METHOD FOR IN-DIE OVERLAY CONTROL USING FEOL DUMMY FILL LAYER

• Main Authors: SCHURING Andreas, SCHMIDT Martin, THIERBACH Stefan, RONGEN Stefan, RUHM Matthias, MOLL Peter, FISCHER Daniel, HARTIG Carsten, ÜBERREITER Guido
• Format: Patent
• Language: English
• Published: 16.11.2017
• Subjects: BASIC ELECTRIC ELEMENTS; ELECTRIC SOLID STATE DEVICES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; ELECTRICITY; SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES

Methods for in-die overlay reticle measurement and the resulting devices are disclosed. Embodiments include providing parallel structures in a first layer on a substrate; determining measurement sites, in a second layer above the first layer, void of active integrated circuit elements; forming overlay trenches, in the measurement sites and parallel to the structures, exposing sections of the structures, wherein each overlay trench is aligned over a structure and over spaces between the structure and adjacent structures; determining a trench center-of-gravity of an overlay trench; determining a structure center-of-gravity of a structure exposed in the overlay trench; and determining an overlay parameter based on a difference between the trench center-of-gravity and the structure center-of-gravity.