Improvement of lithography process by using a FlexRay illuminator for memory applications

Huang, Thomas X. H.; Huang, Chieh-Chen; Chiou, Tsann-Bim; Hsu, Michael; Shih, Chiang-Lin; Chen, Alek; Wei, Ming-Kang

doi:10.1117/12.879567

Cited by 6 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 11 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…As a significant ILT approach, pixelated source optimization (SO) has been proven to be necessary for improving the imaging performance of lithography in advanced technology nodes [8], [9]. Furthermore, it has been successfully applied by several institutions, such as ASML [10]- [12] and IBM [13], [14], to modulate the intensity distribution and incident angles of lithography-illumination sources in industrial applications [15], [16]. However, the highly complex representation of the source impacts the performance of the pixelated SO method.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Inverse Lithography Source Optimization via Particle Swarm Optimization and Genetic Combined Algorithm

et al. 2023

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Inverse lithography technologies (ILTs) are critical for improving the imaging performance of lithography in advanced technology nodes. Pixel-based source optimization (SO), as an efficient part of ILTs, can be implemented via heuristic approaches to achieve high-performance lithographic imaging. In this paper, a SO approach based on a combination of the particle-swarm optimization and genetic algorithms (PSO-GA) is proposed to determine the optimal intensity distribution of the source via iterations. The pixelated source can be decoded into the optimized variables of the merit functions in the SO model. The proposed PSO-GA algorithm, as a highefficiency hybrid algorithm, can transform the discrete SO problem into the optimal search solution for the merit function, thereby inversely enhancing the lithographic-imaging performance. In the forward-imaging model in the lithography, the extraction of the mask's effective diffraction spectrum is implemented to calculate the layout of resist patterns. The simulation results highlight the superior performance of the proposed approach in achieving pixelated SO over the traditional GA and PSO algorithm in terms of convergence capacity.

show abstract

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…(10), the matrix, ' ext M , can be formed by extracting these points with the marked position in Figure4. The size of ' ext M is the same as the result of  matrices, where edge N represents the number of extracted points from the green region.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Inverse Lithography Source Optimization via Particle Swarm Optimization and Genetic Combined Algorithm

et al. 2023

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…The pixeled SO method, as an effective resolution enhancement technique, has been confirmed to improve the lithographic imaging performance at advanced nodes. And it has been successfully utilized in practical applications, such as ASML [2][3][4] , IBM 5,6 , and other institutions. Revising and optimizing the intensity of unit pixel in the pixeled source can be accomplished using several iterative algorithms, including gradient-based approaches and heuristic algorithms [7][8][9] .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Source optimization using hybrid genetic algorithm in lithography

Sun¹,

Zhang²,

Jin³

et al. 2023

Ninth Symposium on Novel Photoelectronic Detection Technology and Applications

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Angle monitor of micromirror array for freeform illumination in lithography systems

Zhang,

Hu,

Yang

et al. 2024

AIP Advances

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Source and mask optimization is a critical technique for further resolution enhancement in immersion lithography systems, wherein the optimal illumination source shape is widely generated by the micromirror array. Accordingly, the accurate achievement of the allocated angles of micromirrors is a key prerequisite for the implementation of arbitrary illumination patterns. In this paper, we propose an angle monitor to ensure the high-precision tilting of thousands of biaxial micromirrors. As one of the critical modules for closed-loop control of the two-dimensional micromirror array, the online monitor feeds the monitored high-precision tilt angle back to the processing system. The angle monitor mainly consists of the spot scanning module and the angle detection module. Among them, an f-θ lens and a Fourier transform lens with satisfied performances are designed and evaluated by CODE V. Furthermore, a galvanometer and the designed f-θ lens are adopted for the generation of the spot array irradiated on the electrostatic actuated mirrors. Meanwhile, the designed Fourier transform lenses are employed to detect the corresponding tilt angles. In addition, the performance of the proposed system is identified by simulations and experiments individually. It is demonstrated that the monitorable biaxial tilt range of the system is (−2.5°, +2.5°) with a repeatability of better than 0.005°. The large-format micromirror array can be monitored completely without optical cross-talk. Through the device, a 16 × 16 micromirror array is monitored, where the initial angle with no bias voltage applied is captured and the voltage–angle relation for individual micromirrors is obtained. In general, the proposed system can be utilized in the illumination system, providing an efficient and reliable method for complex source shape generation.

show abstract

Improvement of lithography process by using a FlexRay illuminator for memory applications

Cited by 6 publications

References 11 publications

Inverse Lithography Source Optimization via Particle Swarm Optimization and Genetic Combined Algorithm

Inverse Lithography Source Optimization via Particle Swarm Optimization and Genetic Combined Algorithm

Source optimization using hybrid genetic algorithm in lithography

Angle monitor of micromirror array for freeform illumination in lithography systems

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About