Aberration-aware robust mask design with level-set-based inverse lithography

Yijiang Shen; Ngai Wong; Edmund Y. Lam

doi:10.1117/12.863973

25 May 2010 Aberration-aware robust mask design with level-set-based inverse lithography

Yijiang Shen, Ngai Wong, Edmund Y. Lam

Proceedings Volume 7748, Photomask and Next-Generation Lithography Mask Technology XVII; 77481U (2010) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.863973
Event: Photomask and NGL Mask Technology XVII, 2010, Yokohama, Japan

Abstract

Optical proximity correction (OPC) is one of the most widely used Resolution Enhancement Techniques (RET) in mask designs. Conventional OPC is often designed for a set of nominal imaging parameters without giving sufficient attention to the process variations caused by aspherical wavefront leaving the exit pupil of the lithography system. As a result, the mask designed may deliver poor performance with process variations. In this paper, we first describe how a general point spread function (PSF) with wave aberration can degrade the output pattern quality, and then show how the wave aberration function can be incorporated into an inverse imaging framework for robust input mask pattern design against aberrations. A level-set-based time-dependent model can then be applied to solve it with appropriate finite difference schemes. The optimal mask gives more robust performance against either one specific type of aberration or a combination of different types of aberrations.

Citation Download Citation

Yijiang Shen, Ngai Wong, and Edmund Y. Lam "Aberration-aware robust mask design with level-set-based inverse lithography", Proc. SPIE 7748, Photomask and Next-Generation Lithography Mask Technology XVII, 77481U (25 May 2010); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.863973

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