Fin stress and pitch measurement using X-ray diffraction reciprocal space maps and optical scatterometry

A. C. Diebold; M. Medikonda; G. R. Muthinti; V. K. Kamineni; J. Fronheiser; M. Wormington; B. Peterson; J. Race

doi:10.1117/12.2023081

18 April 2013 Fin stress and pitch measurement using X-ray diffraction reciprocal space maps and optical scatterometry

A. C. Diebold, M. Medikonda, G. R. Muthinti, V. K. Kamineni, J. Fronheiser, M. Wormington, B. Peterson, J. Race

Proceedings Volume 8681, Metrology, Inspection, and Process Control for Microlithography XXVII; 86810I (2013) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2023081
Event: SPIE Advanced Lithography, 2013, San Jose, California, United States

Abstract

Although fin metrology presents many challenges, the single crystal nature of the fins also provides opportunities to use a combination of measurement methods to determine stress and pitch. While the diffraction of light during a scatterometry measurement is well known, X-ray diffraction from a field (array) of single crystal silicon fins can also provide important information. Since some fins have Si_1-xGe_x alloys at the top of the fin, determination of the presence of stress relaxation is another critical aspect of fin characterization. Theoretical studies predict that the bi-axially stressed crystal structure of pseudomorphic alloy films will be altered by the fin structure. For example, one expects it will be different along the length of the fin vs the width. Reciprocal space map (RSM) characterization can provide a window in the stress state of fins as well as measure pitch walking and other structural information. In this paper, we describe the fundamentals of how RSMs can be used to characterize the pitch of an array of fins as well as the stress state. We describe how this impacts the optical properties used in scatterometry measurement.

Citation Download Citation

A. C. Diebold, M. Medikonda, G. R. Muthinti, V. K. Kamineni, J. Fronheiser, M. Wormington, B. Peterson, and J. Race "Fin stress and pitch measurement using X-ray diffraction reciprocal space maps and optical scatterometry", Proc. SPIE 8681, Metrology, Inspection, and Process Control for Microlithography XXVII, 86810I (18 April 2013); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2023081

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