There is provided a mask blank including on a substrate: a thin film for forming a transfer pattern; a resist underlayer formed on the thin film and made of a resist underlayer composition containing a polymer having a unit structure having a lactone ring and a unit structure having a hydroxyl group; a resist film formed on the resist underlayer film and made of a resist composition; and a mixed film formed so as to be interposed between the resist underlayer film and the resist film and made of a mixed component containing the resist underlayer composition and the resist composition.

There is provided a mask blank including on a substrate: a thin film for forming a transfer pattern; a resist underlayer formed on the thin film and made of a resist underlayer composition containing a polymer having a unit structure having a lactone ring and a unit structure having a hydroxyl group; a resist film formed on the resist underlayer film and made of a resist composition; and a mixed film formed so as to be interposed between the resist underlayer film and the resist film and made of a mixed component containing the resist underlayer composition and the resist composition.

An extreme ultraviolet lithography (EUVL) method includes providing at least two phase-shifting mask areas having a same pattern. A resist layer is formed over a substrate. An optimum exposure dose of the resist layer is determined, and a latent image is formed on a same area of the resist layer by a multiple exposure process. The multiple exposure process includes a plurality of exposure processes and each of the plurality of exposure processes uses a different phase-shifting mask area from the at least two phase-shifting mask areas having a same pattern.

An extreme ultraviolet lithography (EUVL) method includes providing at least two phase-shifting mask areas having a same pattern. A resist layer is formed over a substrate. An optimum exposure dose of the resist layer is determined, and a latent image is formed on a same area of the resist layer by a multiple exposure process. The multiple exposure process includes a plurality of exposure processes and each of the plurality of exposure processes uses a different phase-shifting mask area from the at least two phase-shifting mask areas having a same pattern.

A method to determine a curvilinear pattern of a patterning device that includes obtaining (i) an initial image of the patterning device corresponding to a target pattern to be printed on a substrate subjected to a patterning process, and (ii) a process model configured to predict a pattern on the substrate from the initial image, generating, by a hardware computer system, an enhanced image from the initial image, generating, by the hardware computer system, a level set image using the enhanced image, and iteratively determining, by the hardware computer system, a curvilinear pattern for the patterning device based on the level set image, the process model, and a cost function, where the cost function (e.g., EPE) determines a difference between a predicted pattern and the target pattern, where the difference is iteratively reduced.

A method of making a semiconductor structure includes forming a plurality of gate electrodes over a plurality of active regions. The method further includes increasing a width of a portion of each of the plurality of gate electrodes between adjacent active regions of the plurality of active regions, wherein increasing the width of the portion of each of the plurality of gate electrodes comprises increasing the width of less than an entirety of each of the plurality of gate electrodes between the adjacent active regions. The method further includes removing a central region of each of the plurality of gate electrodes, wherein the central region has the increased width, and removing the central region comprises removing less than an entirety of the portion of each of the plurality of gate electrodes.

A method to determine a curvilinear pattern of a patterning device that includes obtaining (i) an initial image of the patterning device corresponding to a target pattern to be printed on a substrate subjected to a patterning process, and (ii) a process model configured to predict a pattern on the substrate from the initial image, generating, by a hardware computer system, an enhanced image from the initial image, generating, by the hardware computer system, a level set image using the enhanced image, and iteratively determining, by the hardware computer system, a curvilinear pattern for the patterning device based on the level set image, the process model, and a cost function, where the cost function (e.g., EPE) determines a difference between a predicted pattern and the target pattern, where the difference is iteratively reduced.

Provided is a mask blank for a phase shift mask having an etching stopper film, which satisfies the characteristics: higher durability to dry etching with fluorine-based gas that is used during the shift pattern formation as compared to that of a transparent substrate; high resistance to chemical cleaning; and high transmittance of exposure light. The mask blank includes a light shielding film on a main surface of a transparent substrate, having a structure where an etching stopper film, a phase shift film, and a light shielding film are laminated in this order on the transparent substrate; wherein the phase shift film includes a material containing silicon and oxygen; and the etching stopper film includes a material containing silicon, aluminum, and oxygen.

A phase shift mask includes a transparent substrate and light-shielding portions. The light-shielding portions include a first light-shielding portion, and over one side of it, a first compensating light-shielding portion, which has a first distance to the first light-shielding portion and a first width smaller than a resolution of an exposing machine utilized for an exposure process using the phase shift mask. The light-shielding portions can further include a second compensating light-shielding portion, having a second distance to another side of the first light-shielding portion and a second width smaller than the resolution of the exposing machine. The first distance and the second distance respectively allow the first and the second compensating light-shielding portion to reduce an exposure at a region corresponding to two sides of the first light-shielding portion during the exposure process. A method manufacturing an electronic component utilizing the phase shift mask is also provided.

A semiconductor structure includes first and second active regions extending in a first direction. The semiconductor structure further includes gate electrodes extending in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction. Each of the gate electrodes includes a first segment over at least one of the first active region or the second active region; a gate extension extending beyond each of the first active region and the second active region, wherein the gate extension has a uniform width in the first direction, and a conductive element, wherein a width of the conductive element in the first direction increases as a distance from the gate extension increases along an entirety of the conductive element in the second direction.