Method and system for designing optical shield layout and producing optical shield pattern

Abstract

The present invention relates to a method and system for designing a mask layout and generating a mask pattern. The method includes using a plurality of pixels to represent the mask layout, wherein each pixel has a mask transparency coefficient. A control parameter is initialized and a representation of the mask layout is generated. This method uses a cost function and a Boltzmann probability function (Boltzmann Probability Function) to decide whether to accept the representative of the mask layout, wherein the cost function is related to the mask layout and the target substrate pattern, and the Boltzmann probability function is related to The cost function is related to the control parameters. The step of generating a representative of the reticle layout and the step of accepting a representative of the reticle layout are repeated until the reticle layout is stabilized. Reduce this control parameter according to the annealing program. The steps of generating a representative of the reticle layout, determining, reworking, and reducing the control parameters are repeated until the reticle layout is optimized.

Description

technical field [0001] The present invention relates to a lithography process, in particular to a method and system for designing a mask layout and generating a mask pattern used in a lithography process for manufacturing a semiconductor integrated circuit. Background technique [0002] Lithography refers to a technique that uses a photon beam to project a pattern on a photomask onto a substrate for imaging. Taking the manufacture of semiconductor integrated circuits as an example, with the miniaturization of the size of circuit components, the lithography process needs to have the ability to form images with the smallest feature size on the semiconductor wafer. [0003] Due to the low-pass filtering effect of the lithography optical system, the diffraction from the mask and the lithography system can cause image distortion and deterioration. For example, right-angled corners on a reticle may appear as rounded corners on a semiconductor wafer. The degree of image distortio...

AI Technical Summary

Problems solved by technology

[0006] The purpose of the present invention is to overcome the defects in the existing lithography process and provide a new method for designing the layout of the photomask. The technical problem to be solved is to make it not limited to the original photomask pattern and have better The spatial degree of freedom is used to optimize the mask layout. The mask layout obtained by this method can improve the imaging distortion and improve the quality of lithographic imaging at the same time, so it is more suitable for practical use.

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