JP2007281492A - Semiconductor manufacturing apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To save a sample transport means between a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus and a detection device, reduce the installation area, reduce the total cost and decrease the probability of the sample contamination by sharing loading means and unloading means of the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus and the detection device such as a chemical mechanical polisher for samples such as wafers. <P>SOLUTION: The detection device 25 is provided with a built in chemical mechanical polisher 100 for samples such as wafers. The polisher 100 is further equipped with a loading unit 21, a chemical mechanical polishing unit 22, a cleaning unit 23, a drying unit 24, and an unloading unit 26. Respective treatments are performed by the respective units in the polisher 100 and treated samples are transported to a successive step 109. A sample loading means, a sample unloading means and a transporting means are not necessary for the movement of the samples between the respective units. A stencil mask is irradiated from the rear side with a planar beam; the transmitted beam is mapped and projected; and images are detected by a TDI detector. Therefore, since a large number of pixels can be simultaneously imaged, detection can be made with a high throughput. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  In the present invention, a sample such as a wafer is subjected to semiconductor process processing such as lithography, film formation (CVD, sputtering, plating), oxidation, impurity doping, etching, planarization, washing, drying, etc., and the wafer after these processing, etc. The present invention relates to an apparatus that performs high-precision and high-reliability inspection of a high-density pattern shape and defect inspection in a sample, and a semiconductor device manufacturing method that performs pattern inspection during a device manufacturing process using the apparatus.

  The present invention further relates to an apparatus for performing a defect inspection of a mask for manufacturing a semiconductor device.

  Conventionally, each semiconductor manufacturing apparatus and shape observation apparatus or defect inspection apparatus are manufactured as separate independent apparatuses (stand-alone apparatuses), and are arranged separately in a line. For this purpose, a sample such as a wafer that has been subjected to one semiconductor process must be placed in a cassette and transported directly from one semiconductor manufacturing device to some inspection means by some means of transportation, or through a cleaning / drying device. there were.

  Further, when an electron beam is used to inspect the stencil mask with high accuracy, the electron beam is scanned from the back side of the mask with a thin electron beam, and the transmission electron is detected for inspection.

  When each apparatus is arranged and configured as described above, a sample transport means is required between the apparatuses, and a loader means and an unloader means for loading and unloading the sample with respect to the cassette are required for each apparatus. Therefore, there is a problem that a large apparatus installation area is required, the total cost of the apparatus is increased, and there is a high probability of contamination of a sample such as a wafer.

  Further, since a fine electron beam is used in the mask inspection, there is a problem that the throughput is remarkably reduced.

  The present invention is for solving the above-mentioned problems. By omitting the transportation means between the devices and by sharing the loader means and the unloader means of each device, the device installation area is reduced and the total cost of the device is reduced. An object of the present invention is to provide a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus capable of reducing the probability of sample contamination and improving the process yield, and further to provide an apparatus and method for inspecting a stencil mask with high throughput. It is said.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the invention described in claim 1 of the present application is characterized in that a defect inspection apparatus is incorporated in a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus for a sample such as a wafer.

  According to this invention, since the defect inspection apparatus is built in the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus, a sample such as a wafer taken in by the load unit is transferred to the defect inspection apparatus within the apparatus after one manufacturing process is completed. It is moved, taken out from the unload section after being inspected by the defect inspection apparatus. Therefore, the number of sets of the load unit and the unload unit as many as the respective devices has been required so far, but according to the present invention, this can be made into one set. Further, a sample transport device such as a wafer between the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus and the defect inspection apparatus can be omitted. Therefore, the installation floor area of the apparatus can be reduced, the total cost of the apparatus can be reduced, the probability of contamination of a sample such as a wafer can be reduced, and the process yield can be improved.

  The invention described in claim 2 of the present application is the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the defect inspection apparatus is a defect inspection apparatus using an energy beam, and is integrated with the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus. .

  According to the invention described in claim 3 of the present application, in the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, the structure of the apparatus includes a CMP (chemical mechanical polishing) unit, a cleaning unit, a drying unit, and the inspection device. The inspection unit is configured to include a loading unit and an unloading unit, and the inspection unit is adjacent to any one, any two, or three of the CMP unit, the drying unit, and the unloading unit. It is characterized by being installed.

  According to the present invention, the installation area of the entire apparatus can be reduced, and the four functions of flattening, cleaning, drying, and inspection can be performed by one apparatus, and the main element portion is brought close to each other. As a result, the efficiency can be increased and the floor space for installation can be further reduced.

  According to the invention described in claim 4 of the present application, in the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, the configuration of the apparatus includes a plating unit, a cleaning unit, a drying unit, an inspection unit having the defect inspection device, and a load unit. And an unloading unit, and an inspection unit is installed in the vicinity of any one, any two, or three of the plating unit, the drying unit, and the unloading unit. Features. According to the present invention, the same effect as in the case of the CMP can be obtained in the plating apparatus.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, the defect inspection apparatus is an electron beam inspection apparatus, and a cleaning apparatus and a drying apparatus are incorporated in the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus. It is characterized by being.

  According to the present invention, a sample such as a wafer can be inspected with a higher resolution in a defect inspection apparatus, and an electrical defect such as a disconnection of a via or a wiring or a conduction failure can be inspected. In addition, by incorporating the cleaning device and the drying device inside, it is possible to omit the load unit and unload unit associated with the cleaning / drying device, which was conventionally installed as an independent stand-alone device, and to omit the sample transport device. The installation floor area of the apparatus can be reduced, the total cost of the apparatus can be reduced, the probability of contamination of a sample such as a wafer can be reduced, and the process yield can be improved.

  The defect inspection apparatus can be a defect inspection apparatus using energy rays, and the defect inspection apparatus can be integrated with the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus. The concept of energetic particle beam or energy beam includes electron beam, X-ray, X-ray laser, ultraviolet ray, ultraviolet laser, photoelectron and light. In addition, the energy particle beam or the defect inspection apparatus using the energy beam includes at least an energy particle irradiation unit, an energy particle detection unit, an information processing unit, an XY stage, and a material mounting table. .

  According to the invention described in claim 6 of the present application, in the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus described in claim 5, the electron beam defect inspection apparatus includes a differential exhaust system.

  According to the present invention, it is not necessary to evacuate the space around the sample stage of the electron beam apparatus, and a sample such as a wafer can be transported by omitting the load lock mechanism around the stage space. .

  According to the seventh aspect of the present invention, in the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to the sixth aspect, the electron beam irradiation area on the sample surface is decompressed by the differential exhaust system.

  According to the present invention, a more efficient exhaust system can be configured by exhausting only the electron beam irradiation region on the sample surface.

  According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, in the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to any one of the fifth to seventh aspects, the defect inspection apparatus is a scanning electron microscope (SEM) type electron beam defect inspection apparatus. It was.

  The invention according to claim 9 of the present application is the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the primary electron beam used in the electron beam defect inspection apparatus is composed of a plurality of electron beams, and the secondary electrons from the sample are E It is characterized by being separated from the optical axis of the primary electron beam by a xB filter (Wien filter) and detected by a plurality of electron beam detectors.

  The invention according to claim 10 of the present application is the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to any one of claims 5 to 7, wherein the defect inspection apparatus is an electron beam defect inspection apparatus of a projection type electron microscope.

  According to an eleventh aspect of the present invention, in the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to the tenth aspect, a primary electron beam used in the electron beam defect inspection apparatus is composed of a plurality of electron beams, and the plurality of electron beams scan the sample while scanning. The secondary electrons from the sample are separated from the optical axis of the primary electron beam by an E × B filter (Wien filter) and detected by a two-dimensional or line image sensor. .

  According to the present invention, the electron dose and the resolution of the secondary electron optical system can be improved, and therefore the throughput can be improved.

  According to the invention described in claim 12 of the present application, the electron beam emitted from the LaB6 electron gun is shaped and irradiated to the sample, and the electron beam emitted from the sample is imaged by the optical system of the projection type electron microscope system. There is provided an electron beam apparatus comprising a load lock chamber for loading and unloading, wherein the LaB6 electron gun is operated under a space charge limiting condition.

  The invention according to claim 13 of the present application is the electron beam apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the electron beam emerging from the sample is a reflected electron or a transmitted electron.

  According to a fourteenth aspect of the present invention, in the electron beam apparatus according to the twelfth aspect, the projected and projected sample image is converted into an optical image by a fluorescent screen, and the optical image is formed on a TDI detector by an FOP or a lens system. It is characterized by the fact that

  The invention according to claim 15 of the present application is characterized in that, in the electron beam apparatus according to claim 12, the sample image projected and projected is formed on a TDI detector having sensitivity to electron beams.

  The invention according to claim 16 of the present application is the electron beam apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the sample is fixed to the sample table by an electrostatic chuck, and a laser interferometer for measuring the position of the sample table is provided, The sample is fixed to the load lock chamber by an electrostatic chuck.

  The invention of claim 17 of the present application is characterized in that, in the semiconductor device manufacturing method, a wafer in the middle of a process is inspected by using the defect inspection apparatus of any one of claims 1 to 16.

  According to the present invention, the process yield can be greatly improved.

  The invention according to claim 18 of the present application is a device manufacturing method, wherein defect inspection defect analysis is performed on a wafer or mask after completion of one process, and the result is fed back to a process step.

  FIG. 1 is a view for explaining the configuration of a chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) apparatus 100 that incorporates an inspection apparatus, which is an example of a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to the present invention. The main components are a load unit 1 including a load unit 21, a CMP unit 2 including a CMP unit 22, a cleaning unit 3 including a cleaning unit 23, a drying unit 4 including a drying unit 24, and an inspection unit 5 including an inspection unit 25. The unloading unit 6 includes an unloading unit 26, which are functionally arranged and integrated. That is, FIG. 1 shows an example of the present invention in which each part is functionally arranged. Although not shown in the drawing, a transport mechanism for a sample such as a wafer, an alignment mechanism, and the like are provided at a necessary place. Although not illustrated in the load unit 1 and the unload unit 6, a mini-environment mechanism (air or nitrogen gas cleaned by a cleaning device is circulated in a down flow to prevent contamination of a sample such as a wafer. Mechanism). The sample transport mechanism or the like is provided with a vacuum chuck mechanism, an electrostatic chuck mechanism, or a mechanical sample fixing mechanism that is usually required for fixing the sample, but is omitted from the drawing. The loading unit 1 and the unloading unit 6 do not need to be provided independently, and may be completed with one chamber and one transport device. In general, the load unit 1, the unload unit 6 and the control panel (not shown) are arranged so that they can be accessed (operated) from one direction as shown in FIG. Only the control unit is installed in a room with higher cleanliness.On the other hand, the main body that generates dust is installed in a place with lower cleanness, and the boundary between both spaces is partitioned by walls. It is desirable to adopt a method for reducing the load.

  FIG. 2 shows an example of the process of the present invention. Samples such as wafers are usually carried in the cassette from the previous step 107 by the sample transport step 108, taken out of the cassette by the load unit 1 and inserted into the CMP unit 2 (sample load step 101). Planarization processing is performed in the CMP unit 2 (CMP step 102), and then moved to the inspection unit 5 through the cleaning step 103 in the cleaning unit 3 and the drying step 104 in the drying unit 4. The inspection unit 5 performs shape inspection and defect inspection (inspection step 105), moves to the cassette through the unload unit 6 (sample unload step 106), and then performs the following processing for each cassette by the sample transport step 108. It is sent to step 109, for example, an exposure step.

  In the process of FIG. 2, a sample that does not require the inspection process 105 is sent directly to the unload process 106 after the cleaning / drying process without passing through the inspection process 105 as in the case of the A line. Similarly, it is possible to pass the CMP step 102, the cleaning step 103, and the drying step 104 as in the B line.

  In the conventional wafer processing step (shown in FIG. 3), the CMP flattening process, the cleaning / drying process, and the inspection process are performed separately (stand-alone) CMP apparatus 11, cleaning / drying apparatus 12, and inspection apparatus 13 (FIG. 3). It was done by). Since each of these devices is provided with the load unit 1 and the unload unit 6, this conventional arrangement has a total of three sets of load units and unload units. A device 108 for transporting the sample is also provided between the devices.

  A conventional wafer processing process is shown in FIG. A sample such as a wafer is usually carried in a cassette from the previous step 107 by the sample transporting step 108, inserted into the CMP unit 2 through the loading unit 1 (sample loading step 101), and flattened by the CMP unit 2. The process is performed (CMP step 102), the sample unloading step 106, the sample transporting step 108, and the sample loading step 101 are performed. Thereafter, after the cleaning step 103 and the drying step 104, the sample unloading step 106 and the sample transporting step 108 are performed. Then, it is transported to the inspection device 13 (line C). The sample passes through the load section 1 (load process 101), and the inspection section 13 performs shape inspection and defect inspection (inspection process 105). Thereafter, the sample passes through the unload unit 6 of the inspection apparatus 13 and is then transported into the cassette (sample unload step 106). Thereafter, the sample is transported to the next processing step 109, for example, an exposure step, for example. Sent (line D). Usually, since the inspection process takes a lot of time, not all the wafers after the CMP / cleaning / drying process are inspected, but the inspection is performed by sampling. That is, it passes through the line indicated by E in FIG.

  As is clear from comparison between FIG. 2 and FIG. 4, in the present invention, the number of steps can be reduced to 2/3 compared with the conventional method, and the time can be reduced by 10%, and the installation area of the apparatus can be reduced. Reduced by 20%. In addition, the manufacturing cost of the apparatus could be reduced by 15%.

  As described above, the CMP apparatus incorporating the defect inspection apparatus has been described as an example of the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus of the present invention. However, other apparatuses such as lithography, film formation (CVD, sputtering, plating), oxidation, impurity doping, etching, etc. Similarly, other semiconductor manufacturing apparatuses that perform the above process can be configured to incorporate a defect inspection apparatus.

  FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram of an electron beam type defect inspection apparatus provided with a differential pumping mechanism, which is included in the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to the second embodiment of the present invention. In the figure, only the electron beam defect inspection apparatus barrel 51, the differential exhaust section 52, the guard ring 54, and the moving stage 55, which are main components, are shown, and other control systems, power supply systems, exhaust systems, etc. are omitted. is doing. A wafer 53 serving as a sample is fixed on a moving stage 55 and surrounded by a guard ring 54. The guard ring 54 has the same height (thickness) as the wafer 53, and the minute gap 57 between the tip of the differential exhaust part 52 and the wafer 53 and the guard ring 54 does not change even during the stage movement. Is considered. Locations on the moving stage 55 other than those occupied by the guard ring 54 and the wafer 53 are also at the same height as the wafer. Wafer mounting / removal is performed at a position where the center of the wafer exchange position 56 on the stage 55 coincides with the center of the inspection apparatus. The method of removing the wafer is performed by a procedure in which the wafer is lifted by three vertical movement pins of the moving stage 55, the hand of the transfer robot is inserted from the side below, further lifted to catch and transfer the wafer. In the case of loading a wafer, the procedure is reversed.

  FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram of the differential exhaust section 52 of FIG. The differential exhaust body (52-3) of the differential exhaust section 52 is provided with an exhaust port I (52-1) and an exhaust port II (52-2) concentrically, and the exhaust port I has a wide bandwidth. Exhaust is performed by a turbo molecular pump, and the exhaust port II is exhausted by a dry pump. Although not shown in the figure, the exit (secondary electron entrance) of the electron beam 202 has a hole shape of φ1 mm and a length of 1 mm, and conductance is reduced. The minute gap 57 is normally kept at 0.5 mm or less (preferably 0.1 mm or less) by controlling the height of the stage 55. As a result of exhausting by connecting a dry pump with a pumping speed of 1000 l / min and a turbo molecular pump with a pumping speed of 1000 l / s to this differential pumping unit, the electron beam irradiation unit has an order of 10-3 Pa and the electrons inside the lens barrel. A pressure on the order of 10-4 Pa was obtained in the vicinity of the wire outlet.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram for explaining the third embodiment. This is an example in which a projection type electron beam inspection apparatus is used as the electron beam defect inspection apparatus. In this figure, the differential exhaust section is omitted. The primary electron beam 202 emitted from the electron gun 201 is shaped by a rectangular aperture, and is imaged on the deflection center plane of the E × B filter 205 by 0.5 mm × 0.125 mm square by the two-stage lenses 203 and 204. The E × B filter 205, also called a Wien filter, has an electrode 206 and a magnet 207, has a structure in which an electric field and a magnetic field are orthogonal to each other, and the primary electron beam 202 is bent at 35 degrees to the sample direction (perpendicular to the sample). On the other hand, it has a function of moving the secondary electron beam from the sample straight. The primary electron beam 202 deflected by the E × B filter 205 is reduced to 2/5 by the lenses 208 and 209 and projected onto the sample 210. The secondary electrons 211 having the pattern image information emitted from the sample 210 are enlarged by the lenses 209 and 208, then go straight through the E × B filter 205, enlarged by the lenses 212 and 213, and MCP (microscopically). (Channel plate) 215 is sensitized 10,000 times, converted into light by the fluorescent unit 216, passes through a relay optical system 217, becomes an electrical signal synchronized with the scanning speed of the sample by the TDI-CCD 218, and is displayed by the image display unit 219. Acquired as a continuous image. Further, this image is compared with a plurality of cell images and a plurality of die images on time to detect a defect on the sample surface (for example, a wafer). Further, the feature such as the shape of the detected defect, the position coordinates, and the number are recorded and output on the CRT or the like. On the other hand, as the sample substrate, select the appropriate conditions for each sample substrate after the different surface structures such as oxide film and nitride film and after different processes, and irradiate the electron beam according to the conditions, and optimal irradiation After irradiating under conditions, an image by an electron beam is acquired and a defect is detected.

FIG. 8 is a diagram schematically showing the configuration of the fourth embodiment of the apparatus according to the present invention.
Four primary electron beams 302 (302A, 302B, 302C, and 302D) emitted from the electron gun 1 are shaped by the aperture stop 303 and are formed on the deflection center plane of the E × B filter 307 by the two-stage lenses 304 and 305. The image is formed into an ellipse of 10 μm × 12 μm, raster-scanned by a deflector 306 along a direction perpendicular to the drawing sheet, and irradiated so as to uniformly cover a rectangular area of 1 mm × 0.25 mm as a whole. The The four primary electron beams 302 deflected by the E × B filter 307 are crossed over by the NA aperture 308, reduced to 1/5 by the lens 309, and the sample (wafer) 310 covers 200 μm × 50 μm. In addition, irradiation and projection are performed so as to be substantially perpendicular to the sample. Four secondary electron beams 312 having information of a pattern image (sample image 311) emitted from the sample 310 are expanded by lenses 309, 313, and 314, and the sample continuous movement direction of the TDI-CCD 319 is detected by a magnetic lens 315. The angle correction with respect to the integrated stage number direction is performed, and an image is formed on the MCP 316 as a rectangular image (enlarged projection image 318) in which four secondary electron beams 312 are combined as a whole. This enlarged projection image 318 is sensitized to about 10,000 times by the MCP 316, converted into light by the fluorescent unit 317, and becomes an electric signal synchronized with the continuous moving speed of the sample by the TDI-CCD 319. Is not obtained) and is acquired as a continuous image and output on a CRT or stored in a memory device. From this image, a defect is further detected by cell comparison, die comparison, or the like, and the position coordinate, size, type, or the like is determined, stored, displayed, and output.

  The primary electron beam irradiation method of this example is shown in FIG. The primary electron beam 302 is composed of four electron beams 302A, 302B, 302C, and 302D, and each beam has an elliptical shape of 10 μm × 12 μm. Each of these electron beams raster scans a rectangular area of 200 μm × 12.5 μm and adds them so that they do not overlap to irradiate a rectangular area of 200 μm × 50 μm as a whole. In this example, the irradiation unevenness of the primary electron beam was about ± 3%, the irradiation current was 250 μA per electron beam, and 1.0 μA was obtained with four electron beams as a whole on the sample surface. By increasing the number of electron beams, the current can be further increased and high throughput can be obtained.

  Although not shown in the figure, in addition to the lens, this apparatus includes a limited field stop, a deflector (aligner) having four or more poles for adjusting the axis of the electron beam, astigmatism. A unit necessary for illumination and imaging of an electron beam, such as a corrector (stigmator) and a plurality of quadrupole lenses (quadrupole lenses) for shaping a beam shape, is provided.

  The electron beam irradiation unit needs to irradiate the sample surface with the electron beam in a rectangular or elliptical shape with as little uniformity as possible and with less irradiation unevenness. Irradiation is necessary. The conventional electron beam irradiation system has a large irradiation unevenness of about ± 10%, and the electron beam irradiation current is about 500 nA in the irradiation region. In addition, compared with the scanning electron microscope (SEM) method, there is a problem that imaging failure due to charge-up is likely to occur because a large image observation area is collectively irradiated with an electron beam. Irradiation unevenness can be reduced to about 1/3 by scanning a plurality of electron beams and irradiating the sample. As a whole, the irradiation current was about twice or more in the case of four electron beams on the sample surface. By increasing the number of electron beams, for example, it can be easily increased to about 16, for example, the current can be further increased, and thus high throughput can be obtained. In addition, by performing a raster scan with a relatively thin beam, the charge on the sample surface can easily escape, so that the charge-up can be reduced to 1/10 or less compared to the case of batch irradiation.

  As described above, an example of a projection type electron beam defect inspection apparatus has been described as an example. However, a defect inspection apparatus such as a scanning electron microscope system (SEM system) can also be used.

  FIG. 10 shows a defect inspection apparatus using the mapping projection optical system according to the fifth embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, reflected electrons are used.

  The components from the electron gun 601 to the image display unit 619 are all the same as those shown in FIG. 7. Therefore, the components denoted by reference numerals 201 to 219 in FIG. 7 are denoted by reference numerals 601 to 619 in FIG. It is attached. The embodiment of FIG. 10 differs from the embodiment of FIG. 7 only in the trajectory of the electron beam, and the trajectory 620 of the secondary electron is emitted from the sample 610 at a large emission angle as shown by the dotted line, and is objective. Since it is accelerated in the axial direction by an accelerating electric field generated by the lens 609, it becomes a small beam bundle and enters the objective lens 609. On the other hand, since the reflected electrons 621 travel almost straight in the emitted direction, the aperture diameter of the aperture 622 that restricts the beam is increased so that a signal with a sufficient S / N ratio can be obtained. The reflected electrons have a beam energy width ΔV smaller than that of the secondary electrons, so that the aberration can be sufficiently reduced even if the diameter of the opening 622 is somewhat larger.

  FIG. 11 shows an electron optical system of a defect inspection apparatus for a stencil mask using the mapping projection optical system according to the sixth embodiment of the present invention.

  Electrons emitted from the LaB6 electron gun 711 are focused by the condenser lens 715, and illuminate the rectangular opening 719 with uniform intensity. An image of the shaping opening 719 is formed on the stencil mask 800 by the irradiation lens 721. A crossover image formed by the electron gun 711 and the condenser lens 715 is formed on the main surface 733 of the objective lens 731 by the irradiation lens 721. The passing electrons patterned by the stencil mask 800 are magnified by the objective lens 731 and the magnifying lens 735 and imaged on the MCP 711. The electrons of each pixel are multiplied by the MCP 711, and an enlarged image of the stencil mask is formed on the fluorescent screen 755. Here, if the transmittance of transmitted electrons is close to 1.0, a necessary signal can be obtained by directly illuminating the fluorescent screen without amplification by MCP. The light from the fluorescent plate 775 is taken out from the vacuum window 777, reduced to ½ by the reduction lens 779, and imaged on the TDI detector 781. Further, the light from the fluorescent plate may be guided to the TDI detector by FOP instead of the lens system. At this time, the phosphor may be applied to one side of the FOP, and the FOP may also serve as a vacuum window. Further, if a TDI detector having sensitivity to an electron beam is used, it is not necessary to use a fluorescent screen, FOP, etc., and the magnification ratio of the electron optical system can be made close to 1. This image is converted into an electric signal and then input to an image processing circuit, which is compared with pattern data from a data storage in which pattern data is stored, and defect data is output to a defect display device.

  The stencil mask 800 is irradiated with an electron beam during continuous movement in a uniaxial direction, whereby image acquisition is performed.

  Next, an example of an embodiment of a semiconductor device manufacturing method according to the present invention will be described.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing an example of a semiconductor device manufacturing method of the present invention. The manufacturing process of this example includes the following main processes.
(1) Wafer manufacturing process for manufacturing a wafer (or wafer preparation process for preparing a wafer) 400
(2) Mask manufacturing process for manufacturing a mask used for exposure (or mask preparation process for preparing a mask) 401
(3) Wafer processing step 402 for performing necessary processing on the wafer
(4) Chip assembly process 403 for cutting out chips formed on the wafer one by one and making them operable.
(5) Chip inspection process 404 for inspecting the completed chip
Each process further includes several sub-processes.
Among these main processes, the main process that has a decisive influence on the performance of semiconductor devices is the wafer processing process. In this process, designed circuit patterns are sequentially stacked on a wafer to form a large number of chips that operate as memories and MPUs. This wafer processing step includes the following steps.
(1) A thin film forming process (using CVD, sputtering, etc.) for forming a dielectric thin film to be an insulating layer, a wiring part, or a metal thin film for forming an electrode part.
(2) Oxidation step for oxidizing the thin film layer and wafer substrate (3) Lithography step for forming a resist pattern using a mask (reticle) for selectively processing the thin film layer and wafer substrate, etc. (4) Resist Etching process that processes thin film layers and substrates according to patterns (for example, using dry etching technology)
(5) Ion / impurity implantation / diffusion process (6) Resist stripping process (7) Inspection process for inspecting further processed wafers The wafer processing process is repeated as many times as necessary to produce semiconductor devices that operate as designed. To do.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing a lithography process that forms the core of the wafer processing process of FIG. This lithography process includes the following steps.
(1) A resist coating process 500 for coating a resist on a wafer on which a circuit pattern is formed in the preceding process.
(2) Exposure step 501 for exposing the resist
(3) Development step 502 of developing the exposed resist to obtain a resist pattern
(4) Annealing step 503 for stabilizing the developed resist pattern
The semiconductor device manufacturing process, wafer processing process, and lithography process described above are well known and need no further explanation.

  When the defect inspection method and the defect inspection apparatus according to the present invention are used in the inspection process of (7) above, even a semiconductor device having a fine pattern can be inspected with high throughput. It is possible to prevent shipment of defective products.

  FIG. 14 shows an embodiment of a process method using the apparatus of the present invention. Wafers flowing from the previous process are divided into lot wafers and pilot wafers. First, process processing is performed on the pilot wafer, and then defect inspection and defect analysis are performed. As a result, if there is a problem, the process condition is changed and the process is performed again. If the problem disappears, the lot wafer is processed under the process conditions and then passed to the next process.

That is, a defect inspection of a processed wafer is performed, and the result is fed back to the process to determine better process conditions.
〔The invention's effect〕

  In the present invention, by incorporating a defect inspection apparatus into a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus such as a CMP apparatus to form an integrated apparatus, the loading, unloading, and wafer transportation processes can be reduced to 2/3. The time can be reduced by 10%, and the installation area of the apparatus can be reduced by 20%. In addition, the manufacturing cost of the apparatus can be reduced by 15%.

  In addition, since the stencil mask defect inspection apparatus of the present invention can simultaneously acquire an image of 2000 pixels, even if the signal acquisition time per pixel is increased 100 times to improve the S / N ratio, it is 20 times that of the conventional apparatus. High throughput can be achieved. Further, when the reflected electron signal is used, the influence of surface charging can be reduced, so that higher throughput can be achieved than when secondary electrons are used.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating the principle of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a process example of the present invention. 3 is an explanatory diagram of the conventional system. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a conventional process. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a second embodiment. FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram of the differential exhaust section. FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a third embodiment. FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a fourth embodiment. FIG. 9 is a diagram showing the electron beam irradiation method of FIG. FIG. 10 is a schematic view of an optical system of a mapping projection type electron microscope using reflected electrons. FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram of a defect inspection apparatus for a stencil mask using a projection type electron microscope using transmission electrons. FIG. 12 is a flowchart of the device manufacturing process. FIG. 13 is a flowchart of the linography process. FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing an embodiment of a process method using the apparatus of the present invention.

Explanation of symbols

1 loading unit, 2 CMP unit, 3 cleaning unit, 4 drying unit, 5 inspection unit, 6 unloading unit, 21 load unit, 22 CMP unit, 23 cleaning unit, 24 drying unit, 25 inspection unit, 26 unloading unit, DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 Chemical mechanical polishing apparatus, 101 Sample loading process, 102 CMP process, 103 Cleaning process, 104 Drying process, 105 Inspection process, 106 Sample unloading process, 107 Pre-process, 108 Sample transport process, 109 Next process, 621 Reflected electron Orbit, 601 LaB6 electron gun, 602 primary beam optical axis, 603 condenser lens, 604 irradiation lens, 605 E × B separator, 606 electromagnetic deflector, 607 electrostatic deflector, 608 projection lens, 609 objective lens, 610 sample, 611 optical axis, 612 magnifying lens, 13 Magnifying lens, 615MCP, 616 Fluorescent part, 617 Window, 618 Reduction optical lens, 619 TDI, 620 Secondary electron orbit, 711 LaB6 electron gun, 715 Condenser lens, 721 Irradiation lens, 719 Molding aperture, 731 Objective lens, 735 Magnification Projection lens, 737 first magnified image, 771 MCP, 775 fluorescent part, 779 reduction lens, 781 TDI detector, 711a LaB6 cathode, 711b Wehnelt, 711c anode, 713 shaping aperture, 717 shaping deflector, 727 detector, 725 deflection 723 NA aperture, 710 irradiation optical system, 50 stages, B1, B2, B5 object point, α aperture half angle, 731a first objective lens, 731b second objective lens, 733 NA aperture, 735a, 735b first and second Expansion Lens.

Claims (18)

A semiconductor manufacturing apparatus for a wafer or a mask, comprising a defect inspection apparatus. 2. The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the defect inspection apparatus is a defect inspection apparatus using an energy beam, and the defect inspection apparatus is integrated with the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus. The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus includes a CMP (Chemical Mechanical Polishing) unit, a cleaning unit, a drying unit, an inspection unit having the defect inspection device, and a load unit and an unload unit. 3. The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus is installed adjacent to any one, any two, or three of the CMP unit, the drying unit, and the unload unit. . The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus includes a plating unit, a cleaning unit, a drying unit, an inspection unit having the defect inspection device, and a load unit and an unload unit. The inspection unit includes the plating unit, the plating unit, 3. The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus is disposed adjacent to any one, any two, or three of the drying unit and the unloading unit. The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the defect inspection apparatus is an electron beam defect inspection apparatus, and a cleaning apparatus and a drying apparatus are incorporated in the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus. The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the electron beam defect inspection apparatus includes a differential exhaust system. 7. The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the electron beam irradiation region on the sample surface is depressurized by the differential exhaust system. The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the defect inspection apparatus is a scanning electron microscope (SEM) type electron beam defect inspection apparatus. The primary electron beam used in the electron beam defect inspection apparatus is composed of a plurality of electron beams, and secondary electrons from the sample are separated from the optical axis of the primary electron beam by an E × B filter (Wien filter). 9. The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus is configured to be detected by a plurality of electron beam detectors. 8. The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the defect inspection apparatus is a projection electron microscope type electron beam defect inspection apparatus. A primary electron beam used in the electron beam defect inspection apparatus is composed of a plurality of electron beams, and the plurality of electron beams are irradiated to the sample while scanning, and secondary electrons from the sample are expressed by an E × B filter ( 11. The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus is separated from the optical axis of the primary electron beam by a Wien filter and detected by a two-dimensional or line image sensor. An electron beam apparatus is a defect inspection apparatus that shapes an electron beam emitted from a LaB6 electron gun, irradiates a sample, and forms an image of the electron beam emitted from the sample with an optical system of a mapping projection electron microscope system. An electron beam apparatus comprising a load lock chamber for loading and unloading, wherein the LaB6 electron gun is operated under a space charge limiting condition. The electron beam apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the electron beam emerging from the sample is a reflected electron or a transmitted electron. 13. The electron beam apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the projected and projected sample image is converted into an optical image by a fluorescent plate, and the optical image is formed on a TDI detector by FOP or a lens system. 13. The electron beam apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the projected sample image is formed on a TDI detector having sensitivity to electron beams. The sample is fixed to a sample stage by an electrostatic chuck, and a laser interferometer for measuring the position of the sample stage is provided. The sample is also provided by an electrostatic chuck in the load lock chamber. The electron beam apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the electron beam apparatus is fixed. A method for manufacturing a semiconductor device, comprising: inspecting a wafer in the middle of a process using the defect inspection apparatus according to claim 1. A device manufacturing method characterized by performing defect inspection and defect analysis of a wafer or mask after completion of one process and feeding back the result to a process step.

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