of the exposure apparatus to irradiate respective regions of the layer of photoresist in such a way that said respective regions are exposed to doses of energy having values based on the second dose values to thereby alter said regions of the layer of photoresist; and

determining a cost function before or after obtaining the first dose map,

wherein the cost function is converted into a minimum cost function by repeatedly calculating the first dose map and the second dose map, the second dose map calculated by the minimum cost function,

wherein the cost function comprises a constraint term comprising input dose values of a first exposure pattern and minimum dose values given to a minimum line width of the first exposure pattern, and

wherein the constraint term comprises

a first constraint term including a fixed input dose value which is provided to the first exposure pattern, and

a second constraint term providing a second dose value corresponding to a minimum dose value at the minimum line width.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the constraint term comprises a product of a Lagrange polynomial and a constraint function,

wherein the cost function becomes minimized when the product of the Lagrange polynomial and the constraint function is zero.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the second dose map comprises a second exposure pattern including unit cells which correspond to the second dose values, and

wherein the target pattern has a line width of substantially 50 nm, and dose values of the second exposure pattern are distributed in a bell shape in a direction of the line width.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the second dose map comprises a second exposure pattern including unit cells which correspond to the second dose values, and

wherein the target pattern has a line width of about 150 nm, dose values of the second exposure pattern are distributed in an “

M”

shape in a direction of the line width.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the second dose map comprises a second exposure pattern of unit cells which correspond to the second dose values, and

wherein the target pattern has a regular tetragonal shape of substantially 50 nm×

50 nm, and the unit cells are provided with dose values of A cross product A in a first direction and a second direction.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the second dose map comprises a second exposure pattern including unit cells which correspond to the second dose values, and

wherein the target pattern has a regular tetragonal shape of substantially 70 nm×

70 nm, and the unit cells are provided with dose values of M cross product M in a first direction and a second direction.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the second dose map comprises a second exposure pattern including unit cells which correspond to the second dose values, and

wherein the target pattern has a regular tetragonal shape of substantially 100 nm×

about 100 nm, and the unit cells are provided with dose values of U cross product U in a first direction and a second direction.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising redesigning the target pattern to form the first exposure pattern of the photoresist,

wherein the first dose values correspond to unit cells of the first exposure pattern.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the cost function further comprises:

a cost term minimizing the second dose values at an edge of the first exposure pattern.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the cost term comprises a chi-squared distribution function, the chi-squared distribution function calculated by summing squares of an inverse of differences between the first dose values corresponding to the unit cells at edges of the first exposure pattern.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein the cost function comprises a one-dimensional cost function and a two-dimensional cost function.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the two-dimensional cost function comprises:

the first constraint term;

the second constraint term; and

a third constraint term satisfying a condition of threshold dose value by which the photoresist is exposed.

13. A method of manufacture comprising:

forming a layer of photoresist on a substrate;

exposing the photoresist to beams of energy emitted by a light source of an exposure apparatus; and

developing the exposed photoresist to form a photoresist pattern,

wherein exposing the photoresist comprises;

designing a target pattern to be formed on the substrate;

creating a first dose map of first dose values, wherein the first dose values are representative of doses of energy of individual ones of beams emitted by the light source of the exposure apparatus, and the first dose map includes a representation of a corrected version of the target pattern;

creating a second dose map of second dose values, different from the first dose values, wherein at least some of the second dose values correspond to values of doses of energy produced by overlapping ones of the beams;

controlling the light source of the exposure apparatus to irradiate respective regions of the layer of photoresist in such a way that said respective regions are exposed to doses of energy having values based on the second dose values,

wherein the second dose map is representative of a second exposure pattern including unit cells to which the second values are assigned; and

converting a mathematical representation of the second exposure pattern with a point spread function and using the converted mathematical representation of the second exposure pattern in irradiating the respective regions of the photoresist pattern.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the target pattern has sharp corners and the first dose map includes a representation of a pattern corresponding to the target pattern but with at least one of the sharp corners being rounded instead.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the first dose map is representative of a first exposure pattern of unit cells to which the first values are assigned, respectively, and said at least some of the second values are multiples of the first values.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein said at least some of the second values are assigned to unit cells constituting a central portion of the second exposure pattern.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein the second values include values less than those constituting a central portion of the second exposure pattern and assigned to unit cells, respectively, each located at an outer periphery of the second exposure pattern.

18. A method of manufacturing a reticle, comprising:

providing a transparent substrate having a mask layer thereon, and a layer of photoresist on the mask layer;

exposing the layer of photoresist to beams of energy emitted by a light source of an exposure apparatus;

developing the exposed photoresist to form a photoresist pattern; and

etching the mask layer, using the photoresist pattern as an etch mask, to form a mask pattern on the substrate,

wherein exposing the layer of photoresist includes;

designing a target pattern to be formed on the substrate as the mask pattern;

creating a first dose map of first dose values, wherein the first dose values are representative of doses of energy of individual ones of beams emitted by the light source of the exposure apparatus, and the first dose map includes a representation of a corrected version of the target pattern;

creating a second dose map of second dose values, different from the first dose values, wherein at least some of the second dose values correspond to values of doses of energy produced by overlapping ones of the beams; and

controlling the light source of the exposure apparatus to irradiate respective regions of the layer of photoresist in such a way that said respective regions are exposed to doses of energy having values based on the second dose values.