# US 12,601,979 B2 · Multi-column large field of view imaging platform > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 12,601,979 B2 - Document ID: US12601979B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 18/368,795 - Filed: 2023-09-15 - Published: 2025-03-20 - Granted: 2026-04-14 - Earliest claimed: 2023-09-15 - Assignees: KLA Corporation - Applicants: KLA Corporation - Inventors: Yonatan Vaknin; Amnon Manassen; Andrew V. Hill - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US12601979B2 ## CPC - G03F 7/70633: {Overlay, i.e. relative alignment between patterns printed by separate exposures in different layers, or in the same layer in multiple exposures or stitching} - G03F 7/706849: {Irradiation branch, e.g. optical system details, illumination mode or polarisation control} - G03F 7/706851: {Detection branch, e.g. detector arrangements, polarisation control, wavelength control or dark/bright field detection} - 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) ## Abstract A measurement system may include an illumination source configured to generate one or more illumination beams and one or more objective lenses. One or more of the objective lenses may be configured as illumination objective lenses to direct illumination from the illumination source to one or more targets on a sample. One or more of the objective lenses may be configured as collection objective lenses, where each of the collection objective lenses is configured to collect a selected diffraction order of the illumination from the sample. The system may further include one or more detectors, each configured to image the sample based on at least one of the selected diffraction orders from at least one of the collection objective lenses and a controller to generate measurements of the one or more targets on the sample based on one or more images from the detectors. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A measurement system comprising: an illumination source configured to generate one or more illumination beams; one or more objective lenses, wherein one or more of the objective lenses are configured as illumination objective lenses to direct illumination from the illumination source to one or more targets on a sample when implementing a recipe, wherein one or more of the objective lenses are configured as collection objective lenses, wherein each of the collection objective lenses is configured to collect a selected diffraction order of the illumination from the sample when implementing the recipe; a first detector configured to image the sample based on the positive first-order diffraction when implementing the recipe; a second detector configured to image the sample based on the negative first-order diffraction when implementing the recipe; one or more detectors, each configured to image the sample based on at least one of the selected diffraction orders from at least one of the collection objective lenses; and a controller communicatively coupled to the one or more detectors, the controller including one or more processors configured to execute program instructions causing the one or more processors to implement the recipe by generating one or more measurements of the one or more targets on the sample based on one or more images from the one or more detectors, wherein the one or more measurements include an overlay measurement between the first and second layers based on grey-levels associated with the at least one target in the images from the first and second detectors. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The measurement system of claim 1, wherein the one or more targets includes two or more targets, wherein the controller is configured to implement the recipe by generating separate measurements of the two or more targets. ### Claim 3 (depends on 2) The measurement system of claim 2, wherein at least two of the two or more targets have different designs. ### Claim 4 (depends on 2) The measurement system of claim 2, wherein at least two of the two or more targets have a common design. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The measurement system of claim 1, wherein the illumination objective lenses include a single illumination objective lens. ### Claim 6 (depends on 5) The measurement system of claim 5, wherein the single illumination objective lens is configured to direct the illumination to the sample at a normal incidence angle when implementing the recipe. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The measurement system of claim 1, wherein at least one of the one or more measurements comprises: a metrology measurement. ### Claim 8 (depends on 7) The measurement system of claim 7, wherein the metrology measurement comprises: an overlay measurement. ### Claim 9 (depends on 8) The measurement system of claim 8, wherein the collection objective lenses comprise: a first collection objective lens configured to collect positive first-order diffraction of the illumination when implementing the recipe; and a second collection objective lens configured to collect negative first-order diffraction of the illumination when implementing the recipe. ### Claim 10 (depends on 9) The measurement system of claim 9, wherein at least one of the targets include one or more cells in accordance with the recipe, each cell comprising: first-layer features on a first layer of the sample; and second-layer features on a second layer of the sample. ### Claim 11 (depends on 10) The measurement system of claim 10, wherein the first-layer features and the second-layer features have a common pitch, wherein the first-layer features and the second-layer features at least partially overlap. ### Claim 12 (depends on 10) The measurement system of claim 10, wherein the collection objective lenses further comprise: an additional objective lens configured to collect zero-order diffraction of the illumination when implementing the recipe. ### Claim 13 (depends on 12) The measurement system of claim 12, wherein the first-layer features and the second-layer features are in non-overlapping regions of the sample, wherein the one or more detectors comprise: a first detector configured to image the sample based on the positive first-order diffraction and the zero-order diffraction when implementing the recipe; and a second detector configured to image the sample based on the negative first-order diffraction and the zero-order diffraction when implementing the recipe, wherein the one or more measurements include an overlay measurement between the first and second layers based on centers of symmetry of the first-layer features and the second-layer features associated with the at least one target in the images from the first and second detectors. ### Claim 14 (depends on 13) The measurement system of claim 13, wherein the first-layer features and the second-layer features have a common pitch. ### Claim 15 (depends on 13) The measurement system of claim 13, wherein the first-layer features have a first pitch, wherein the second-layer features have a second pitch. ### Claim 16 (depends on 15) The measurement system of claim 15, wherein the illumination includes a first center wavelength and a second center wavelength, wherein the positive first-order diffraction of the illumination with the first center wavelength by the first-layer features overlaps with the positive first-order diffraction of the illumination with the second wavelength by the second-layer features, wherein the negative first-order diffraction of the illumination with the first center wavelength by the first-layer features overlaps with the negative first-order diffraction of the illumination with the second wavelength by the second-layer features. ### Claim 17 (depends on 8) The measurement system of claim 8, wherein the collection objective lenses comprise: a single collection objective lens to collect zero-order diffraction from the sample when implementing the recipe. ### Claim 18 (depends on 17) The measurement system of claim 17, wherein the zero-order diffraction is transmitted through the sample. ### Claim 19 (depends on 1) The measurement system of claim 1, wherein at least one of the one or more measurements comprises: an inspection measurement. ### Claim 20 (depends on 1) The measurement system of claim 1, wherein at least one selected diffraction order is a reflected diffraction order. ### Claim 21 (depends on 1) The measurement system of claim 1, wherein at least one selected diffraction order is a transmitted diffraction order. ### Claim 22 A measurement system comprising: a controller communicatively coupled to one or more detectors configured to image a sample based on at least some of the light collected by one or more collection objective lenses when implementing a recipe, wherein the one or more detectors comprise a first detector configured to image the sample based on the positive first-order diffraction when implementing the recipe and a second detector configured to image the sample based on the negative first-order diffraction when implementing the recipe, wherein each of the collection objective lenses is configured to collect a selected diffraction order of the illumination from the sample when implementing the recipe, wherein the controller includes one or more processors configured to execute program instructions causing the one or more processors to implement the recipe by generating one or more measurements of the one or more targets on the sample based on one or more images from the one or more detectors, wherein the one or more measurements include an overlay measurement between the first and second layers based on grey-levels associated with the at least one target in the images from the first and second detectors. ### Claim 23 A method comprising: directing illumination to one or more targets on a sample; collecting light from the sample with one or more collection objective lenses and one or more detectors, wherein each of the collection objective lenses is configured to collect a selected diffraction order of the illumination from the one or more targets, wherein the one or more detectors comprise a first detector configured to image the sample based on the positive first-order diffraction when implementing the recipe and a second detector configured to image the sample based on the negative first-order diffraction when implementing the recipe; and generating one or more images of the sample based on at least some of the light collected by the one or more collection objective lenses; and generating one or more measurements of the one or more targets on the sample based on the one or more images, wherein the one or more measurements include an overlay measurement between the first and second layers based on grey-levels associated with the at least one target in the images from the first and second detectors. ### Claim 24 (depends on 23) The method of claim 23, further comprising: controlling one or more process tools based on the one or more measurements.