Source: http://www.google.com/patents/US7473911?dq=645576
Timestamp: 2015-02-28 02:51:17
Document Index: 9039545

Matched Legal Cases: ['Application No. 03803196', 'Application No. 03803196', 'Application No. 03803196', 'Application No. 03803196', 'Application No. 03803196', 'Application No. 03803196']

Patent US7473911 - Specimen current mapper - Google PatentsSearch Images Maps Play YouTube News Gmail Drive More »Sign inAdvanced Patent SearchPatentsA method for process monitoring includes receiving a sample having a first layer that is at least partly conductive and a second layer formed over the first layer, following production of contact openings in the second layer. A beam of charged particles is directed along a beam axis that deviates substantially...http://www.google.com/patents/US7473911?utm_source=gb-gplus-sharePatent US7473911 - Specimen current mapperAdvanced Patent SearchPublication numberUS7473911 B2Publication typeGrantApplication numberUS 10/695,620Publication dateJan 6, 2009Filing dateOct 27, 2003Priority dateJul 30, 2002Fee statusPaidAlso published asUS20040084622Publication number10695620, 695620, US 7473911 B2, US 7473911B2, US-B2-7473911, US7473911 B2, US7473911B2InventorsAlexander Kadyshevitch, Dror Shemesh, Yaniv Brami, Dmitry ShurOriginal AssigneeApplied Materials, Israel, Ltd.Export CitationBiBTeX, EndNote, RefManPatent Citations (32), Non-Patent Citations (45), Referenced by (1), Classifications (18), Legal Events (2) External Links: USPTO, USPTO Assignment, EspacenetSpecimen current mapper
In order to ensure consistent device performance, the depth, width, and bottom surface of contact openings must be carefully controlled at various locations across the wafer surface. (In the context of the present patent application and in the claims, the term �contact openings� refers to all structures of the type described above, including contact holes, vias, and trenches.) Deviations in the dimensions of contact openings at a location on the wafer or across the wafer surface can lead to variations in the contact resistance. If these variations are too large, they impact on device performance and can lead to loss of process yield. The manufacturing process must therefore be carefully monitored and controlled, not only in order to detect deviations in formation of contact openings on individual devices, but also to monitor non-uniformities across the wafer surface. Early detection of process non-uniformity allows the device manufacturer to take corrective action, so as to ensure uniformly high yields and avoid the loss of costly wafers in process.
Various methods for contact hole inspection are known in the art. One such method is described by Yamada et al., in �An In-Line Process Monitoring Method Using Electron Beam Induced Substrate Current,� in Microelectronics-Reliability 41:3 (March 2001), pages 455-459, which is incorporated herein by reference. The compensation current in an electron beam system, also known as the specimen current, is defined as the absorbed current that flows from the primary electron beam to earth via the specimen (i.e., via the wafer). In other words, the specimen current is equal to the difference between the primary beam current and the total electron yield of the specimen due to secondary and backscattered electrons. The specimen current can be either positive or negative, depending on whether the energy of the primary electron beam is in the positive-or negative-charging domain of the specimen. Yamada et al. directed an electron beam at single holes and groups of holes in a silicon oxide surface layer overlying a silicon substrate, and measured the resultant compensation current. They found that the compensation current was a good indicator of hole-bottom oxide thickness, as well as of the hole diameter.
In general, when a wafer is irradiated with an electron beam, and this process reaches equilibrium, the relationship between the specimen current (Ispecimen), the primary current (i.e. the current of the irradiating electron beam�Iprimary), and the current of secondary electrons emitted from the wafer, including scattered electrons (Isecondary), is expressed by the following equation, as is known in the art.
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No. 11/051,339, filed Feb. 3, 2005, 10 pages.39Written Opinion, International Patent Application No. PCT/US03/03494, Applied Materials, Inc., Applied Materials, Inc., Jan. 27, 2005.40Yacobi et al., "Microanalysis of Solids", 1994 Plenum Press, New York, Chapters 1, 2 & 4.41Yacobi et al., Scanning Electron Microscopy (Chapter 2), Micro Analysis of Solids, Plenum Press, New York, 1994.42Yamada et al., An In-Line Process Monitoring Method Using Electron Beam Induced Substrate Current, Microelectronics-Reliability, Mar. 2001, pp. 455-459.43Yamada, et al., An In Line Process Monitoring Method Using Electron Beam Induced Substrate Current, Microelectronics-Reliability, Mar. 2001, pp. 455-459.44Yamada, et al., An In-Line Contact and Via Hole Inspection Method Using Electron Beam Compensation Current, IEEE, 1999.45Yamada, Keizo, In-Line Contact and Via Hole Monitoring Method Used Electron-Beam-Induced Substrate Current (EB Scope), NEC Research and Development, Nippon Electric Ltd., Tokyo, Japan, vol. 41, No. 4, Oct. 2000, pp. 336-340, XP000967723, ISSN: 0547-051X.Referenced byCiting PatentFiling datePublication dateApplicantTitleUS7663125 *Mar 29, 2007Feb 16, 2010Varian Semiconductor Equipment Associates, Inc.Ion beam current uniformity monitor, ion implanter and related method* Cited by examinerClassifications U.S. Classification250/492.22, 257/E21.53, 324/500, 324/501, 324/754.23International ClassificationH01L21/00, H01L23/544, H01L21/66, H01J49/44Cooperative ClassificationH01L22/12, H01J2237/2815, H01L2924/3011, H01L21/67253, H01J37/32935, H01L22/34, H01J2237/281European ClassificationH01L22/34, H01J37/32S4Legal EventsDateCodeEventDescriptionJun 25, 2012FPAYFee paymentYear of fee payment: 4Oct 27, 2003ASAssignmentOwner name: APPLIED MATERIALS, ISRAEL LTD., ILLINOISFree format text: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST;ASSIGNORS:KADYSHEVITCH, ALEXANDER;SHEMESH, DROR;BRAMI, YANIV;AND OTHERS;REEL/FRAME:014651/0624;SIGNING DATES FROM 20031012 TO 20031013RotateOriginal ImageGoogle Home - Sitemap - USPTO Bulk Downloads - Privacy Policy - Terms of Service - About Google Patents - Send FeedbackData provided by IFI CLAIMS Patent Services