Comparison of Measurement Techniques for Linewidth Metrology on Advanced Photomasks.

This paper compares electrical, optical, and atomic force microscope (AFM) measurements of critical dimension (CD) made on a chrome on quartz photomask. Test structures suitable for direct, on-mask electrical probing have been measured using the above three techniques. These include cross-bridge linewidth structures and pairs of Kelvin bridge resistors designed to investigate dimensional mismatch. Overall, the results show very good agreement between the electrical measurements and those made with a calibrated CD-AFM system, while the optical metrology system overestimates the measured width. The uncertainty in each of the measurements has been considered, and for the first time an attempt has been made to describe the levels and sources of uncertainty in the electrical measurement of CD on advanced binary photomasks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]