Patent ID: 8515154

Claim:
A method for verifying repairs on masks for photolithography, the method comprising: inspecting a mask for defects, the mask being fabricated based on a mask layout; storing positions at which the defects are found on the mask in a position file; repairing the defects and, for each position of a repaired defect, taking an aerial image of the mask at the position of the repaired defect, analyzing the aerial image to determine whether at that position the mask meets tolerance criteria established for one or more selected target parameters, and verifying the repair if the tolerance criteria are met, the verifying comprising: based on the position file, determining a desired structure in the mask layout at the position of the repaired defect, simulating an aerial image for the desired structure, comparing the captured aerial image with the simulated image, and based on the comparison, determining whether the repair at that position is verified.