PROVision 10 eBeam Metrology

As semiconductor features continue scaling and device architectures become denser and more complex, fabrication processes involve more steps and process control limits become tighter. Today’s leading-edge chip designs require a new class of metrology that surpasses optical target-based approximation, statistical sampling, and single-layer control.

The PROVision™ 10 system combines sub-nanometer resolution, high speed, and through-layer imaging and dedicated set of advanced algorithms to generate the millions of datapoints required to accurately pattern today’s most advanced designs, including 2nm foundry-logic chips, GAA transistors, next-generation DRAM and HBM memory, and backside power delivery. With these capabilities, it sees beyond the blind spots of optical metrology, performing precise measurements across the wafer and between the many layers of a chip to generate the multidimensional data sets needed to achieve the best chip performance and accelerate time to market.

With its innovative technical features, the PROVision 10 system improves yield, saves production costs, and shortens time-to-market.  The system’s industry-leading eBeam column technology utilizing field proven cold field emission (CFE) technology features the highest electron density available, enabling detailed imaging at sub-nanometer resolution at a rate of up to 100 million accurate, actionable measurements per hour. Applied’s unique Elluminator™ technology captures 95% of back-scattered electrons to quickly measure critical dimensions and edge placement at multiple levels simultaneously. A broad range of eBeam energies encompasses high-energy modes for rapid measurement, hundreds of nanometers deep, and low-energy modes for damage-free measurement of fragile materials and structures, including EUV and high-NA EUV photoresist. Applied’s decades-long CD-SEM and algorithm expertise enable accurate and precise measurements of critical features.