# US 11,442,366 B2 · Device manufacturing methods > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 11,442,366 B2 - Document ID: US11442366B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 16/620,899 - Filed: 2018-05-07 - Published: 2020-06-25 - Granted: 2022-09-13 - Earliest claimed: 2017-06-14 - Assignees: ASML Netherlands B.V. - Applicants: Asml Netherlands B.V. - Inventors: Rizvi Rahman; Hakki Ergün Cekli; Cëdric Dësirë Grouwstra - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US11442366B2 ## CPC - G03F 7/70191: {Optical correction elements, filters or phase plates for controlling intensity, wavelength, polarisation, phase or the like} - G03F 7/70525: {Controlling normal operating mode, e.g. matching different apparatus, remote control or prediction of failure} - G03F 7/00: Photomechanical, e.g. photolithographic, production of textured or patterned surfaces, e.g. printing surfaces; Materials therefor, e.g. comprising photoresists; Apparatus specially adapted therefor (using photoresist structures for special production processes, see the relevant places, e.g. B44C, H10P76/00, H05K) - G03F 7/705: {Modelling or simulating from physical phenomena up to complete wafer processes or whole workflow in wafer productions} - G03F 7/70616: {Monitoring the printed patterns} - G05B 19/41875: {characterised by quality surveillance of production} - H10P 74/23: {characterised by multiple measurements, corrections, marking or sorting processes} - G05B 2219/45028: Lithography - H10P 74/203: {Structural properties, e.g. testing or measuring thicknesses, line widths, warpage, bond strengths or physical defects} - Y02P 90/02: Total factory control, e.g. smart factories, flexible manufacturing systems [FMS] or integrated manufacturing systems [IMS] - G03F: PHOTOMECHANICAL PRODUCTION OF TEXTURED OR PATTERNED SURFACES, e.g. FOR PRINTING, FOR PROCESSING OF SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES; MATERIALS THEREFOR; ORIGINALS THEREFOR; APPARATUS SPECIALLY ADAPTED THEREFOR; (phototypographic composing devices B41B; photosensitive materials or processes for photographic purposes G03C; electrophotography, sensitive layers or processes therefor G03G) - G05B: CONTROL OR REGULATING SYSTEMS IN GENERAL; FUNCTIONAL ELEMENTS OF SUCH SYSTEMS; MONITORING OR TESTING ARRANGEMENTS FOR SUCH SYSTEMS OR ELEMENTS (systems for controlling or regulating non-electric variables G05D; systems for regulating electric or magnetic variables G05F; control devices or systems insofar as characterised by mechanical features only G05G) - H10P: GENERIC PROCESSES OR APPARATUS FOR THE MANUFACTURE OR TREATMENT OF DEVICES COVERED BY CLASS H10 - Y02P: CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION TECHNOLOGIES IN THE PRODUCTION OR PROCESSING OF GOODS ## Abstract A device manufacturing method, the method including: obtaining a measurement data time series of a plurality of substrates on which an exposure step and a process step have been performed; obtaining a status data time series relating to conditions prevailing when the process step was performed on at least some of the plurality of substrates; applying a filter to the measurement data time series and the status data time series to obtain filtered data; and determining, using the filtered data, a correction to be applied in an exposure step performed on a subsequent substrate. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A device manufacturing method, the method comprising: obtaining a measurement data time series of a plurality of substrates on which an exposure step and a process step have been performed; obtaining a status data time series relating to conditions prevailing when the process step was performed on at least some of the plurality of substrates; applying a filter to the measurement data time series and the status data time series to obtain filtered data; and determining, using the filtered data, a correction to be applied in a subsequent exposure step performed on a subsequent substrate. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, further comprising: applying a further filter to the measurement data time series and/or the status data time series to obtain further filtered data; and determining, using the further filtered data, a further correction to be applied in the exposure step performed on the subsequent substrate. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein applying a filter comprises applying a polynomial filter having terms in spatial coordinates of the substrate. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein applying a filter comprises transforming the measurement data time series and the status data time series into frequency space data, applying a frequency filter to the frequency space data to obtain filtered frequency space data, and transforming the filtered frequency data into the filtered data. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein applying a filter comprises applying a first filter to measurement data of the measurement data time series relating to a first zone of the substrates and applying a second filter, different from the first filter, to measurement data of the measurement data time series relating to a second zone of the substrates. ### Claim 6 (depends on 5) The method according to claim 5, wherein the first zone is an edge zone and the second zone is an interior zone. ### Claim 7 A device manufacturing method, the method comprising: obtaining a measurement data time series of a plurality of substrates on which an exposure step and a process step have been performed; applying a filter to the measurement data time series to obtain filtered data; determining, using the filtered data, a correction to be applied in a subsequent exposure step performed on a subsequent substrate; applying a further filter to the measurement data time series to obtain further filtered data; and determining, using the further filtered data, a further correction to be applied in the subsequent exposure step performed on the subsequent substrate. ### Claim 8 (depends on 7) The method according to claim 7, further comprising obtaining a status data time series relating to conditions prevailing when the process step was performed on at least some of the plurality of substrates, wherein applying a filter comprises applying a filter to the measurement data time series and the status data time series to obtain the filtered data. ### Claim 9 A device manufacturing method, the method comprising: obtaining a measurement data time series of a plurality of substrates on which an exposure step and a process step have been performed; obtaining a status data time series relating to conditions prevailing when the process step was performed on at least some of the plurality of substrates; transforming the measurement data time series and the status data time series into frequency space data; determining, on the basis of the frequency space data, a filter to be applied to the measurement data time series and/or the status data time series to obtain filtered data; applying the filter to the measurement data time series and/or status data time series to obtain filtered data; and determining, using the filtered data, a correction to be applied in a subsequent exposure step performed on a subsequent substrate. ### Claim 10 (depends on 9) The method according to claim 9, wherein the status data time series comprises data relating to a plurality of process steps performed on the substrates and determining a filter to be applied comprises selecting a subset of the status data time series relating to a subset of the process steps to be filtered and used to determine the correction. ### Claim 11 A device manufacturing method, the method comprising: obtaining a measurement data time series of a plurality of substrates on which an exposure step and a process step have been performed; obtaining a status data time series relating to conditions prevailing when the process step was performed on at least some of the plurality of substrates; transforming the measurement data time series and the status data time series into frequency space data; and determining, on the basis of the frequency space data, a sampling scheme to be applied to subsequent substrates to generate a measurement data time series. ### Claim 12 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein the correction is to be applied to correct at least one selected from: overlay, dose and/or focus. ### Claim 13 (depends on 7) The method according to claim 7, wherein the correction and/or the further correction is to be applied to correct at least one selected from: overlay, dose and/or focus. ### Claim 14 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein the process step is at least one process selected from: etching, annealing, implantation, deposition, and/or polishing. ### Claim 15 A non-transitory computer program product comprising a computer-readable medium having computer readable code therein, the code, when executed by a processing apparatus, configured to instruct one or more tools to at least: obtain a measurement data time series of a plurality of substrates on which an exposure step and a process step have been performed; obtain a status data time series relating to conditions prevailing when the process step was performed on at least some of the plurality of substrates; apply a filter to the measurement data time series and the status data time series to obtain filtered data; and determine, using the filtered data, a correction to be applied in a subsequent exposure step performed on a subsequent substrate. ### Claim 16 A non-transitory computer program product comprising a computer-readable medium having computer readable code therein, the code, when executed by a processing apparatus, configured to instruct one or more tools to at least: obtain a measurement data time series of a plurality of substrates on which an exposure step and a process step have been performed; apply a filter to the measurement data time series to obtain filtered data; determine, using the filtered data, a correction to be applied in a subsequent exposure step performed on a subsequent substrate; apply a further filter to the measurement data time series to obtain further filtered data; and determine, using the further filtered data, a further correction to be applied in the exposure step performed on the subsequent substrate. ### Claim 17 A non-transitory computer program product comprising a computer-readable medium having computer readable code therein, the code, when executed by a processing apparatus, configured to instruct one or more tools to at least: obtain a measurement data time series of a plurality of substrates on which an exposure step and a process step have been performed; obtain a status data time series relating to conditions prevailing when the process step was performed on at least some of the plurality of substrates; transform the measurement data time series and the status data time series into frequency space data; determine, on the basis of the frequency space data, a filter to be applied to the measurement data time series and/or the status data time series to obtain filtered data; apply the filter to the measurement data time series and/or status data time series to obtain filtered data; and determine, using the filtered data, a correction to be applied in a subsequent exposure step performed on a subsequent substrate. ### Claim 18 (depends on 9) The method according to claim 9, wherein the correction and/or the further correction is to be applied to correct at least one selected from: overlay, dose and/or focus. ### Claim 19 A non-transitory computer program product comprising a computer-readable medium having computer readable code therein, the code, when executed by a processing apparatus, configured to instruct one or more tools to at least: obtain a measurement data time series of a plurality of substrates on which an exposure step and a process step have been performed; obtain a status data time series relating to conditions prevailing when the process step was performed on at least some of the plurality of substrates; transform the measurement data time series and the status data time series into frequency space data; and determine, on the basis of the frequency space data, a sampling scheme to be applied to subsequent substrates to generate a measurement data time series. ### Claim 20 (depends on 11) The method according to claim 11, wherein the process step is at least one process selected from: etching, annealing, implantation, deposition, and/or polishing.