Writing Data Generation for Charged Particle Beam Lithography

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Solution Overview

Problem

The existing methods for generating writing data for semiconductor devices result in excessively large data amounts when correcting small influence ranges, such as those caused by phenomena with influence ranges smaller than 10 μm, due to the need to define dose modulation for each small figure pattern, leading to increased data volume and inefficiency.

Innovation Solution

A method that generates writing data using a data format that defines dose and dose modulation rates for corner points of a quadrangular frame or mesh regions, allowing for dose calculation through linear interpolation, reducing the need to define dose information for each minute size and minimizing data volume.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Manufacturing precision

If dose modulation is defined for each small figure pattern to correct phenomena with influence ranges smaller than 10 μm, then manufacturing precision is improved, but the amount of writing data becomes excessively large

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvedimensional variation correctionVSAvoidamount of writing data

Core Design Contradiction:

Manufacturing precisionVSQuantity of substance

Solution Approach 1:

The figure pattern is divided into multiple regions, and dose modulation is defined for each region rather than for the entire figure pattern. This segmentation allows precise correction of dimensional variations in different areas while reducing the overall data amount by grouping similar regions together.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

Different dose modulation values are assigned to different regions of the figure pattern based on local characteristics. This allows targeted correction of dimensional variations in specific areas without unnecessarily increasing data for entire patterns, achieving precision where needed while minimizing data volume.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #3Local quality

2Manufacturing precision

If the figure pattern is divided into multiple small figure patterns to enable dose modulation correction, then manufacturing precision is improved, but device complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvedimensional variation correctionVSAvoiddata structure complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

Manufacturing precisionVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The figure pattern is segmented into multiple regions with shared dose modulation parameters. This reduces the complexity of data management compared to treating each small figure pattern independently, while still enabling precise local correction through region-based parameter assignment.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

Multiple small figure patterns or regions are merged into larger groups that share common dose modulation parameters. This combining approach reduces the total number of parameters that need to be managed and stored, simplifying the overall data structure while maintaining correction capability.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #5Merging (Combining)

Data Source

PatentUS9984853B2Method for generating writing data

Publication Date: 2018.05.29 NUFLARE TECH INC

AI summary

A method for generating writing data to be input to a writing apparatus, which writes a figure pattern on a target object by using a charged particle beam, includes generating the writing data, based on a data format that sequentially defines figure information on a figure pattern, and dose information which is defined before or after the figure information and indicates one of a dose and a dose modulation rate for modulating a dose, for a position of each of corner points of the figure pattern.