Patent ID: 7868629

Claim:
A structure comprising: at least one proportional variable resistor suitable for electrically measuring unidirectional misalignment of stitched masks in etched interconnect layers, said variable resistor comprising: at least a first mask and a second mask that when superimposed comprise: at least two test pads, wherein the two test pads are both formed by the first mask; two interconnects between the test pads; and a contact having a smaller width than widths of the interconnects, wherein the width of the contact is a dimension substantially orthogonal to a direction of signal propagation along the contact, and the widths of the interconnects are dimensions substantially orthogonal to directions of signal propagation along the interconnects, wherein the contact is formed by the same mask as at least one of the interconnects, wherein a resistance between the test pads is dependent on a distance along the contact between the interconnects, and the resistance is indicative of the misalignment of the first and second masks.