Patent ID: 8728722

Claim:
In the production of a device, a method of forming an intermediate structure using a layer of photosensitive material disposed over a substrate, the method utilizing (i) a first exposure tool having a first maximum expose field smaller than a size of the device, (ii) a second exposure tool having a second maximum expose field larger than the first maximum expose field and at least the size of the device, (iii) a first mask defining one or more unit-cell patterns, and (iv) a second mask defining a periphery pattern for at least partially surrounding a plurality of the unit-cell patterns, the method comprising: utilizing the first exposure tool, exposing the layer of photosensitive material through the first mask in a plurality of different locations such that, after the first exposure, each subsequent exposure exposes, in the layer of photosensitive material, one of the unit-cell patterns abutting at least one of the previous unit-cell patterns, thereby forming an abutting field pattern in the layer of photosensitive material; utilizing the second exposure tool, exposing the layer of photosensitive material through the second mask to form the periphery pattern in the layer of photosensitive material at least partially surrounding the abutting field pattern; developing the layer of photosensitive material to remove a portion thereof; and thereafter, utilizing unremoved portions of the layer of photosensitive material as a mask for a semiconductor process, thereby defining the intermediate structure.