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And the Show Goes On Well, the show was an astounding success. The curtains rose on time, the players were brilliant, and each scene had us holding our breath. No, of course I’m not referring to the latest Broadway sellout, but to the recent Consumer Electronics Show. Dual-core processors are here to stay— turning us all into road warriors with on-the-go access to entertainment. It seems that every gizmo and gadget is all about power, performance, and price. Creative Zen Vision: M, touted as having the goods to give the iPod a run for its money, walked away with CNET’s Best in Show award. This 30GB, 2.5-inch screen media powerhouse— which also supports album art, simultaneous photo viewing, and music playback, with at least four hours of battery life—costs a paltry $330. Power, performance, price. All in one little package. And so my thoughts turn to SPIE Microlithography 2006. If CES is pure theatre, the SPIE community sits in the director’s chair. Showcasing both innovation and strategy, SPIE drives important decisions for our industry that are ultimately behind many of the products showcased at CES. Decisions that address questions like, which lithography process should I plan for on my roadmap: 193-nm immersion, EUV, e-beam, optical maskless, imprint or something entirely different? What XRET is best for a particular design? Is the design manufacturable? How forgiving is the process window?
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Spring 2006
Yield Management Solutions
What’s the best strategy to control line edge roughness? What data is required to ascertain if the device will achieve performance specs? Making knowledgeable decisions squarely rests on the quality of data and information one has. With this in mind, the focus of this issue is on enabling the most effective decision-making for patterning process control. “From Data to Decisions,” our cover story by litho guru Chris Mack, describes a conceptual framework for using metrology to systematically improve the progression from data to decision. Progressive mask defects are an industry-wide reliability problem, particularly when the defects approach the critical state where the mask needs to be pulled out of production and sent for cleaning or repair. Promos Technologies’ “When to Raise the Red Flag” puts forth a new methodology for effective dispositioning of defective masks. The concerns of leakage current at 65-nm is driving the adoption of FinFET structures. The decreasing size of these structures makes it particularly important to obtain good 2D and 3D pattern fidelity in lithography and etching. In “Optimizing FinFET Structures with Design-based Metrology,” IMEC examines the characterization of a detailed 2D layout and creation of a complete model of the lithographic process using design-based metrology.
Yield Management
solutions E d i t o r - i n -C h i e f Uma Subramaniam
Managing Editor Christine Young
Contributing Editors David Moreno, Lisa Garcia
Advanced fabs today require accurate and rapid disposition decision-making during manufacturing, as well as a quick assessment of tool and process module output. KLA-Tencor’s “Reliable, Repeatable Wafer and Tool Dispositioning in 300 mm Fabs,” argues the benefits of automated disposition versus manual disposition as a way to accelerate yield learning and improve fab productivity. The extreme reticle enhancement technologies used at 65-nm and beyond increase the risk of design-related reticle defects. OPC verification before the mask-making step can help ensure design-intended device integrity. UMC’s “Bridging the Gap between Design and Mask” proposes a new methodology for full-chip process window monitoring. I encourage you to carefully examine each article in this issue of Yield Management Solutions. Collectively, they address issues that are of grave concern to the lithography community.
Production Editors
Siiri Hage, Vidya Kumaravel
A r t D i r ec t o r a n d Production Manager
Harry Wichmann, Inga Talmantiene Design Consultants Carlos Hueso, Jovita Rinkunaite, Inga Talmantiene
Circulation Editor Nancy Williams
KLA-Tencor Worldwide Corporate Headquarters KLA-Tencor Corporation 160 Rio Robles San Jose, California 95134 408.875.3000
I n t e r n a t i o n a l O f f i ce s KLA-Tencor France SARL Evry Cedex, France 33 16 936 6969
See you at SPIE Microlithography 2006.
KLA-Tencor GmbH Munich, Germany 49 89 8902 170 KLA-Tencor (Israel) Corporation Migdal Ha’Emek, Israel 972 6 6449449 KLA-Tencor Japan Ltd. Yokohama, Japan 81 45 335 8200 KLA-Tencor Korea Inc. Seoul, Korea 822 41 50552
Uma Subramaniam Editor-in-Chief
KLA-Tencor (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd. Johor Bahru, Malaysia 607 557 1946 KLA-Tencor (Singapore) Pte. Ltd. Singapore 65 6367 6788 KLA-Tencor Taiwan Branch Hsinchu, Taiwan 886 3 552 6128 KLA-Tencor Limited Wokingham, United Kingdom 44 118 936 5700
Spring 2006
www.kla-tencor.com/magazine
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