Contour line analysis apparatus, processing dimension extraction system, processing condition decision system, semiconductor device manufacturing system, and data structure

A semiconductor device manufacturing system comprising a platform that is connected to a terminal, a semiconductor processing apparatus, and a measurement apparatus for obtaining image data of a semiconductor sample on which processing is performed by the semiconductor processing apparatus via a network, and on which applications for searching for processing conditions of the semiconductor processing apparatus for forming a desired target structure in the semiconductor sample is implemented,

• wherein a contour line detection application and a contour line analysis application are implemented on the platform,
• the contour line detection application detects contour line data of the target structure from the image data, and
• the contour line analysis application executes:
• a step of setting constraint conditions for fitting a shape model to the contour line data;
• and
• a step of storing shape model parameters of a shape model obtained by fitting the shape model to the contour line data under the constraint conditions in a shape model database as likely shape model parameters,
• the shape model is a curved line that is drawn with one stroke from its start point to its end point along a periphery of a figure that is a combination of one or more ellipses and one or more line segments in an xy-plane defined by an x axis and a y axis which are perpendicular to each other, and
• the constraint conditions are derived on the basis of a processing dimension function that is stored in a function database, represents processing dimensions specified on the basis of singular points in the shape model and that has the shape model parameters as its variables, and definition ranges of the processing dimensions.

A data structure for describing a contour line of a target structure of a semiconductor sample as a curved line that is drawn with one stroke from its start point to its end point along a periphery of a figure that is a combination of one or more ellipses and one or more line segments in an xy-plane defined by an x axis and a y axis which are perpendicular to each other, the data structure comprising:

• first parameters related to shapes and dispositions of one or more ellipses and one or more line segments that make up the figure;
• and
• second parameters related to how to draw the curved line with one stroke,
• wherein the data structure is used for executing fitting on the contour line data of the target structure detected from image data.