Stitched overlay evaluation and improvement for large field applications

Reducing the overlay error between stacked layers is key to enabling higher pattern density and thus moving towards high performance and more cost effective devices. However, as for specific applications like macrochips with photonic interconnects and high-resolution image sensor flat panels with advance polarizers, customers require product field sizes that are larger than the maximum field size available on scanners. Those large fields are obtained by stitching together multiple standard fields. The overlay performances between two adjacent dies are as aggressive as what is usually required between two stacked layers. For this application, the well-established polynomial overlay model is not suitable as the displacement is measured relatively and the metrology sampling in the field is such that some high order nonlinear (K) terms cannot be modeled independently. Furthermore, a perfect grid is needed in mix and match production. The intrafield correction capability of the exposure tool is not the same for each process steps. For example, no intrinsic K13 can be printed for a mix and match process flow that includes an Extreme Ultra-Violet (EUV) litho step. In addition, some KrF scanners with fewer lens manipulators cannot correct for K9. Measuring the stitching and correcting it at the first layer will prevent printing K terms that are not correctable later in the process. In this paper, the need to characterize and control single-layer overlay among different pattern placement mechanisms intrinsic to the scanner was studied: optical aberrations, field-to-field position, mask placement and registration. An ASML set-up BP-XY-V3 reticle was used to generate a large experimental dataset to validate stitching models supported by Overlay Optimizer (OVO). Overlay measurements were done Resist-in-Resist using new YieldStar (YS) interlaced stitching Diffraction Based Overlay (μDBO) targets that were designed and validated. This paper will present on product metrology results of a scatterometry-based platform showing production results with focus not only on precision and on accuracy, but also assessing target performance and target-to-target delta without process influence. A high order stitching model was developed and verified on a Multi-Product Reticle for a large device application. Trench width control at the field intersection was studied then optimized with proximity correction to ensure a perfect field-to-field junction.