JP4625375B2 - Inspection device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a method and an apparatus for manufacturing a substrate having a fine circuit pattern such as a semiconductor device or a liquid crystal, and more particularly to a pattern inspection technique for a semiconductor device or a photomask, on an unfinished semiconductor wafer in the process of manufacturing a semiconductor device. The present invention relates to an inspection method and apparatus using a charged particle beam for inspecting a defect in an arbitrary portion.

  For example, a semiconductor device is manufactured by repeating a process of transferring a pattern formed with a photomask on a semiconductor wafer by lithography and etching. In the manufacturing process of a semiconductor device, lithography processing, etching processing, and other good and bad influences greatly on the yield of the semiconductor device, so it is important to detect abnormalities and defects early or in advance. In particular, it is important for improving the yield to measure the electrical resistance and capacitance of the contact holes and wirings of the partially completed semiconductor wafer in the initial stage of the manufacturing process. Conventional techniques for inspecting these electrical defects include the following.

  One is a nanoprobe device (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 8-160109) in which a sharpened tungsten (W) needle (tip radius of curvature: about 0.1 μm) is brought into direct contact with the measurement unit. This is to measure the electrical resistance. However, with the recent miniaturization of patterns, the size of the portion to be measured has become the same as or smaller than the W needle, making measurement very difficult. As a means corresponding to this, it is conceivable to reduce the radius of curvature of the tip of the W needle. However, in that case, the tip becomes very soft, and the tip is deformed simultaneously with the contact with the measurement unit, which is not a practical method. Another problem is contact resistance. When the needle and the measuring part are different materials, particularly when at least one of them is a semiconductor, a Schottky junction is formed, and an electric resistance depending on the voltage is generated at that part, so an accurate measurement cannot be performed.

  The other one uses a SEM (Scanning Electron Microscope). This is disclosed in JP-A-5-258703, JP-A-11-121561, and JP-A-6-326165.

  Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 5-258703 compares an inspection image with an image of an adjacent pattern, determines a portion having a different potential contrast (brightness) as a defect, and detects the defect. However, since there was no means for obtaining and displaying electric characteristics (electrical resistance and electric capacity), it was impossible to determine whether the part was fatal or non-fatal.

  In JP-A-11-121561, the degree of secondary electron emission is controlled by a control electrode above the wafer, the wafer surface is charged positively or negatively, and a normal portion, low resistance is detected from the potential contrast image at that time. A defective part and a high resistance defective part are discriminated.

  The control of the emission of secondary electrons by this control electrode is disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 59-155941. For example, when the control electrode is adjusted to be positively charged, the potential contrast image shows that the low-resistance defect part (for example, low resistance of several hundred Ω or less) is bright and the high-resistance defect part (electric resistance: ∞) The dark part and the normal part have a resistance larger than that of the low resistance defect part, so that the image is a bright part but slightly dark. Although it is possible to determine the magnitude of resistance from the brightness of this image, the absolute value cannot be calculated. Moreover, although the electrical resistance could be calculated by measuring the leakage current, it took time for the inspection and could not be measured at high speed.

  Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 6-326165 discloses that an induced current is generated between a substrate and the ground by charging caused by irradiating an electron beam onto a wiring on the substrate, and the change with time is measured. Thereby, the magnitude of the electric capacity can be measured, but the absolute value cannot be measured.

  Further, in such an inspection using the SEM potential contrast image, there is a case where the difference in potential contrast between the normal part and the defective part is small depending on the structure of the wafer, and it may be difficult to detect the defect. For example, when the circuit has a pn junction, this portion has a high resistance if the charging due to the electron beam irradiation is a reverse bias with respect to the pn junction. Therefore, it was difficult to distinguish from a high-resistance conduction failure defect.

JP-A-8-160109 JP-A-5-258703 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-121561 JP-A-6-326165 JP 59-155941 A

  As described above, in the nanoprobe device, there is a problem that the measurement target may be smaller than the tip of the needle, and there is a problem of contact resistance between the needle and the sample, and therefore, an accurate electric resistance cannot be estimated depending on the sample. . In addition, the entire wafer inspection requires a tremendous amount of time and is virtually impossible. In an apparatus using an SEM, it was possible to determine the magnitude of electric resistance and electric capacity from a potential contrast image, but it was impossible to estimate an absolute value. In addition, although the resistance value can be calculated by measuring the leakage current, it takes a long time for the inspection and the high-speed inspection is impossible, and the entire surface inspection of the wafer requires a very long time. Furthermore, depending on the structure of the wafer (for example, when a pn junction is processed), it is difficult to distinguish between a normal part and a defective part from a potential contrast image.

  The purpose of the present invention is to automatically calculate the values of electric resistance and electric capacity at high speed only by acquiring a potential contrast image, or to quickly determine the distribution and tendency of electric resistance and electric capacity on the surface of a substrate such as a wafer. An object is to provide a required inspection method and inspection apparatus. It is another object of the present invention to provide appropriate inspection conditions corresponding to the wafer structure.

  In order to solve the above problem, the charged particle beam image (potential contrast image) obtained when the sample is irradiated with the charged particle beam depends on the electrical resistance between the irradiation region and the ground, the electric capacity, and the irradiation time. I found out that I should use.

  The mechanism will be described with reference to FIG. As an irradiation particle, electrons are taken as an example, and the incident energy EPE is set to about 500 eV where the emission efficiency σ of the sum of secondary electrons and backscattered electrons is larger than 1. Usually, those having an energy of 50 eV or less are secondary electrons, and those having an energy of 50 eV or more are often backscattered electrons. When the insulator 60 is irradiated with an electron beam, the irradiated region 61 is positively charged (in this example, the case where it is charged to 4 V is shown as an example), and a potential barrier of Us [eV] is formed on the surface. .

Therefore, as shown in the energy ESE distribution of the sum NSE of secondary electrons and backscattered electrons in FIG. 3, secondary electrons and backscattered electrons having lower energy are not emitted, and secondary electrons and backscattered electrons are not emitted. Even if released, it is pulled back to the insulator side. The number of electrons is pulled back and N _1, the number of emitted electrons as N _2, if the proportion of the secondary electrons and backscattered electrons emitted without pulled back _{σ SE, σ SE = N 2} / (N 1 + N 2) The effective emission efficiency σ _eff is expressed as σ _eff = σ _SE × σ. The charging voltage increases with irradiation of the electron beam, and the ratio of secondary electrons and backscattered electrons that are pulled back increases. Therefore, σ _eff gradually decreases, and finally becomes stable at a charging voltage at which σ _eff becomes 1.

On the other hand, when the electric resistance is sufficiently small with a conductor, charging can be relaxed because electrons can be supplied, and σ and σ _eff are almost equal. Therefore, the insulator appears dark and the conductor appears bright.

An example where it has been found that the electrical resistance can be measured using this fact will be described. The sample used is, for example, a contact hole 401 in which a tungsten (W) plug 400 (diameter: 0.25 μm) is embedded in a wafer in which a SiO ₂ film 402 is formed on silicon (Si) 407 as shown in FIG. It has been processed. Each plug has an electric resistance due to the residual film 403 of SiO ₂ (402) at the bottom of the plug, where there is a residual film, a high-resistance open defect 404, and those where the plugs are connected have a low resistance. This is a short defect 405.

FIG. 5 is assumed as an equivalent circuit including the electric resistance R and electric capacity C of the electron transport path. The electric capacity C was set to 10 ^-17 F (Farad) due to the shape of the plug. The electron beam irradiation conditions were assumed as shown in FIG. The initial energy of the electron beam 19 emitted from the electron gun 10 is 10 keV, the retarding electrode 63 is grounded, and a retarding voltage of −9.5 kV is applied to the substrate 9 (wafer) to be inspected. Therefore, the incident energy EPE of the electron beam on the wafer is 500 eV.

  As a result, the inventors have found that the change over time of the sum NSE of the number of secondary electrons and backscattered electrons detected is as shown in FIG. The vertical axis represents the detected NSE divided by the electron beam current IP [A], and the horizontal axis represents the product of the electron beam irradiation time Te (or the time that the scanning electron beam crosses the plug) and IP. Furthermore, it has been found that the relationship between NSE and electrical resistance R is as shown in FIG. 7 when sufficient time has elapsed and NSE is stable. However, the vertical axis represents NSE divided by IP, and the horizontal axis represents the product of R and IP. In order to calculate the electrical resistance R, NSE needs to be changed.

For these reasons, the present inventors have found for the first time that the condition of the current IP of the electron beam for calculating the electrical resistance R from this graph is 0 <log (R · IP) <3. . The graph of FIG. 7 depends on the substance and the sample shape, but the change is slight. Also, or by changing the retarding voltage V _R, by charging around plugs perform electron beam irradiation before the test (voltage V _B), it is possible to change the NSE as shown in Figure 8, high sensitivity Inspection conditions exist. In order to confirm this calculation prediction, each plug was irradiated with an electron beam, and the number of secondary electrons and backscattered electrons from each plug was detected.

  Thereafter, the electrical resistance of each plug was measured with a nanoprober. Since the uppermost layer of the plug is W, the contact resistance with the W needle of the nanoprober can be made sufficiently small. The electric resistance R dependence of NSE obtained as a result is shown in FIG. However, the vertical axis is the quotient of NSE and beam current IP, and the horizontal axis is the product of electrical resistance R and beam current IP. In the figure, the solid line is the calculated value, and the ◯ mark is the experimental value. Thus, it was found that the calculated value and the experimental value agree. That is, it was found that the resistance value can be calculated from the potential contrast image by calculating the resistance dependence of the sum of the number of secondary electrons and backscattered electrons.

Next, since it has been found that the capacitance can be measured using this semiconductor wafer, this will be described. The beam current IP was 100 nA. The plug used was one having a resistance of 10 ¹² Ω (ohms) or more confirmed by the nanoprobe method. The change in the detected NSE obtained by changing the irradiation time of the electron beam (or the time when the electron beam crosses the plug) is compared with the calculation result, and the electric capacity is estimated based on the comparison result. As shown in FIG. 11, the experimental results and the calculation results are shown in FIG. 11. The change in NSE with time when the electric capacity was 10 ^-17 F (Farad) in the calculation results reproduced the experimental results almost faithfully. This value is almost equal to the value calculated from the plug shape and the like.

Further, a method for providing appropriate inspection conditions corresponding to the wafer structure will be described. FIG. 8 shows that NSE is changed by changing the retarding voltage V _R. At this time, the charging voltage US (V) in the electron beam irradiation region also changes as shown in FIG. Here, this phenomenon was used for inspection. For example, when a circuit pattern having a pn junction is irradiated with an electron beam and the pn junction is charged in a reverse bias state, the junction has a high resistance, so that it is difficult to discriminate it from a defective conduction. However, the resistance value can be decreased by increasing the charging voltage by changing the retarding voltage and causing breakdown in the pn junction. If the inspection is performed in this state, the difference in resistance value between the normal portion and the defective portion is increased, and a difference is generated between these potential contrast images, thereby enabling the inspection.

  When the pn junction itself has a defect and the resistance value in the reverse bias direction is small, the retarding voltage is adjusted so that only the defective pn junction is broken down. At this time, the difference between the resistance values of the normal portion and the defective portion is increased, and a difference is generated between these potential contrast images, thereby enabling inspection. Although the retarding voltage is used here, the same effect can be obtained by changing other electron irradiation conditions such as electron beam current, electron beam incident energy, irradiation time and number of irradiations. Can do.

  It has been found that the electric resistance and electric capacity can be estimated by the above-described method, and that an appropriate defect detection condition corresponding to the wafer structure can be provided. Although an electron beam is used here, the same can be applied to other charged particle beams such as positive ions and negative ions.

  In an actual inspection apparatus, the determination of the electric resistance and the electric capacity as described above is automatically performed as follows.

  First, the semiconductor wafer is scanned with the charged particle beam once or several times. At this time, each scanning time may be changed. Then, the generated secondary electrons and backscattered electrons are taken into the detector, a signal proportional to the number of taken electrons is generated, and an inspection image corresponding to each scan is formed based on the signal.

  Next, with a computer such as a workstation or personal computer, the current value of the charged particle beam, the irradiation energy, the scanning time and the number of scans, the electric field on the surface of the semiconductor wafer, the emission efficiency of secondary electrons and backscattered electrons, etc. Considering this, an image is formed using the electric resistance and electric capacity as parameters. Then, the electrical resistance and capacitance are determined so that the image matches the inspection image.

  In this inspection, it is possible to change the measurement range of the electric resistance by changing the current value of the charged particle beam. Furthermore, as a process before image acquisition, the measurement sensitivity can be changed by irradiating a predetermined amount of charged particle beams in advance or applying a retarding voltage to the semiconductor wafer. In addition, appropriate inspection conditions corresponding to the wafer structure can be provided.

  As described above, according to the inspection method and apparatus of the present invention, in the inspection of a partially completed substrate such as a semiconductor device having a circuit pattern, etc. It could be realized to measure resistance and capacitance. By applying the present invention to the substrate manufacturing process, it is possible to estimate the electrical resistance and capacitance, so that it is possible to take measures against the abnormality quickly in the substrate manufacturing process. As a result, the defect rate of semiconductor devices and other substrates can be reduced. It can be reduced and productivity can be increased.

  In addition, since the occurrence of abnormality can be quickly detected by the above measurement, it is possible to prevent the occurrence of a large number of defects, and as a result, the occurrence of defects itself can be reduced. Reliability can be increased, development efficiency of new products and the like can be improved, and manufacturing costs can be reduced.

Example 1
The configuration of an inspection apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention is shown in FIG. The inspection apparatus 1 includes an inspection chamber 2 in which the chamber is evacuated, and a preliminary chamber (not shown in the present embodiment) for transporting the substrate 9 to be inspected into the inspection chamber 2. It is configured so that it can be evacuated independently of the inspection chamber 2. The inspection apparatus 1 includes a control unit 6 and an image processing unit 5 in addition to the inspection room 2 and the spare room. The inspection chamber 2 is roughly divided into an electron optical system 3, a detection unit 7, a sample chamber 8, and an optical microscope unit 4.

  The electron optical system 3 includes an electron gun 10, an electron beam extraction electrode 11, a condenser lens 12, a blanking deflector 13, a scanning deflector 15, an aperture 14, an objective lens 16, a reflector 17, and an E × B deflector 18. It is configured. In the detection unit 7, the detector 20 is disposed above the objective lens 16 in the examination room 2. The output signal of the detector 20 is amplified by a preamplifier 21 installed outside the examination room 2 and converted into digital data by an AD converter 22. The sample chamber 8 includes a sample stage 30, an X stage 31, a Y stage 32, a rotary stage 33, a position monitor length measuring device 34, and a substrate height measuring device 35 to be inspected.

  The optical microscope unit 4 is installed in the vicinity of the electron optical system 3 in the examination room 2 and at a position that does not affect each other, and the distance between the electron optical system 3 and the optical microscope unit 4 Is known. Then, the X stage 31 or the Y stage 32 reciprocates a known distance between the electron optical system 3 and the optical microscope unit 4. The optical microscope unit 4 includes a light source 40, an optical lens 41, and a CCD camera 42. The image processing unit 5 includes an image storage unit 46 and a computer 48. The captured electron beam image or optical image, and measured electrical resistance and capacitance are displayed on the monitor 50.

  Operation commands and operation conditions of each part of the apparatus are input / output from the control unit 6. In the control unit 6, conditions such as an acceleration voltage at the time of generating an electron beam, an electron beam deflection width, a deflection speed, a signal capturing timing of a detection device, a sample stage moving speed, etc. are arbitrarily or selectively set according to the purpose. It is entered so that it can. The control unit 6 uses the correction control circuit 43 to monitor the position and height deviation from the signals of the position monitor length measuring device 34 and the inspected substrate height measuring device 35, and generates a correction signal from the result. Then, a correction signal is sent to the objective lens power supply 45 and the scanning deflector 44 so that the electron beam is always applied to the correct position. In order to acquire an image of the substrate 9 to be inspected, the substrate 9 to be inspected is irradiated with a finely focused electron beam 19 to generate secondary electrons and backscattered electrons 51, which are scanned and staged by the electron beam 19. By detecting in synchronism with the movement of 31 and 32, an image of the surface of the substrate 9 to be inspected is obtained.

  The electron gun 10 uses a diffusion replenishment type thermal field emission electron source. By using this electron gun 10, a stable electron beam current can be ensured as compared with a conventional tungsten (W) filament electron source or a cold field emission electron source. A contrast image is obtained. The electron beam 19 is extracted from the electron gun 10 by applying a voltage between the electron gun 10 and the extraction electrode 11. The electron beam 19 is accelerated by applying a high negative potential to the electron gun 10.

  Thereby, the electron beam 19 travels in the direction of the sample stage 30 with energy corresponding to the potential, is converged by the condenser lens 12, and is further narrowed down by the objective lens 16, and the XY stage 31 on the sample stage 30. The substrate 9 to be inspected (a substrate having a fine circuit pattern such as a semiconductor wafer, a chip or a liquid crystal, a mask) mounted on the substrate 32 is irradiated.

  The blanking deflector 13 is connected to a signal generator 44 for generating a scanning signal and a blanking signal, and the condenser lens 12 and the objective lens 16 are connected to a lens power source 45, respectively. A negative voltage (retarding voltage) can be applied to the substrate 9 to be inspected by a high voltage power source 36. By adjusting the voltage of the high voltage power source 36, the primary electron beam is decelerated, and the electron beam irradiation energy to the substrate 9 to be inspected can be adjusted to an optimum value without changing the potential of the electron gun 10.

  Secondary electrons and backscattered electrons 51 generated by irradiating the inspection target substrate 9 with the electron beam 19 are accelerated by a negative voltage applied to the substrate 9. An E × B deflector 18 is disposed above the substrate 9 to be inspected, and secondary electrons and backscattered electrons 51 accelerated thereby are deflected in a predetermined direction. The amount of deflection can be adjusted by the voltage applied to the E × B deflector 18 and the strength of the magnetic field. The electromagnetic field can be varied in conjunction with a negative voltage applied to the sample. The secondary electrons and backscattered electrons 51 deflected by the E × B deflector 18 collide with the reflector 17 under predetermined conditions. When the accelerated secondary electrons and backscattered electrons 51 collide with the reflector 17, second secondary electrons and backscattered electrons 52 are generated from the reflector 17.

The detector 7 includes a detector 20 in the examination room 2 that has been evacuated, a preamplifier 21 outside the examination room 2, an AD converter 22, a light conversion means 23, a transmission means 24, an electrical conversion means 25, a high-voltage power supply 26, A preamplifier driving power source 27, an AD converter driving power source 28, and a reverse bias power source 29 are included. As already described, in the detection unit 7, the detector 20 is disposed above the objective lens 16 in the examination room 2. The detector 20, the preamplifier 21, the AD converter 22, the optical converter 23, the preamplifier drive power supply 27, and the AD converter drive power supply 28 are floated to a positive potential by the high voltage power supply 26.
Second secondary electrons and backscattered electrons 52 generated by colliding with the reflecting plate 17 are guided to the detector 20 by this attractive electric field.

  The detector 20 is a second secondary electron generated when the secondary electrons and backscattered electrons 51 generated while the electron beam 19 is irradiated on the substrate 9 to be inspected are then accelerated and collide with the reflector 17. The backscattered electrons 52 are detected in conjunction with the scanning timing of the electron beam 19. The output signal of the detector 20 is amplified by a preamplifier 21 installed outside the examination room 2 and converted into digital data by an AD converter 22. The AD converter 22 is configured to immediately convert the analog signal detected by the detector 20 into a digital signal after being amplified by the preamplifier 21 and transmit the digital signal to the image processing unit 5. Since the detected analog signal is digitized immediately after detection and transmitted, a high-speed signal with a high S / N ratio can be obtained.

  As the detector 20 here, for example, a semiconductor detector may be used.

  A substrate 9 to be inspected is mounted on the XY stages 31 and 32, and a method of scanning the electron beam 19 two-dimensionally with the XY stages 31 and 32 stationary when performing inspection, and an X when performing inspection. A method of scanning the electron beam 19 in a straight line in the X direction by continuously moving the Y stages 31 and 32 at a constant speed in the Y direction can be selected. When inspecting a specific relatively small area, the former stage is inspected with the stationary stage, and when inspecting a relatively large area, the stage is continuously moved at a constant speed and inspected. It is. When it is necessary to blank the electron beam 19, it can be controlled so that the electron beam 19 is deflected by the blanking deflector 13 so that the electron beam does not pass through the diaphragm 14.

  As the position monitor length measuring device 34, a length measuring device based on laser interference is used in this embodiment. The positions of the X stage 31 and the Y stage 32 can be monitored in real time and transferred to the control unit 6. Similarly, data such as the number of rotations of the motors of the X stage 31, the Y stage 32, and the rotary stage 33 is also transferred from each driver to the control unit 6, and the control unit 6 is configured to transmit these data. Thus, the region and position where the electron beam 19 is irradiated can be accurately grasped, and the displacement of the irradiation position of the electron beam 19 is corrected by the correction control circuit 43 in real time as necessary. It has become. In addition, the region irradiated with the electron beam can be stored for each substrate to be inspected.

  The optical height measuring device 35 uses an optical measuring device that is a measuring method other than an electron beam, such as a laser interference measuring device or a reflected light measuring device that measures changes at the position of reflected light. The height of the substrate 9 to be inspected mounted on the Y stage 31 and 32 is measured in real time. In the present embodiment, elongated white light that has passed through the slit is irradiated onto the inspected substrate 9 through a transparent window, the position of the reflected light is detected by a position detection monitor, and the amount of change in height is calculated from the change in position. The method to be used was used. Based on the measurement data of the optical height measuring device 35, the focal length of the objective lens 16 for narrowing the electron beam 19 is dynamically corrected, so that the electron beam 19 always focused on the non-inspection region can be irradiated. It is like that. Further, the warpage and height distortion of the substrate 9 to be inspected can be measured in advance before the electron beam irradiation, and the correction condition for each inspection region of the objective lens 16 can be set based on the data. It is.

  The image processing unit 5 includes an image storage unit 46, a computer 48, and a monitor 50. The image signal of the inspected substrate 9 detected by the detector 20 is amplified by the preamplifier 21, digitized by the AD converter 22, converted into an optical signal by the optical converter 23, and transmitted by the optical fiber 24. The electric signal is converted again into an electric signal by the electric converter 25 and then stored in the image storage unit 46.

  The irradiation conditions of the electron beam in image formation and various detection conditions of the detection system are set in advance when setting the inspection conditions, and are filed and registered in the database. The computer 48 reads the image signal input to the image storage unit 46, calculates the correspondence between the already described image signal level and the surface charging voltage based on the electron beam irradiation conditions, and the electrical resistance corresponding to the image signal level. And calculate the capacitance. The monitor 50 displays either the electric resistance and electric capacity obtained by the computer 48, the image stored in the image storage unit 46, or these simultaneously.

  Next, as an inspected substrate 9 by the inspection apparatus 1, for example, an operation when the electric resistance and the electric capacity are measured for a partially completed 300 mmφ semiconductor wafer shown in FIG. 12 (the cross-sectional structure is the same as in FIG. 4). explain. First, although not shown in FIG. 1, the semiconductor wafer is loaded into the sample exchange chamber by the transfer means for the substrate to be inspected. Therefore, the semiconductor wafer 9 to be inspected is mounted on the sample holder, held and fixed, evacuated, and transferred to the inspection chamber 2 for inspection when the sample exchange chamber reaches a certain degree of vacuum. In the inspection chamber 2, the sample holder is placed on the sample stage 30, the XY stages 31 and 32, and the rotary stage 33, and is held and fixed.

  The set semiconductor wafer 9 to be inspected is arranged at predetermined first coordinates under the optical microscope section 4 by moving the XY stages 31 and 32 in the X and Y directions based on predetermined inspection conditions registered in advance. Then, the optical microscope image of the circuit pattern formed on the semiconductor wafer 9 to be inspected is observed by the monitor 50 and compared with the equivalent circuit pattern image at the same position stored in advance for correcting the position rotation, and the first coordinates The position correction value is calculated. Next, move to a second coordinate where a circuit pattern equivalent to the first coordinate exists at a certain distance from the first coordinate, and similarly, an optical microscope image is observed and a circuit pattern image stored for position rotation correction And the position correction value of the second coordinate and the rotational deviation amount with respect to the first coordinate are calculated. The rotation stage 33 rotates by the calculated rotation deviation amount, and the rotation amount is corrected.

  In this embodiment, the amount of rotational deviation is corrected by the rotation of the rotary stage 33. However, it can also be corrected by a method of correcting the scanning deflection position of the electron beam based on the calculated amount of rotational deviation without the rotary stage 33. . In this optical microscope image observation, a circuit pattern that can be observed not only with an optical microscope image but also with an electron beam image is selected. Also, for future position correction, the first coordinate, the amount of displacement of the first circuit pattern by optical microscope image observation, the second coordinate, the amount of displacement of the second circuit pattern by optical microscope image observation It is stored and transferred to the control unit 6.

  Further, an image obtained by an optical microscope is used to observe a circuit pattern formed on the semiconductor wafer 9 to be inspected, the position of the circuit pattern on the semiconductor wafer 9 to be inspected, the distance between the chips, or the memory cell. The repetitive pitch of such a repetitive pattern is measured in advance, and the measured value is input to the control unit 6. Further, the chip to be inspected on the semiconductor wafer 9 to be inspected and the area to be inspected in the chip are set from the image of the optical microscope and input to the control unit 6 in the same manner as described above. The image of the optical microscope can be observed with a relatively low magnification, and when the surface of the semiconductor wafer 9 to be inspected is covered with, for example, a silicon oxide film, it can be observed through the ground. Therefore, the chip arrangement and the layout of the circuit pattern in the chip can be easily observed, and the inspection area can be easily set.

As described above, when the predetermined correction work and the preparation work such as the inspection area setting by the optical microscope unit 4 are completed, the semiconductor wafer 9 to be inspected is moved under the electron optical system 3 by the movement of the X stage 31 and the Y stage 32. Moved to. When the semiconductor wafer 9 to be inspected is placed under the electron optical system 3, the correction work performed by the optical microscope unit 4 and the work similar to the setting of the inspection area are performed using the electron beam image. Acquisition of the electron beam image at this time is performed by the following method.
Based on the coordinate values stored and corrected in the alignment by the optical microscope image, the electron beam 19 is scanned two-dimensionally in the XY direction by the scanning deflector 44 in the same circuit pattern as observed by the optical microscope unit 4. Is irradiated. By this two-dimensional scanning of the electron beam, secondary electrons and backscattered electrons 51 generated from the observed site are detected by the above-described configuration and operation of each part for electron detection, whereby an electron beam image is acquired. The Simple inspection position confirmation, alignment, and position adjustment have already been performed using an optical microscope image, and rotation correction has also been performed in advance, so the resolution and resolution are higher than optical images, and high-precision alignment and position correction are possible. Rotation correction can be performed.

  When the semiconductor wafer 9 to be inspected is irradiated with the electron beam 19, the portion is charged. This charge sometimes distorts the image and thus has a negative effect on the inspection. In order to avoid the influence of charging during the inspection, the circuit pattern for irradiating the electron beam 19 is selected in advance in the pre-inspection preparatory work such as position rotation correction or inspection area setting. Alternatively, an equivalent circuit pattern in a chip other than the chip to be inspected can be automatically selected from the control unit 6. Thereby, the influence which irradiated the electron beam 19 by the said pre-inspection preparatory work at the time of an inspection does not reach an inspection image.

Next, electric resistance and electric capacitance are measured for an arbitrary region on the wafer to be inspected. Images were acquired with an incident energy of 500 eV and an electron beam current of 100 nA. FIG. 13 shows signals of secondary electrons and backscattered electrons between AB of the plug 400 arranged in a straight line as shown in FIG. 12 in the image obtained at that time. Each graph in this figure is obtained by changing the time Te when the beam is irradiated to the plug from 0.15 to 40 μs. Although some peaks decreased with the electron irradiation time Te, a stable signal was obtained at a sufficiently large Te (2.5 μs or more in this case).
In such a state, when the electrical resistance was obtained from the calculation result as described in FIG. 7, values in the range of 10 ⁷ to 10 ¹⁰ Ω (ohms) as shown in FIG. 14 (right vertical axis) were obtained. Next, the capacitance was determined from the change in electron irradiation time Te at the peak of the arrow shown in FIG. In the relationship between the peak intensity and Te shown in FIG. 15, the electric capacity was obtained by calculation, and a value of 10 ⁻¹⁷ F (farad) was obtained. Thereafter, by repeating this operation, measurement of electric resistance and electric capacitance is performed for all selected inspection regions.

  Further, in this apparatus, the potential formed on the front face of the plug is changed by changing the retarding voltage or by preliminarily charging the insulating part to some extent by irradiating electrons before image acquisition, as shown in FIGS. It is possible to change the sensitivity of the resistance measurement. According to FIG. 8, the measurement range can be narrowed by lowering the retarding voltage. According to FIG. 9, the measurement range can be narrowed by charging the insulating portion. Although an electron beam is used here as the charged particle beam, the same measurement can be performed by using an ion beam instead.

(Example 2)
In the second embodiment, an electron beam image is acquired using the inspection apparatus described in the first embodiment, the image is stored in the image storage section 46, and images of adjacent equivalent circuit patterns are obtained by a computer 48. In comparison, when the difference signal level is larger than a predetermined value, a certain portion of the electron beam image is recognized as a defect portion, and the defect position is displayed.

  Since the detailed description of the apparatus is described in the first embodiment, it will be omitted. The electrical resistance and capacitance are calculated by the computer 48 from the image signal level at this defect position to determine how much the resistance or capacitance of the defective portion differs from that of the normal portion. There are three methods for acquiring the defect image.

  The first method is a method in which an inspection for comparing the images is performed, the image is moved again to the defect occurrence coordinate after completion, an image is acquired under the same conditions as the inspection, and the image is calculated from the image.

  The second method, like the first method, moves to the defect occurrence coordinates again after the inspection is performed, acquires an image under an electron beam condition different from the inspection, and the image signal level corresponds to this image acquisition condition. This is a method of calculating the electrical resistance and capacitance of the part. In this second method, the image acquisition conditions different from the inspection include changing the beam current, the scanning speed, the number of irradiations, etc. Even if the image is acquired and calculated by one of the methods, there are a plurality of conditions. Images may be acquired and calculated.

  The third method is a method in which an image determined to be defective during inspection is automatically stored, and an image signal of the defective portion is read and calculated. In this case, it is not necessary to re-acquire the image by moving to the defective portion again after the inspection is completed.

In this way, an example of an inspection method for performing an inspection in the second embodiment and displaying an electrical failure level of a defective portion will be described. FIG. 16 shows, as an example, a circuit pattern (a) including a defective portion after inspection of a 300 mmφ semiconductor wafer and an equivalent circuit pattern (b) adjacent thereto. When an arbitrary defect is designated from the screen, an image of the defective part is displayed as shown in FIG. 17, and at the same time, the electric resistance R and electric capacity C of the defective part ((1) 10 ¹⁰ Ω, 10 in the figure) ^-16 F defect and (2) 10 ⁸ Ω, 10 ^-17 F defect) are displayed. As a reference, the electric resistance (10 ⁷ Ω) and electric capacity (10 ⁻¹⁷ F) of the normal part can be displayed in the same manner.

  Further, the type of each defective portion can be determined from the values of each electric resistance R and electric capacitance C. For example, the defect portion as in (1) is completely non-conductive due to the remaining film due to the increase in resistance R and the increase in capacitance C compared to the reference, and the defect portion as in (2) is Since the resistance R increases despite the capacitance C not changing, it can be determined that the plug material embedded in the contact hole is defective.

(Example 3)
The third embodiment is obtained from the image brightness by using the inspection apparatus described in the first embodiment and simultaneously comparing the image brightness at a circuit pattern position with a predetermined brightness while acquiring an electron beam image. An inspection method and an inspection apparatus for detecting a circuit pattern having a resistance different from a predetermined electric resistance as a defect.

  First, in FIG. 18, a wafer 181 to be inspected is loaded into the inspection apparatus, and pre-registered electron beam irradiation conditions and signal detection conditions are set. A standard sample 182 whose resistance under a predetermined electron beam condition is known in advance is attached to the sample stage 180. Before starting the inspection, an image of this standard sample is acquired, and the correspondence between the resistance and capacitance and the electron beam image signal level is calibrated.

  Further, a predetermined allowable level range is determined and set based on the design value of the resistance or capacitance of the wafer 181 to be inspected. Thereafter, an electron beam image is acquired for an arbitrary area of the wafer 181 to be inspected, and the image brightness signal acquired at the time of inspection is compared with a set allowable level, and a circuit pattern deviating from the allowable level is recognized as a defect. And detect.

Example 4
The fourth embodiment uses the apparatus described in the first embodiment, calibrates the correspondence between the electron beam image brightness, the electric resistance, and the capacity by the method described in the third embodiment, and sets an arbitrary region. An inspection method and an inspection apparatus for acquiring an electron beam image and changing a color according to a resistance level or displaying the image with contour lines. FIG. 19 shows an example of the inspection result. By changing the color according to the resistance level or displaying contour lines, the distribution of the absolute resistance level can be obtained.

(Example 5)
In the fifth embodiment, the apparatus described in the first embodiment is used to irradiate a predetermined circuit pattern portion under the condition that the electron beam is not scanned, and the electrical resistance and capacitance are measured by the change in the signal level of the circuit pattern. An example is shown. Here, the electrical resistance and the capacitance are estimated by measuring the change over time of the sum NSE of the number of secondary electrons and backscattered electrons emitted and detected from any location of the substrate 9 to be inspected. For this purpose, first, a potential contrast image is obtained by scanning the electron beam 19 narrowed down as a pre-process in the vicinity of the location.

After that, a deflection condition for irradiating an electron beam to an arbitrary place is set from the image, and the time variation of the sum NSE of the number of secondary electrons and backscattered electrons detected by irradiating the electron beam under the condition is changed. obtain. The result obtained at that time is shown in FIG. This value is in good agreement with the calculation results assuming an electric resistance of 10 ⁸ Ω and an electric capacity of 10 ^-17 F. Thus, the electric resistance and electric capacity could be determined.

(Example 6)
The sixth embodiment is a method and apparatus for inspecting the remaining film 214 of the resist 213 on the semiconductor wafer 212, for example, using the apparatus described in the first embodiment. The correspondence between the electron beam image brightness and the electrical resistance and capacitance is calibrated by the method described in the third embodiment, an electron beam image is acquired for an arbitrary set region, and the remaining film is replaced with the resistance level and displayed. An inspection method and an inspection apparatus. FIG. 21 shows an inspection image 210 and a predicted wafer cross-sectional structure 211 between A and B of the inspection image 210 as an example of the inspection result. It is possible to change the color or display contour lines according to the degree of the remaining film 214.

(Example 7)
The seventh embodiment is a method and apparatus for inspecting the entire surface of a 300 mmφ semiconductor wafer on which a circuit is formed using the apparatus described in the first embodiment. FIG. 22 shows the result of the entire wafer inspection in several hours by the method described in the second embodiment. Here, a portion having a resistance of 10 ⁸ Ω or more is displayed as the defect 220.

(Example 8)
An example in which an appropriate inspection condition is provided in the case of a defect inspection of a circuit pattern when the electrical resistance value of the pattern has voltage dependency (for example, in the case of having a pn junction or a Schottky junction) will be described.

  FIG. 25 is a cross-sectional view showing an example of a contact hole having a pn junction (501 is p-type Si, 502 is n-type Si). Such a contact hole conduction failure inspection was performed using an electron beam with an incident energy of 500 eV (IP = 100 nA). FIG. 26 shows a potential contrast image when the retarding voltage is 0V. The potential contrast of the contact hole was small and it was impossible to distinguish it from a defective part.

  In order to elucidate the cause, the voltage dependence of the resistance value of a normal contact hole and a contact hole having a residual film was measured. The results are shown in the left graph of FIG. The number of normal contact holes is 503, and the number of contact holes having a remaining film is 504. In the normal graph 503, the resistance value is small at forward bias (voltage is negative), and the resistance value is large at reverse bias (voltage is positive). However, it was found that if a voltage of 4 V or more is applied even with reverse bias, breakdown occurs and the resistance value decreases. In this case, since the resistance value 504 of the contact hole having the remaining film is high resistance, the difference between the resistance values of the normal part and the defective part becomes sufficiently large.

On the other hand, in Example 1, when the retarding voltage (or the electric field in the vicinity of the wafer) is changed, the resistance dependency of NSE changes as shown in FIG. 8, and the resistance measurement sensitivity can be changed. Indicated. At this time, the charging voltage in the electron beam irradiation area also changes. FIG. 24 shows the resistance dependence of the charging voltage when the retarding voltage V _R is changed. The incident energy is 500 eV, the total electron emission efficiency is greater than 1, and it is positively charged. By a reduction in the retarding voltage V _R (0 → -28.5kV), it can be seen that the charging voltage is increasing. When the retarding voltage is 0V, the charging voltage is about 3V at the maximum. That is, a normal contact hole has a sufficiently large resistance value, so that no leak current is generated, and it is charged to such a voltage, resulting in a resistance value of about 10 ¹⁸ Ω. At this time, as can be seen from the graph on the right side of FIG. 27, the number of emitted electrons is small, and the potential contrast image becomes dark and cannot be distinguished from a poor conduction portion. For this reason, it is considered that a potential contrast image as shown in FIG. 26 was obtained.

In order to enable inspection, a method of reducing the resistance value of the pn junction by generating a charging voltage that causes breakdown in the pn junction was used. By setting the retarding voltage to −28.5 kV, the maximum charging voltage becomes 5 V or more (FIG. 24), and therefore it is predicted that breakdown occurs in the pn junction and the resistance value is sufficiently reduced (10 ⁸ Ω or less). The Therefore, a difference occurs in the resistance value between the normal part and the poor conduction part. Further, from the graph on the right side of FIG. 27, it is considered that there is a sufficient difference between these potential contrast images (NSE) and the inspection can be performed. Therefore, actually, the retarding voltage was set to -28.5 kV, and a potential contrast image was acquired (FIG. 28). As a result, there was a sufficient difference in the potential contrast image between the normal part and the defective part, and the defective part could be displayed as “defect” as in Example 2. Thus, the electron beam irradiation conditions could be determined from the resistance dependency of the charging voltage and the electrical characteristics of the circuit.

  In addition, it is possible to inspect a pn junction having a defect (no remaining film). For example, an inspection example will be shown for a case where breakdown occurs at a low charging voltage and the resistance value is small because of the defect that the concentration of the n diffusion layer of the pn junction is not sufficient. The resistance value is smaller than that of a normal one as indicated by reference numeral 505 in FIG. In this case, the inspection is possible with the retarding voltage of 0V. In a normal pn junction, breakdown does not occur, so the resistance value is sufficiently large, and the potential contrast image is dark. On the other hand, a defective pn junction has a breakdown because breakdown occurs, and the potential contrast image becomes bright. The potential contrast image is as shown in FIG. In this way, the inspection conditions could be determined.

  In the above case, the retarding voltage was changed, which is intended to change the electric field near the wafer. Therefore, instead of changing the retarding voltage, the same effect can be obtained by changing the electric field in the vicinity of the wafer by displacing the position of the opposing electrode or the peripheral electrode.

  In addition, although the case where the retarding voltage is used as a parameter is considered here, other electron beam irradiation conditions (beam current, beam energy, irradiation time, etc.) are similarly optimized depending on the characteristics of the sample. Exists.

  In these embodiments described in detail above, the electron beam is used as the charged particle beam, but the same measurement can be performed by using an ion beam instead.

The block diagram which shows one Example of the test | inspection apparatus of this invention. The figure which shows the mode of the charge of the wafer surface in connection with electron beam irradiation, and formation of a potential barrier. The figure which shows energy ESE distribution of the sum NSE of the number of a secondary electron and a backscattered electron. The schematic diagram containing the cross-sectional structure of a semiconductor wafer. The figure which shows the example of the equivalent circuit of the contact hole of FIG. The figure which shows the time-dependent change of the sum NSE of the number of the secondary electrons and backscattered electrons to be detected. The figure which shows the electrical resistance R dependence of the sum NSE of the number of the secondary electrons and backscattered electrons to be detected. The figure which shows the electrical resistance R dependence of the sum NSE of the number of the secondary electrons and backscattered electrons to be detected when the retarding voltage VR is changed. The figure which shows the electrical resistance R dependence of the sum NSE of the number of the secondary electrons and backscattered electrons detected when the charging voltage VB around a plug is changed. The figure which shows the comparison of the calculated value of the electrical resistance R dependence of the sum NSE of the number of the secondary electrons and backscattered electrons detected, and an experimental result. The figure which shows the comparison with the calculated value of the time-dependent change of the sum NSE of the number of the secondary electrons and backscattered electrons to be detected, and the experimental value. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a semiconductor wafer used in Example 1 and a potential contrast image. The figure which shows the electric potential contrast signal of the semiconductor wafer of FIG. The figure which shows the electrical-resistance value calculated by the electric potential contrast signal and calculation of FIG. The figure which shows the beam irradiation time change of the peak intensity of the arrow in FIG. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an inspection image 1 obtained in Example 2. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an inspection image 2 obtained in Example 2. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a sample table with a resistance standard sample used in Example 3; The figure which shows the test | inspection image obtained in Example 4. FIG. The figure which shows the test result and calculated value of a time-dependent change of the sum of the number of the secondary electron and backscattered electron which were obtained in Example 5. FIG. FIG. 10 shows an inspection image obtained in Example 6. The figure which shows the test | inspection image obtained in Example 7. FIG. The figure which shows an example of electron beam irradiation conditions. The figure which shows the resistance dependence of the charging voltage at the time of changing a retarding voltage. The figure which shows the wafer cross section which processed the contact hole which has a pn junction. The figure which shows an electric potential contrast image when a retarding voltage is not appropriate. The figure which shows the resistance value voltage dependency of a pn junction. The figure which shows an electric potential contrast image in case retarding voltage is appropriate. The figure which shows an electric potential contrast image in case retarding voltage is appropriate.

Explanation of symbols

  1: circuit pattern inspection apparatus, 2: inspection room, 3: electron optical system, 4: optical microscope unit, 5: image processing unit, 6: control unit, 7: detection unit, 8: sample chamber, 9: substrate to be inspected 10: electron gun, 11: extraction electrode, 12: condenser lens, 13: blanking deflector, 14: stop, 15: scanning deflector, 16: objective lens, 17: reflector, 18: E × B deflector , 19: electron beam, 20: detector, 21: preamplifier, 22: AD converter, 23: optical converter, 24: optical fiber, 25: electrical converter, 26: high voltage power supply, 27: preamplifier drive power supply, 28 : AD converter drive power supply, 29: Reverse bias power supply, 30: Sample stage, 31: X stage, 32: Y stage, 33: Rotary stage, 34: Position monitor length measuring device, 35: Substrate height measuring device , 36: retarding power supply, 4 : White light source, 41: Optical lens, 42: CCD camera, 43: Correction control circuit, 44: Scanning signal generator, 45: Objective lens power supply, 46: Image storage unit, 48: Computer, 50: Monitor, 51: Two Secondary electrons and backscattered electrons, 52: Second secondary electrons and backscattered electrons, 60: Insulator, 61: Electron beam irradiation region, 62: Sample exchange chamber, 63: Retarding electrode, 180: Sample stage, 181 : Wafer, 182: Resistance standard sample, 210: Inspection image, 211: Predicted cross section, 212: Si, 213: Resist, 214: Resist remainder, 220: Defect, 400: Plug, 401: Contact hole, 402: SiO2 403: residual film, 404: open defect, 405: short defect, 406: electron beam, 407: Si, 501: p-type Si, 502: n-type Si, 503: voltage dependence of resistance value of normal pn junction, 504: voltage dependence of resistance value of poor contact hole, 505: voltage dependence of resistance value of defective pn junction.

Claims (3)

An electron optical means for irradiating a sample to be inspected on which a circuit pattern is formed with a primary electron beam, detecting secondary electrons and backscattered electrons generated by the irradiation of the primary electron beam, and outputting them as detection signals;
A control unit in which the irradiation conditions of the primary electron beam and the detection conditions of the secondary electrons and the backscattered electrons are set and input;
Means for forming an inspection image based on the detection signal;
Based on the irradiation conditions of the primary electron beam and the detection conditions of the secondary electrons and the backscattered electrons, an image of the scanning region of the primary electron beam is formed using the electrical resistance or capacitance of the irradiated portion of the primary electron beam as a parameter. And a computer unit that calculates the electrical resistance or the capacitance so that the formed image matches the inspection image. The inspection apparatus according to claim 1,
The inspection apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the electron optical means includes means for applying a retarding potential to the sample to be inspected. The inspection apparatus according to claim 1 or 2,
The inspection apparatus includes a circuit pattern in which a pn junction and a Schottky junction are formed.

Images