US 11,747,738 B2
Determining the combination of patterns to be applied to a substrate in a lithography step
Coen Adrianus Verschuren, Eindhoven (NL); and Erwin Paul Smakman, Eindhoven (NL)
Assigned to ASML NETHERLANDS B.V., Veldhoven (NL)
Appl. No. 16/314,805
Filed by ASML NETHERLANDS B.V., Veldhoven (NL)
PCT Filed Jun. 27, 2017, PCT No. PCT/EP2017/065800
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Jan. 2, 2019,
PCT Pub. No. WO2018/015114, PCT Pub. Date Jan. 25, 2018.
Claims priority of application No. 16180164 (EP), filed on Jul. 19, 2016.
Prior Publication US 2019/0339621 A1, Nov. 7, 2019
Int. Cl. G03F 7/20 (2006.01); G03F 7/00 (2006.01)
CPC G03F 7/70291 (2013.01) [G03F 7/70383 (2013.01); G03F 7/70433 (2013.01); G03F 7/70508 (2013.01)] 20 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A direct write exposure apparatus configured to process a plurality of substrates, the apparatus comprising:
a substrate holder configured to hold a substrate having a usable patterning area;
a patterning system configured to project different patterns onto the substrate; and
a processing system configured to at least:
select a first set of patterns from a collection of different patterns;
determine a first combination of one or more patterns, from the first set of patterns, that are to be applied on a first substrate of the plurality of substrates of a lot;
select a second set of patterns from the collection of different patterns;
determine a second combination of one or more patterns, different from the first combination of one or more patterns from the second set of patterns, that are to be applied on a second, subsequent, substrate of the plurality of substrates of the same lot; and
output information to the patterning system to enable a modulating device to modulate individual elements of the modulating device to produce the first combination of one or more patterns and the second combination of one or more patterns,
wherein the first and/or second combination has two or more patterns, wherein a first pattern of the two or more patterns has a different area than a second pattern of the two or more patterns, and wherein the first combination has a different spatial arrangement of its one or more patterns than the one or more patterns of the second combination.