Mask defect printing mechanisms for future lithography generations

Erdmann, Andreas; Graf, Thomas; Bubke, Karsten; Höllein, Ingo; Teuber, Silvio

doi:10.1117/12.655558

Cited by 4 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 14 publications

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“…Currently, alternating phase-shift masks (AltPSMs) and attenuated phase-shift masks (AttPSMs) are the two main types of masks. 7,8 Such a standard EUV mask is composed of an antireflective coating layer, an absorber layer, a buffer layer, a capping layer, a Mo/Si ML, and a substrate and backside conductive layer. 4,9 Therefore, the scattering effects of such complex structures require careful simulations before the lithography process.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Efficient scattering simulations for equivalent extreme ultraviolet mask multilayer structures by modified transmission line theory and finite-difference time-domain method

Lee

2010

J. Micro/Nanolith. MEMS MOEMS

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The modified transmission line theory is used to calculate equivalent refractive indices of the extreme ultraviolet (EUV) mask multilayer (ML) over wavelengths from 13.35 to 13.65 nm for finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) simulation. Generally speaking, a fine mesh requiring huge memory and computation time are necessary to get accurate results in an FDTD simulation. However, it is hard to get accurate results for ML simulation due to the thin thickness of each layer. By means of an equivalent refractive index, the ML can be treated as one layer with the bulk effective material. Using FDTD simulations, we study the reflectivities of 40 Mo/Si ML and bulk material cases. The ML structure and bulk material with periodic excessive surface roughness as well as patterned with periodic contact holes are also studied by using two-and three-dimensional FDTD simulations. The simulation cases for a single wavelength and for a full-bandwidth EUV light source with a 6 ML system are studied. The results from each simulation show that the root mean square error between ML simulations and the bulk material simulations are confined within 3.3%, and all cases indicate that the FDTD computation time of bulk material is about half as compared with a 40-ML simulation. C 2010 Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Efficient scattering simulations for equivalent extreme ultraviolet mask multilayer structures by modified transmission line theory and finite-difference time-domain method

Lee

2010

J. Micro/Nanolith. MEMS MOEMS

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“…Therefore, the defect printability at the 4ϫ mask will be a severe problem. 13 The mask cost would increase significantly because of the stringent mask critical dimension (CD) control and the use of the complicated optical proximity correction or attendant features. Moreover, the traditionally used Kirchhoff approximation is no longer valid to describe the light diffraction from the mask.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Influence of the mask magnification on imaging in hyper-NA lithography

Lin

Chen

2007

J. Opt. Soc. Am. A

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Argon fluoride laser (ArF) lithography using immersion technology has the potential to extend the application of optical lithography to 45 nm half-pitch and possibly beyond. By keeping the same 4x magnification factor, the dimensions of the structures on masks are becoming comparable to the exposure wavelength or even smaller. The polarization effect induced by mask features is, however, an issue. The introduction of a larger mask magnification should be strongly considered when poor diffraction efficiencies from subwavelength mask features and the resulting image degradation would be encountered in hyper-NA lithography. The dependence of the diffraction efficiencies on mask pitch and illuminating angle are evaluated. The near-field intensity and phase distributions from the mask are calculated. The imaging performance of 4x and 8x masks for the sub-45 nm node are explored. A rigorous coupled-wave analysis is developed and employed to analyze the optical diffraction from the 3D topographic periodic features.

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Modeling of mask diffraction and projection imaging for advanced optical and EUV lithography

Erdmann

Shao

Agudelo

et al. 2011

Journal of Modern Optics

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Lithographic masks are an important and increasingly complex part of systems for advanced optical and extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography. They introduce polarization and phase effects with a significant impact on the entire system performance. Rigorous electromagnetic field (EMF) modeling of the mask is indispensable for a predictive simulation of lithographic processes. This paper describes several alternative mask models and their integration into a lithography simulation framework. Several examples demonstrate the relevance of an accurate mask diffraction modeling for the prediction of the lithographic process performance

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Mask defect printing mechanisms for future lithography generations

Cited by 4 publications

References 14 publications

Efficient scattering simulations for equivalent extreme ultraviolet mask multilayer structures by modified transmission line theory and finite-difference time-domain method

Efficient scattering simulations for equivalent extreme ultraviolet mask multilayer structures by modified transmission line theory and finite-difference time-domain method

Influence of the mask magnification on imaging in hyper-NA lithography

Modeling of mask diffraction and projection imaging for advanced optical and EUV lithography

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