An exposure mask includes a pattern part exposed to light to form a pattern on a substrate, a surrounding part that surrounds a periphery of the pattern part, and correcting pattern parts disposed on the surrounding part. The correcting pattern parts are disposed in a line along an edge of the pattern part. A correcting method of an exposure apparatus includes correcting a light supply direction of a light supply unit based on a movement direction and a speed of the light supply unit, exposing light in the corrected light supply direction, forming exposure patterns by exposing light to correcting pattern parts, determining whether an error occurs in the light supply direction by using the exposure patterns, and correcting the light supply direction based on the determined error.

A cooling controller receives, from one or more sensors, wafer information associated with a wafer. The cooling controller determines a pattern mask area for the wafer based on the wafer information. The cooling controller determines a cooling time for the wafer based on the pattern mask area. The cooling controller causes a cooling plate to cool the wafer for a time duration equal to the cooling time. Determining the cooling time for a wafer based on a pattern mask area provides stable and consistent wafer temperatures for wafers having different mask and layout properties, which reduces mask overlay variation and increases wafer yield.

Disclosed is a method of determining a sampling scheme. The method comprises obtaining a parallel sensor description and identifying a plurality of candidate acquisition configurations based on said parallel sensor description and potential metrology locations. Each of said candidate acquisition configurations is evaluated in terms of an evaluation metric and a candidate acquisition configuration is selected based on said evaluation. The corresponding metrology locations for the selected acquisition configuration is added to the sampling scheme.

A method for correcting critical dimension (CD) measurements of a lithographic tool includes steps as follows. A correction pattern having a first sub-pattern parallel to a first direction and a second sub-pattern parallel to a second direction is provided on a lithographic mask; wherein the first sub-pattern and the second sub-pattern come cross with each other. A first After-Develop-Inspection critical dimension (ADI CD) of a developed pattern formed on a photo-sensitive layer and transferred from the correction pattern is measured using the lithographic tool along a first scanning direction. A second ADI CD of the developed pattern is measured using the lithographic tool along a second scanning direction. The first ADI CD is subtracted from the second ADI CD to obtain a measurement bias value. Exposure conditions and/or measuring parameters of the lithographic tool are adjusted according to the measurement bias value.

A method of tuning a prediction model relating to at least one particular configuration of a manufacturing device. The method includes obtaining a function including at least a first function of first prediction model parameters associated with the at least one particular configuration, and a second function of the first prediction model parameters and second prediction model parameters associated with configurations of the manufacturing device and/or related devices other than the at least one particular configuration. Values of the first prediction model parameters are obtained based on an optimization of the function, and a prediction model is tuned according to these values of the first prediction model parameters to obtain a tuned prediction mode.

Scanner aberration impact modeling in a semiconductor manufacturing process, which may facilitate co-optimization of multiple scanners. Scanner aberration impact modeling may include executing a calibrated model and controlling a scanner based on output from the model. The model is configured to receive patterning system aberration data. The model is calibrated with patterning system aberration calibration data and corresponding patterning process impact calibration data. New patterning process impact data may be determined, based on the model, for the received patterning system aberration data. The model includes a hyperdimensional function configured to correlate the received patterning system aberration data with the new patterning process impact data. The hyperdimensional function is configured to correlate the received patterning system aberration data with the new patterning process impact data in an approximation form, in lieu of a full simulation, without involving calculation of an aerial image or a representation thereof.

A mode control system and method for controlling an output mode of a broadband radiation source including a photonic crystal fiber (PCF). The mode control system includes at least one detection unit configured to measure one or more parameters of radiation emitted from the broadband radiation source to generate measurement data, and a processing unit configured to evaluate mode purity of the radiation emitted from the broadband radiation source, from the measurement data. Based on the evaluation, the mode control system is configured to generate a control signal for optimization of one or more pump coupling conditions of the broadband radiation source. The one or more pump coupling conditions relate to the coupling of a pump laser beam with respect to a fiber core of the photonic crystal fiber.

As feature sizes of semiconductor chips shrink there is a need for tighter overlay between layers in a lithography process. This means more advanced and larger overlay corrections may be necessary to ensure that die are properly manufactured into chips, especially in reconstituted substrates where the die can shift in the process of creating the substrate. Systems and methods for correcting these overlay errors in a lithographic process are provided. Additional rotation (theta) and projected image size (mag) corrections can be made to correct overlay errors present in reconstituted substrates by adjusting the stage and the reticle. Furthermore, these adjustments can be made allowing site-by-site or zone-by-zone corrections instead of a one-time adjustment of the reticle chuck as has been done in the past. These corrections can alleviate some of the issues associated with fan-out wafer-level packaging (FOWLP) and fan-out panel-level packaging (FOPLP).

A projection exposure apparatus for microlithography includes a projection lens which includes a plurality of optical elements for imaging mask structures onto a substrate during an exposure process. The projection exposure apparatus also includes at least one manipulator configured to change, as part of a manipulator actuation, the optical effects of at least one of the optical elements within the projection lens by changing a state variable of the optical element along a predetermined travel. The projection exposure apparatus further includes an algorithm generator configured to generate a travel generating optimization algorithm, adapted to at least one predetermined imaging parameter, on the basis of the at least one predetermined imaging parameter.

According to one embodiment, a pattern characteristic detection apparatus for a photomask includes a detection-data creating portion, a reference-data creating portion, an extracting portion, a first area-setting portion, a detecting portion and an collecting portion. The detection-data creating portion is configured to create detection data on the basis of an optical image of a pattern formed on a photomask. The reference-data creating portion is configured to create reference data of the pattern. The extracting portion is configured to extract a pattern for pattern characteristic detection and positional information of the extracted pattern. The first area-setting portion is configured to set an area where pattern characteristics are to be detected, and configured to extract a target pattern. The detecting portion is configured to detect pattern characteristics of the target pattern within the area. In addition, the collecting portion is configured to collect the detected pattern characteristics.