Summer03 product news

Product News TeraScan™ DUV Reticle Inspection System

TeraScan system is the first deep ultraviolet (DUV) reticle inspection tool developed for sub-90-nm IC production. TeraScan combines a new high-speed DUV image acquisition system with KLA-Tencor’s proven Tera™ advanced defect detection algorithms. The DUV image acquisition provides highresolution inspection for advanced reticles, while optimizing signal-to-noise for low false defects, maximizing the capability for fast inspection throughput — and — delivering a significant increase in pattern inspection sensitivity.

TeraScan has demonstrated the capability to inspect numerous reticle types, including chrome-on-glass, embedded phase shift, and alternating phase shift, at both 248-nm and 193-nm wavelengths.

AccuFilm in-situ AMC Control Solution

AccuFilm, an option on KLA-Tencor’s SpectraFx 100 film metrology system, enables measurements on advanced, ultra-thin <20Å gate films for the 90-nm node and below. AccuFilm eliminates the effects of airborne molecular contamination (AMC) from gate product wafer measurements by delivering a near instantaneous clean locally in the measurement area.

AccuFilm has two components: A single wavelength self-calibrating ellipsometer (SWE), which delivers ultra-stable measurements; and iDesorber, an integrated cleaning source that cleans the measurement site, eliminating AMC, so the SWE can measure it immediately afterwards, within two seconds of clean. AccuFilm cleans and measures in the scribe lines, enabling measurement on product wafers as well as monitor wafers. It significantly shortens time to information, reducing work in process (WIP) risk for the critical gate process, and quickly detects gate thickness and non-uniformity excursions. AccuFilm relieves the pressure on fab wafer flow caused by constraints on queue times before measurement (required in advanced logic fabs) to avoid the effects of AMC on gate dielectric measurement.

MPX Focus/Exposure Line Monitor

MPX provides an innovative methodology for monitoring photo excursions of focus and exposure on production wafers, enabling lithographers to meet the new control requirements for stepper defocus and exposure variations in sub-130-nm IC production. With focus error alone accounting for as much as 50 percent of the critical dimension (CD) variation in new processes and devices at 130 nm and below, having the ability to monitor focus-exposure variations inline is critical to maintaining tight CD control at these advanced design rules. MPX, an option on the Archer series advanced overlay metrology systems, capitalizes on the unique dual-tone target capability of separating exposure from focus for more accurate process monitoring while providing real-time focus and exposure metrology. Because of robust high resolution Archer imaging, MPX technology is capable of detecting focus (<50 nm) and dose (<1 percent) deviations on product wafers. Stepper productivity is increased by eliminating the need for test wafer monitoring.

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Summer 2003

Yield Management Solutions

eS30: Electrical Line Monitoring for sub-130 nm High Volume Production

The combination of smaller process windows, new materials and more complicated process integration at and below the 130-nm node has given rise to a new and challenging class of defects that lead to significant yield and reliability issues. These defects — extremely small in size sub-surface or buried, and within filled and unfilled high aspect ratio structures (Figure 1) — are predominantly electrical in nature, and cannot be detected using conventional inspection technologies.

For previous-generation processes, e-beam inspection has proven useful in identifying and sourcing these yield-relevant defects during integrated circuit (IC) development. Today, however, many of the problems uncovered in development are found to persist in volume production, costing millions of dollars per excursion. Overcoming this new challenge requires dedicated, high-speed e-beam inspection at every key process step — true electrical line monitoring.

KLA-Tencor has filled in this critical gap in process control with its new eS30 e-beam inspection system — the industry’s fastest, most sensitive and easiestto-use electrical line monitoring solution. Overcoming the throughput and cost-of-ownership (CoO) hurdles that have traditionally interfered with the adoption of e-beam inspection on the production floor, the eS30 has become a system of choice for all phases of the IC technology life cycle — deveopment, ramp and production. Leveraging the eS30, device manufacturers can adopt and proliferate cost-effective electrical defect monitoring in production to meet their time-to-market goals, while reaping substantial gains in yield and profitability.

F i g u re 1. The via contamination defect re q u i res line monitoring b y an e-beam inspection system in p ro d u c t i o n .

eS30 Benefits • More than 2x improvement in throughput* • More than 2x improvement in sensitivity and resolution* • Benchmark sensitivity for 65 nm and beyond • Rapid identification of yield-relevant defects inline • Enhanced capture of voltage contrast defects using e-Control™ • Extended optics for maximum sensitivity • Improved review resolution down to 20 nm *compared to the eS20XP

Electri ca l line monitorin g allowed TI DMOS6 to re d u c e the magnitude and frequency of open-via excursions.

The reduction in metal 2 open-via defect density corre-

TIME

sponds to a 15-20 percent yield improvement.

E-beam insp ection enab led a major Reference: Soucek, M., et al., "Electrical Line Monitoring in a Cu Fab," Semiconductor International, July 2003.

Japan ese logic manufacturer t o ramp their 90-n m process about 25 perc e n t faster than their 130-nm process ramp.

eS30 Summer 2003

Reference: Mizuta, et al., KLA-Tencor Yield Management Seminar, Japan, Dec. 2002.

Yield Management Solutions

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Don’t miss the e-Line express.

Introducing

eS30 Electrical Line Monitoring.

Defects occurring within unfilled and filled contacts and vias are among the biggest barriers to production success at 130 nm and below. And the only way to detect them is with dedicated, high-speed electrical line monitoring at every key process step. Introducing the eS30—the industry’s fastest e-beam inspection system. With more than 2x throughput and sensitivity improvements, and the ability to rapidly trend by defect type, the eS30 meets the production requirements for electrical line monitoring. And it maintains the engineering analysis capabilities you need for development and ramp. All in an easy to use, single platform solution. Next stop: eS30. The fastest way to improve and protect your yield.

Learn how one fab used eLM to improve yield by 15-20% in one layer alone. Visit www.kla-tencor.com/eLM Accelerating Yield ® ©2003 KLA-Tencor Corporation