Mask With Separated Line Patterns And Connection Pattern
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional sidewall transfer processes for forming high-resolution patterns in semiconductor memory face challenges in maintaining positional accuracy and preventing open defects due to poor contrast and tapered shapes in resist patterns, leading to potential misalignment and defects in metal wiring formation.
Innovation Solution
A mask with a line-and-space pattern and a connection pattern that projects inward from the separation portion, allowing for secure margin during lithography, and a pattern forming method involving a sidewall transfer process, etching, and plating to form metal wiring while minimizing orthogonal region exposure.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If a cover pattern is formed to cover the region to be separated after sidewall pattern formation, then the metal wiring can be separated at the desired position, but the margin for positional deviation during lithography is small, causing the cover pattern to potentially cover unnecessary regions
Solution Approach 1:
The mask pattern is segmented into multiple functional regions: a line-and-space pattern for forming the sidewall pattern, and separate connection patterns for defining separation regions. This segmentation allows each component to perform its specific function independently, improving positional accuracy while maintaining manageable complexity through modular design
Solution Approach 2:
The connection pattern is designed in advance with predetermined shapes and positions that account for potential lithography deviations. By preliminarily establishing the separation regions through the connection pattern's geometric design, the system compensates for positioning errors before the actual separation process occurs
2Manufacturing precision
If the region to be separated includes only the line and space, then the margin for positional deviation is small, but this leads to the cover pattern covering unnecessary regions for separating metal wiring
Solution Approach 1:
Different regions of the mask pattern are assigned different functional qualities: the line-and-space region generates the sidewall pattern, while the connection pattern regions define separation zones. This local differentiation ensures that each area contributes appropriately to the overall process, preventing unnecessary coverage and improving both precision and reliability
Solution Approach 2:
The connection pattern acts as an intermediary element between the line-and-space pattern and the final separation outcome. It mediates the transition by providing geometric features that translate the exposed pattern into precise separation regions, ensuring reliable metal wiring formation even with positional variations
Data Source
AI summary
According to one embodiment, a mask includes a line-and-space mask pattern. The mask has a separation portion separating a line pattern in a predetermined region within the line-and-space mask pattern. The mask also includes a connection pattern arranged in a crossing direction crossing the extending direction of the line pattern connecting the separated line patterns. The connection pattern is arranged on a position where the end of the line pattern, which is separated by the separation portion, projects from the connection pattern.