IP Library Granted Patent US 10,373,882
Granted Patent B2
US 10,373,882 · App. 15/969,247 · Granted Aug 6, 2019

Method and system of measuring semiconductor device and method of fabricating semiconductor device using the same

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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 10,373,882
App. No.
15/969,247
Granted
Aug 6, 2019
Kind
B2
Abstract

The measurement method may include obtaining first measurement data from a recess region formed in a semiconductor substrate, obtaining second measurement data from a conductive pattern filling a portion of the recess region, calculating a first volume of the recess region from the first measurement data, calculating a second volume of the conductive pattern from the second measurement data, and calculating a measurement target parameter using a difference between the first and second volumes.

Claims (89)

1. A system for measuring a semiconductor device, comprising:

a first measurement instrument configured to measure a width of a recess region formed in a semiconductor substrate;

a second measurement instrument configured to measure a depth of the recess region;

a third measurement instrument configured to measure a mass of an element contained in a conductive pattern filling a portion of the recess region; and

a computer system,

the computer system including a controller and a memory,

the computer system, in response to executing commands stored in the memory using the controller, being configured to,

calculate a first volume of the recess region using the width of the recess region and the depth of the recess region,

calculate a second volume of the conductive pattern using the mass of the element contained in the conductive pattern,

calculate a measurement target parameter using a difference between the first volume and the second volume, and

provide an approximation of an actual target parameter in the semiconductor substrate using the measurement target parameter for non-destructive measuring.

2. The system of claim 1 , wherein

the computer system comprises a calculation module for calculating the measurement target parameter,

the computer system, in response to executing the calculation module using the controller, is configured to calculate the measurement target parameter, and

the computer system, in response to executing the calculation module using the controller, is configured to calculate the first volume, the second volume, and the measurement target parameter,

the first volume being calculated by multiplying the width of the recess region, the depth of the recess region, and a first constant,

the second volume being calculated by multiplying the mass of the element contained in the conductive pattern by a second constant, and

the measurement target parameter being calculated by dividing a third volume, which is obtained by subtracting the second volume from the first volume, by multiplication of the width of the recess region and the first constant.

3. The system of claim 1 , wherein the first measurement instrument is a scanning electron microscope (SEM) instrument.

4. The system of claim 1 , wherein the second measurement instrument is an optical scatterometry instrument.

5. The system of claim 1 , wherein the third measurement instrument is an X-ray fluorescence analysis instrument.

6. The system of claim 1 , wherein

the computer system comprises a measurement controller, and

the measurement controller is configured to control the first measurement instrument, the second measurement instrument, and the third measurement instrument.

7. The system of claim 1 , wherein computer system is configured to control the first measurement instrument, the second measurement instrument, and the third measurement instrument.

8. The system of claim 1 , wherein the computer system and the first measurement instrument, the second measurement instrument, and the third measurement instrument are configured to be independently and individually controlled.

9. The system of claim 1 , wherein

the recess region comprises a lower region adjacent to a bottom surface of the recess region and an upper region separated from the bottom surface of the recess region,

the conductive pattern fills the lower region, and

the measurement target parameter is a distance between a top surface of the conductive pattern and a top surface of the semiconductor substrate.

10. The system of claim 9 , wherein

the recess region is a line-shaped trench extending along a specific direction,

the width of the recess region is a distance between opposing sidewalls of the semiconductor substrate defining the trench, and

the depth of the recess region is a distance between a bottom surface of the trench and a top surface of the semiconductor substrate.

11. The system of claim 9 , wherein

the recess region has a hole-shaped structure extending into at least a portion of the semiconductor substrate,

the width of the recess region is a diameter of the hole, and

the depth of the recess region is a distance between a bottom surface of the hole and a top surface of the semiconductor substrate.

12. The system of claim 1 , wherein the conductive pattern comprises a metal material.

13. The system of claim 1 , wherein

the first measurement instrument is a scanning electron microscope (SEM) instrument,

the second measurement instrument is an optical scatterometry instrument, and

the third measurement instrument is an X-ray fluorescence analysis instrument.

14. The system of claim 13 , wherein

the computer system further includes a calculation module and a verification module,

the computer system, in response to executing the calculation module using the controller, is configured to calculate the first volume, the second volume, and the measurement target parameter,

the first volume being calculated by multiplying the width of the recess region, the depth of the recess region, and a first constant,

the second volume being calculated by multiplying the mass of the element contained in the conductive pattern by a second constant,

the measurement target parameter being calculated by dividing a third volume, which is obtained by subtracting the second volume from the first volume, by multiplication of the width of the recess region and the first constant,

the computer system, in response to executing the verification module using the controller, is configured to determine the error between the measurement target parameter and reference data, and

the computer system, in response to executing the verification module using the controller, is configured to correct the first constant into a corrected first constant and correct the second constant into a corrected second constant to reduce an error between the measurement target parameter and the reference data, and

the computer system, in response to executing the calculation module using the controller, is configured to recalculate the first volume, the second volume, and the measurement target parameter using the corrected first constant and the corrected second constants.

15. The system of claim 1 , wherein

the computer system further includes a calculation module and a verification module,

the computer system, in response to executing the calculation module using the controller, is configured to calculate the first volume, the second volume, and the measurement target parameter,

the first volume being calculated by multiplying the width of the recess region, the depth of the recess region, and a first constant,

the second volume being calculated by multiplying the mass of the element contained in the conductive pattern by a second constant,

the measurement target parameter being calculated by dividing a third volume, which is obtained by subtracting the second volume from the first volume, by multiplication of the width of the recess region and the first constant,

the computer system, in response to executing the verification module using the controller, is configured to determine an error between the measurement target parameter and reference data,

the computer system, in response to executing the verification module using the controller, is configured to correct the first constant into a corrected first constant and correct the second constant into a corrected second constant to reduce the error between the measurement target parameter and the reference data,

the computer system, in response to executing the calculation module using the controller, is configured to recalculate the first volume, the second volume, and the measurement target parameter using the corrected first constant and the corrected second constants,

the recess region comprises a lower region adjacent to a bottom surface of the recess region and an upper region separated from the bottom surface of the recess region,

the conductive pattern fills the lower region, and

the measurement target parameter is a distance between a top surface of the conductive pattern and a top surface of the semiconductor substrate.

16. A system for measuring a semiconductor device, comprising:

a first measurement instrument configured to measure a width of a recess region formed in a semiconductor substrate;

a second measurement instrument configured to measure a depth of the recess region;

a third measurement instrument configured to measure a mass of an element contained in a conductive pattern filling a portion of the recess region;

a computer system,

the computer system including a controller and a memory,

the computer system, in response to executing commands stored in the memory using the controller, being configured to,

calculate a first volume of the recess region using the width of the recess region and the depth of the recess region,

calculate a second volume of the conductive pattern using the mass of the element contained in the conductive pattern, and

calculate a measurement target parameter using a difference between the first volume and the second volume, wherein

the computer system further includes a calculation module for calculating the measurement target parameter,

the computer system, in response to executing the calculation module using the controller, is configured to calculate the measurement target parameter, and

the computer system, in response to executing the calculation module using the controller, is configured to calculate the first volume, the second volume, and the measurement target parameter,

the first volume being calculated by multiplying the width of the recess region, the depth of the recess region, and a first constant,

the second volume being calculated by multiplying the mass of the element contained in the conductive pattern by a second constant, and

the measurement target parameter being calculated by dividing a third volume, which is obtained by subtracting the second volume from the first volume, by multiplication of the width of the recess region and the first constant,

the computer system further includes a verification module to verify the calculation module, and

the computer system, in response to executing the verification module using the controller, is configured to determine the first constant and the second constant to reduce an error between the measurement target parameter calculated by the calculation module and reference data, and

the computer system is configured to provide an approximation of an actual target parameter in the semiconductor substrate using the measurement target parameter for non-destructive measuring.

17. The system of claim 16 , wherein

the computer system, in response to executing the verification module using the controller, is configured to obtain the reference data,

the computer system, in response to executing the verification module using the controller, is configured to determine the error between the measurement target parameter and the reference data, and

the computer system, in response to executing the verification module using the controller, is configured to correct the first constant into a corrected first constant and correct the second constant into a corrected second constant to reduce the error between the measurement target parameter and the reference data.

18. The system of claim 17 , wherein

the computer system, in response to executing the calculation module using the controller, is configured to recalculate the first volume, the second volume, and the measurement target parameter using the corrected first constant and the corrected second constant.

Assignments (1)
LICENSE Recorded Jun 23, 2023
From: SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS CO., LTD.
To: INTELLECTUAL KEYSTONE TECHNOLOGY LLC
Reel/Frame 064444/0863 →