Metrology tool error log analysis methodology and system

A method of identifying failures in a metrology tool system used to measure desired dimensions in microelectronic features comprising:

• providing a metrology tool system having a plurality of metrology tools, each tool running a plurality of recipes for measuring desired dimensions in microelectronic features, each recipe comprising a set of instructions for measuring at least one dimension in a microelectronic feature;
• providing an error log for the metrology tool system, the error log having stored thereon failures in measurement of microelectronic feature dimensions for each metrology tool;
• determining whether errors are caused by a recipe used by a metrology tool in the system;
• from the failures stored in the error log caused by a recipe, determining normalized number of errors for the recipes used by the metrology tool system;
• identifying one or more recipes having the greatest normalized number of errors in the error log;
• identifying, in a list of jobs to be performed by the metrology tool system, the one or more identified recipes having the greatest normalized number of errors;
• from the identified one or more recipes having the greatest normalized number of errors, determining a cause of the errors in the one or more recipes;
• effecting a change in the one or more identified recipes having the greatest normalized number of errors to correct the errors therein;
• and
• tracking a metrology tool job having the one or more recipes in which a change has been effected to determine whether the cause of errors has been corrected.

A computer program product comprising a computer useable medium including a computer readable program for identifying failures in a metrology tool system used to measure desired dimensions in microelectronic features, the metrology tool system including a metrology tool adapted to run a plurality of recipes for measuring desired dimensions in microelectronic features, each recipe comprising a set of instructions for measuring at least one dimension in a microelectronic feature, the metrology tool having an error log in a database having stored thereon failures in measurement of microelectronic feature dimensions, wherein the computer readable program when executed on a computer causes the computer to:

• determine normalized number of errors for the recipes used by the metrology tool, from the failures stored in the error log;
• identify one or more recipes having the greatest normalized number of errors in the error log;
• and
• identify, in a list of jobs to be performed by the metrology tool, the one or more identified recipes having the greatest normalized number of errors.