PATENT CLAIM ANALYSIS

Application Number: 16009939
Application Type: Utility
Filing Date: 2018-06
Publication Date: 2019-06
Patent Classification: ["355", "067000"]

Abstract:
An overlay metrology system may measure a first-layer pattern placement distance between a pattern of device features and a pattern of reference features on a first layer of an overlay target on a sample. The system may further measure, subsequent to fabricating a second layer including at least the pattern of device features and the pattern of reference features, a second-layer pattern placement distance between the pattern of device features and the pattern of reference features on the second layer. The system may further measure a reference overlay based on relative positions of the pattern of reference features on the first layer and the second layer. The system may further determine a device-relevant overlay for the pattern of device-scale features by adjusting the reference overlay with a difference between the first-layer pattern placement distance and the second-layer pattern placement distance.

Claim (Index 36):
An overlay metrology method, comprising:\n fabricating a first layer of an overlay target on a sample including at least a pattern of device features and a pattern of reference features; measuring, with an imaging system subsequent to fabricating the first layer, a first-layer pattern placement distance between the pattern of device features and the pattern of reference features on the first layer; fabricating a second layer of the overlay target on the sample including at least the pattern of device features and the pattern of reference features; measuring, with the imaging system subsequent to fabricating the second layer, a second-layer pattern placement distance between the pattern of device features and the pattern of reference features on the second layer; measuring, with an overlay metrology tool, a reference overlay based on relative positions of the pattern of reference features on the first layer and the second layer, wherein dimensions of the pattern of reference features on the first layer are resolvable by the overlay metrology tool through the second layer; determining a device-relevant overlay for the pattern of device-scale features by adjusting the reference overlay with a difference between the first-layer pattern placement distance and the second-layer pattern placement distance; and providing overlay correctables based on the device-relevant overlay to a lithography system to modify exposure conditions of at least one subsequent exposure.

Metadata:
- Claim Count in Document: 98.0
- Percentile: 94.0
- Lexical Diversity: 3.10638
- Patent Class: 355.0
- Transitional Phrase Type: open
- Component Type: 1
- Foreign Priority: False
- Related Applications: ['15979336', '15948941', '15867485', '15667401', '11833304']

Analysis Scores:
- 35 USC 101 Eligibility (BERT): 0.7047093685993194
- 35 USC 102 Novelty (BERT): 0.4764702770268237
- Combined Prediction Score: 0.6818854594420699
- Mean Citation Score: 228.896492
- Max Citation Score: 251.337
- Similarity Product: 204.8518038722277

Labels:
- Claim Label 101: 1
- Claim Label 102: 1
- Claim Label 103: 0
- Claim Label 112: 1
- Combined Label: 1
- Label 101 Adjusted: 1

Dataset: test