Pattern inspection method and apparatus with high-accuracy pattern image correction capability

An apparatus for performing pattern inspection by using an inspection reference pattern image of a workpiece being tested and a pattern image under test, said apparatus comprising:

• a correction region designation unit operative to designate a correction region including a pattern and its nearby portion within each of the reference pattern image and the pattern image under test;
• an equation generation unit operative to generate by linear predictive modeling a set of simultaneous equations for a reference pattern image within the correction region and an under-test pattern image within the correction region;
• a parameter generation unit operative to solve the equations to thereby obtain a model parameter;
• a corrected pattern image generation unit operative to use the model parameter to apply the linear predictive modeling to the reference pattern image to thereby generate a corrected pattern image;
• and
• a pattern image comparison unit operative to compare the corrected pattern image to the test pattern image in the correction region for detecting defects of the test pattern image.

A method for correcting a pattern image by use of an inspection reference pattern image of a workpiece being tested and a pattern image under test carried out by an image correction device, said method comprising:

• designating a correction region including a pattern and its nearby portion within each of the reference pattern image and the pattern image under test by the image correction device;
• generating by linear predictive modeling a set of simultaneous equations for a reference pattern image within the correction region and an under-test pattern image within the correction region by the image correction device;
• solving the equations to thereby obtain a model parameter by the image correction device;
• and
• using the model parameter to apply the linear predictive modeling to the reference pattern image to thereby generate a corrected pattern image by the image correction device.

A method for performing pattern inspection by using an inspection reference pattern image of a workpiece being tested and a pattern image under test carried out by a pattern inspection apparatus, comprising:

• designating a correction region including a pattern and its nearby portion within each of the reference pattern image and the pattern image under test by the pattern inspection apparatus;
• generating by linear predictive modeling a set of simultaneous equations for a reference pattern image within the correction region and an under-test pattern image within the correction region by the pattern inspection apparatus;
• solving the equations to thereby obtain a model parameter by the pattern inspection apparatus;
• using the model parameter to apply the linear predictive modeling to the reference pattern image to thereby generate a corrected pattern image by the pattern inspection apparatus;
• and
• comparing the corrected pattern image to the test pattern image in the correction region for detecting defects of the test pattern image by the pattern inspection apparatus.