Practical application of OPC in electrical circuits

M. McCallum; A. Tsiamis; S. Smith; A. C. Hourd; J. T. M. Stevenson; A. J. Walton

doi:10.1117/12.830053

23 September 2009 Practical application of OPC in electrical circuits

M. McCallum, A. Tsiamis, S. Smith, A. C. Hourd, J. T. M. Stevenson, A. J. Walton

Proceedings Volume 7488, Photomask Technology 2009; 74883B (2009) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.830053
Event: SPIE Photomask Technology, 2009, Monterey, California, United States

Abstract

Today's Optical Proximity Correction (OPC) is becoming increasingly complex and necessitates using smaller and smaller grid sizes to produce the fine patterns required. These small grids lead to very high overhead in data handling, as well as for the tools that will write and inspect the mask; which together make masks extremely expensive. For two dimensional structures such as corners, we use complex structures incorporating either additive or subtractive OPC features to produce the desired shape. It is unclear though, how precisely the final structures must match the original design to perform their intended electrical functions. In this work we have created a number of corner type electrical test structures and applied different degrees of OPC to both the outer and inner corners of the structures. These features were then printed on doped polysilicon wafers, and the wafers were etched and electrically tested. The electrical effect of OPC on the outer corner was found to be minimal, whereas the inner corner shape had a significant effect upon the electrical resistance of the circuit feature. The data suggests that OPC on the outside corner has little impact upon a simple circuit's performance, but care should be taken with OPC on the inner corners, particularly with regard to the size of the OPC serifs used.

Citation Download Citation

M. McCallum, A. Tsiamis, S. Smith, A. C. Hourd, J. T. M. Stevenson, and A. J. Walton "Practical application of OPC in electrical circuits", Proc. SPIE 7488, Photomask Technology 2009, 74883B (23 September 2009); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.830053

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