Image processing apparatus, image processing method, defect detection method, semiconductor device manufacturing method, and program

A method of detecting a defect in an imaged object, the method comprising:

• detecting a first edge and the directions of the first edge from a code book preparation image having the first edge;
• cutting, in preset sizes, first regions out of a code book preparation image to generate a plurality of first image blocks, each of the first regions surrounding and including an edge point of the first edge;
• executing quantization processing regarding the first image blocks as multidimensional vectors to form code blocks for each of the directions of the first edge;
• allocating identification codes to the code blocks to prepare a code book;
• acquiring an image of the imaged objected;
• detecting a second edge which is the edge of the imaged object and the directions of the second edge from the image of the imaged object;
• cutting, in preset sizes, second regions out of the image of the imaged object to generate a plurality of second image blocks, each of the second regions surrounding and including an edge point of the detected second edge;
• selecting, from the code book, code blocks corresponding to the directions of the second edge to match these code blocks with the second image blocks, and defining the code blocks which have obtained matching scores exceeding a predetermined threshold value as code blocks having first identification codes and similar to the second image blocks;
• and
• taking, from the code book, the code blocks having the first identification codes to write these code blocks into a new image region along the directions of the second edge and around the coordinates of the second edge points,
• wherein second identification codes corresponding to the second image blocks in which the matching scores are equal to or less than the predetermined threshold value are preset in the code book, and
• when the second image blocks in which the matching scores are equal to or less than the predetermined threshold value are present in the matching of the second image blocks with the code blocks, the image blocks whose gradation values are 0 are written into the new image region around the coordinates of the second edge points corresponding to a defective place in accordance with the second identification codes.

A semiconductor device manufacturing method comprising executing a semiconductor device manufacturing process for a semiconductor substrate judged by a defect detection method for a pattern formed on the semiconductor substrate that the pattern has no defect, the defect detection method including:

• detecting a first edge and the directions of the first edge from a code book preparation image having the first edge;
• cutting, in preset sizes, first regions out of the code book preparation image to generate a plurality of first image blocks, each of the first regions surrounding and including an edge point of the detected first edge;
• executing quantization processing regarding the first image blocks as multidimensional vectors to form code blocks for each of the directions of the first edge;
• allocating identification codes to the code blocks to prepare a code book;
• acquiring an image of the pattern;
• detecting a second edge which is the edge of the pattern and the directions of the second edge from the image of the pattern;
• cutting, in preset sizes, second regions out of the image of the pattern to generate a plurality of second image blocks, each of the second regions surrounding and including an edge point of the detected second edge;
• selecting, from the code book, code blocks corresponding to the directions of the second edge to match these code blocks with the second image blocks, and defining the code blocks which have obtained matching scores exceeding a predetermined threshold value as code blocks similar to the second image blocks;
• and
• taking, from the code book, the similar code blocks to write these code blocks into a new image region around the coordinates of the second edge points and along the directions of the second edge,
• wherein when the second image blocks in which the matching scores are equal to or less than the predetermined threshold value are present in the matching of the second image blocks with the code blocks, the second image blocks are output as they are instead of the code blocks similar to the second image blocks, and the second image blocks are written into the new image region around the coordinates of the second edge points corresponding to a defective place.

A semiconductor device manufacturing method comprising executing a semiconductor device manufacturing process for a semiconductor substrate judged by a defect detection method for a pattern formed on the semiconductor substrate that the pattern has no defect, the defect detection method including:

• detecting a first edge and the directions of the first edge from a code book preparation image having the first edge;
• cutting, in preset sizes, first regions out of the code book preparation image to generate a plurality of first image blocks, each of the first regions surrounding and including an edge point of the first edge;
• executing quantization processing regarding the first image blocks as multidimensional vectors to form code blocks for each of the directions of the first edge;
• allocating identification codes to the code blocks to prepare a code book;
• acquiring an image of a pattern;
• detecting a second edge which is the edge of the pattern and the directions of the second edge from the image of the pattern;
• cutting, in preset sizes, second regions out of the image of the pattern to generate a plurality of second image blocks, each of the second regions surrounding and including an edge point of the detected second edge;
• selecting, from the code book, code blocks corresponding to the directions of the second edge to match these code blocks with the second image blocks, and defining the code blocks which have obtained matching scores exceeding a predetermined threshold value as code blocks having first identification codes and similar to the second image blocks;
• and
• taking, from the code book, the code blocks having the first identification codes to write these code blocks into a new image region around the coordinates of the second edge points and along the directions of the second edge,
• wherein second identification codes corresponding to the second image blocks in which the matching scores are equal to or less than the predetermined threshold value are preset in the code book, and
• when the second image blocks in which the matching scores are equal to or less than the predetermined threshold value are present in the matching of the second image blocks with the code blocks, the image blocks whose gradation values are 0 are written into the new image region around the coordinates of the second edge points corresponding to a defective place in accordance with the second identification codes.

A non-transitory computer readable medium containing a program and which causes a computer to execute a method of detecting a defect in an imaged object within a compression target image, the method comprising:

• detecting a first edge and the directions of the first edge from a code book preparation image having the first edge;
• cutting, in preset sizes, first regions out of the code book preparation image to generate a plurality of first image blocks, each of the first regions surrounding and including an edge point of the detected first edge;
• executing quantization processing regarding the first image blocks as multidimensional vectors to form code blocks for each of the directions of the first edge;
• allocating identification codes to the code blocks to prepare a code book;
• acquiring an image of the imaged object;
• detecting a second edge which is the edge of the imaged object and the directions of the second edge from the image of the imaged object;
• cutting, in preset sizes, second regions out of the image of the imaged object to generate a plurality of second image blocks, each of the second regions surrounding and including an edge point of the detected second edge;
• selecting, from the code book, code blocks corresponding to the directions of the second edge to match these code blocks with the second image blocks, and defining the code blocks which have obtained matching scores exceeding a predetermined threshold value as code blocks similar to the second image blocks;
• and
• taking, from the code book, the similar code blocks to write these code blocks into a new image region along the directions of the second edge and around the coordinates of the second edge points,
• wherein when the second image blocks in which the matching scores are equal to or less than the predetermined threshold value are present in the matching of the second image blocks with the code blocks, the second image blocks are output as they are instead of the code blocks similar to the second image blocks, and the second image blocks are written into the new image region around the coordinates of the second edge points corresponding to a defective place.

A non-transitory computer readable medium containing a program and which causes a computer to execute a method of detecting a defect in an imaged object within a compression target image, the method comprising:

• detecting a first edge and the directions of the first edge from a code book preparation image having the first edge;
• cutting, in preset sizes, first regions out of a code book preparation image to generate a plurality of first image blocks, each of the first regions surrounding and including an edge point of the first edge;
• executing quantization processing regarding the first image blocks as multidimensional vectors to form code blocks for each of the directions of the first edge;
• allocating identification codes to the code blocks to prepare a code book;
• acquiring an image of the imaged objected;
• detecting a second edge which is the edge of the imaged object and the directions of the second edge from the image of the imaged object;
• cutting, in preset sizes, second regions out of the image of the imaged object to generate a plurality of second image blocks, each of the second regions surrounding and including an edge point of the detected second edge;
• selecting, from the code book, code blocks corresponding to the directions of the second edge to match these code blocks with the second image blocks, and defining the code blocks which have obtained matching scores exceeding a predetermined threshold value as code blocks having first identification codes and similar to the second image blocks;
• and
• taking, from the code book, the code blocks having the first identification codes to write these code blocks into a new image region along the directions of the second edge and around the coordinates of the second edge points,
• wherein second identification codes corresponding to the second image blocks in which the matching scores are equal to or less than the predetermined threshold value are preset in the code book, and
• when the second image blocks in which the matching scores are equal to or less than the predetermined threshold value are present in the matching of the second image blocks with the code blocks, the image blocks whose gradation values are 0 are written into the new image region around the coordinates of the second edge points corresponding to a defective place in accordance with the second identification codes.