Precise characterization of the thin films for phase-shift masks is important to guarantee the optical properties of the phase shifters. This can be accomplished by using a novel instrument that combines Grazing angle C-ray Reflectometry and V-UV Spectroscopic Ellipsometry. For example, CrONx and MoSiNx thin films can be precisely characterized for layer thickness and optical constants, and for spectral reflectance/transmittance at any photolithography wavelength of interest..
Spectroscopic ellipsometry has long been recognized as a powerful technique to characterize thin films and multilayer structures. It is now routinely used for non-destructive on-line characterization of semiconductor process. SOPRA, leader in commercial spectroscopic ellipsometer for research and development, has already developed an infrared ellipsometer as an option on visible instrument to provide the largest wavelength range available up to now (from deep UV 190 nm to far infrared up to 18 micrometers ). A new design of the instrument is presented here which includes a small spot size to get ride of the problems of back face reflection on silicon wafers, and an improved signal /noise ratio to allow rapid measurements compatible with an industrial environment. Some examples of application concerning dopant density in epilayers and composition of low k dielectrics are presented.
Precise characterization of high k gate dielectrics becomes a challenging task due to the very thin thicknesses (< 3 - 4 nm), which will be needed in the next generation integrated circuits. Conventional techniques such as spectroscopic ellipsometry in the visible range becomes difficult to use alone because of the great correlation between thickness and optical indices. To overcome this problem the following strategy is applied. First, grazing x- ray reflectance is used on all the samples to extract the different layer thickness using a simple model. Second, spectroscopic ellipsometry is applied and the results fitted with the structural models deduced from the x-ray results. In this conditions a precise structural model is built which can take into account the interface and surface behavior all factors that become critical for this range of thickness. This approach is applied to various types of oxide nitride gate dielectrics and ZrO2 films. In the fist case, the nitrogen content of the films can be precisely determined and also the inhomogeneity in depth of the layers in some cases. Interface problems can also be detected on ZrO2 films. Results are compared to x-ray photo-emission measurement in some cases.
Spectroscopic ellipsometry is one of the more important tools for thin film metrology. It is now intensively used in microelectronics and especially for the microlithographic applications. Instrumentation for the next generation of UV lithography at 157 nm requires special optical setup since oxygen and water are extremely absorbing below 190 nm. The ellipsometer discussed in this paper works into a purged glove box to reduce the oxygen and water contamination in the part per million range. The optical setup has been especially studied for microlithographic applications with a premonochromator in the polarizer arm to avoid resist photobleaching. Technical details of the system and measurements results on substrates and thin films are reported hereafter. Results are compared to those obtained with more standard ellipsometers and correlated to other results obtained with grazing x-ray reflectance technique.
In order to characterize 300mm wafers at different stages to the IC manufacturing, a new tool based on spectroscopic ellipsometry has been recently developed at SOPRA. This new instrument called SE-300 has some important new features compared to the other ellipsometers of SOPRA or of the competition. First the optical setup allows to obtained very small measurement spots down to 35 X 45 micrometers in polychromatic light to be able to work from deep UV 190nm to near IR; second the combined monochromator/spectrometer is directly setup on the analyzer arm and allows both multichannel and scanning measurements on the same spot. Scanning measurement made with a real double monochromator including prism and grating allows very accurate measurement that can be used to extract optical indices and solve complex multilayer structures. Multichannel measurements are made through a prism/grating spectrometer with quasi-linear dispersion in wavelength. All the elements are fully compatible with the new generation of 300mm wafers. Practical results obtained on antireflective coatings and photoresist films are presented.
In this paper a new method to determine photoresist DIll parameters is presented. Based on spectroscopic ellipsometry (SE) measurements, this new method is more precise than standard techniques based on transmittance measurements. Indeed, compared to photometry, SE technique is a self calibrated technique which provide directly two independent parameters Tan (Psi) and Cos (Delta) which can be used to extract directly thickness but also optical indices of a layer inside a multilayer structure. Moreover, the wavelength dependence introduces more restrictions for the data analysis since thickness and optical indices can be deduced directly in many cases. We apply this technique to different kinds of photoresist designed for 365nm and 248nm. At each wavelength ellipsometric parameters are simulate directly versus the exposure dose without any assumption on the thickness and on the index of refraction evolution. On 365nm photoresist this new method provides Dill parameters in good agreement with the standard method. On 248nm photoresist we show that the influence of the exposure is more important on the refractive index and on the thickness of the layer than on its absorption.
In this paper a new method to determine photoresist Dill parameters is presented. Based on spectroscopic ellipsometry (SE) measurements, this new method is more precise than standard techniques based on transmittance measurements. Indeed, compared to photometry, SE technique is a self calibrated technique which provide directly two independent parameters Tan (Psi) and Cos (Delta) which can be used to extract directly thickness but also optical indices of a layer inside a multilayer structure. Moreover, the wavelength dependence introduces more restrictions for the data analysis since thickness and optical indices can be deduced directly in many cases. We apply this technique to different kinds of photoresist designed for 365nm and 248nm. At each wavelength ellipsometric parameters are simulated directly versus the exposure dose without any assumption on the thickness and on the index of refraction evolution. On 365nm photoresist this new method provides Dill parameters in good agreement with the standard method. On 248nm photoresist we show that the influence of the exposure is more important on the refractive index and on the thickness of the layer than on its absorption.
In order to characterize 300mm wafers at different stages of the IC manufacturing, a new tool based on spectroscopic ellipsometry has been recently developed at SOPRA. This new instrument called SE-300 has some important new features compared to the other ellipsometers of SOPRA or of the competition. First the optical setup allows to obtained very small measurement spots down to 35 by 45 micrometers in polychromatic light to be able to work from deep UV 190nm to near IR; second the combined monochromator/spectrometer is directly setup on the analyzer arm and allows both multichannel and scanning measurements on the same spot. Scanning measurement made with a real double monochromator including prism and grating allows very accurate measurement that can be used to extract optical indices and solve complex multilayer structures. Multichannel measurements are made through a prism/grating spectrometer with quasi-linear dispersion in wavelength. All the elements are fully compatible with the new generation of 300mm wafers. Practical results obtained on antireflective coatings and photoresist films are presented.
Antireflective coatings and photoresists are characterized precisely by spectroscopic ellipsometry from near IR to deep UV 190nm. A procedure based on the use of a polynomial dispersion law to take into account the optical indices of the films int he region where they are transparent is used. Thickness values provided by this technique are checked independently by grazing x-ray reflection technique at the cobalt K-(alpha) line. The procedure is valid for a range from very thin ARCs to very thick ones. Knowing the thickness of the film a new method to extract point to point the optical indices of the layer in the entire wavelength range has been developed; at each wavelength, we use different couples of values measured at different incidence angles, and we adjust the optical indices using a Levenberg Marquard algorithm. Compared to the standard point to point procedure, this method has tow main advantage: at the extrema of the interference fringes the better stability of the algorithm leads to more accurate extraction even for very thick film, due to the fact that the position of the extrema is slightly dependent of the angle of incidence; another interest is that the optimum angle of incidence for a given wavelength is generally always included in the interval. A final interest is that standard deviations on the n and k values are also extracted directly using this method giving an evaluation of the accuracy of the procedure at each wavelength. This method is applied first to transparent SiO2 thick film on silicon to demonstrate the better accuracy and then to antireflective coatings of various thickness down to deep UV range. Easy simulations of normal reflectance properties can then be made very easily using these optical indices.
Thin film color filters have been characterized precisely by spectroscopic ellipsometry and transmittance measurement using the new GESP5 SOPRA instrument. Ellipsometry provides precisely not only the thickness of the layers but also the optical indices of a wide wavelength range. The optical index and the absorption are determined independently to allow accurate determination of thickness and pigment concentration and save costly materials. The quality of the layers can be checked from run to run but also on the same panel making mapping measurements. The spatial resolution around 200 micrometers and precise positioning allow measurement in a single pixel. Using these structural informations the theoretical transmittance of the filters can be deduced and compared to the corresponding experimental measurements made with the same instrument.
Indium tin oxide films (ITO) are characterized precisely by spectroscopic ellipsometry which determines not only the thickness of the layers but also the optical indices in a large spectral range. The quality of the ITO films is checked by the transparency of the layers in the visible range 0.4 to 0.6 micrometers . Indeed, target degradation is detected by the occurrence of an absorption band in this region. The electrical conductivity of the layer can also be deduced by the Drude model applied to the absorption in the infrared region. Moreover, spectroscopic ellipsometry can give all these information on all the surface of the panels, checking at the same time the homogeneity and the stability of the deposition process. Different experimental examples will be presented and discussed.
The final structure of the LCD devices can be extremely complex in terms of layer structure and material combination. Prior to the characterization of the entire depth of the complete screen, a precise analysis of the different layers involved in the structure is necessary. In this procedure the optical indices and thicknesses of the dielectric, ITO and complementary layers are successively determined. Final characterization of the complete device is then made possible and large gap with or without liquid crystals can be determined by the same technique. Due to the total thickness, a high spectral resolution is needed, and a spatial resolution for the measurement spot is also required to avoid lateral inhomogeneities. The index of the liquid crystal layer can finally be deduced with reasonable accuracy.
Antireflective coatings and resists are characterized precisely by spectroscopic ellipsometry from 800nm to UV and deep UV 193nm. A procedure based on the use of a polynomial dispersion law to take into account the optical indexes of the ARC in the region where it is transparent is developed and tested on samples with different thicknesses. The values obtained by this procedure are shown to be in perfect agreement with grazing x-ray reflection measurements made on the same samples. The procedure is valid even for very thin ARC. We show that using this thickness, the optical indexes can be extracted directly in all the wavelength range of the SE measurements. Practical example including a top ARC, a resist and a bottom ARC is analyzed in the same way. The physical parameters of the entire trilayer structure are deduced at the different working wavelengths. The expected reflectance performance are simulated using the same physical model and the same software.
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