JP2010199333A - Recipe creating method, aligner, device manufacturing method, and program - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a recipe creating method that lightens a burden of recipe creation. <P>SOLUTION: The method of creating a recipe used for exposure processing by a computer includes: a first selection step of selecting a template containing at least one of parameters which should be contained in the recipe to be created, out of a plurality of templates, based upon a first index specifying the template; a second selection step of selecting a recipe containing at least another one of the parameters which should be contained in the recipe to be created, out of a plurality of registered recipes, based upon a second index specifying the recipe; an acquisition step of acquiring at least the another one parameter from the recipe selected in the second selection process; and an addition step of adding at least the another parameter acquired in the acquisition step to the template selected in the first selection step. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a recipe generation method, an exposure apparatus, a device manufacturing method, and a program for generating a recipe.

  In recent years, along with the miniaturization and high integration of semiconductor integrated circuits such as ICs and LSIs and liquid crystal panels, exposure apparatuses that manufacture these products have also been improved in precision and functionality. As such an exposure apparatus, an apparatus called a stepper or a scanner is often used. These exposure apparatuses sequentially transfer a pattern formed on an original plate (for example, a reticle) to a plurality of locations on the substrate while stepping the substrate (for example, a wafer). An exposure apparatus that performs this transfer all at once is called a stepper, and an exposure apparatus that performs transfer while scanning the stage is called a scanner. In recent years, an exposure apparatus equipped with two wafer stages for holding a substrate has been put into practical use in order to satisfy the two requirements of improving the overlay accuracy and throughput, which are important performances of the exposure apparatus. In addition, development of an exposure apparatus in which a liquid is inserted between a projection optical system for transferring an image of an original plate and a substrate to increase the resolution of the transfer is in progress.

  As the accuracy of the exposure apparatus increases, inspection exposure processing is performed to determine the optimum exposure conditions for the exposure apparatus. Here, this process is called an inspection sequence. A sequence for performing normal exposure processing is called a product sequence. As an example of the inspection sequence, a process for optimizing the overlay of the original plate and the substrate according to the exposure conditions will be described. The exposure apparatus measures the position of the pattern on the original plate and the pattern on the substrate, and exposes the two by overlapping them. However, the optical system that projects the pattern of the original plate onto the substrate has a slight aberration, and an overlay error occurs. Further, this error varies depending on exposure conditions. The exposure conditions include an illumination method (referred to as an exposure illumination mode), an exposure amount, and focus during exposure. Although this error is very small, it has become necessary to manage and correct this error for each exposure condition as the demand for improving overlay accuracy increases.

  On the other hand, an inspection sequence for measuring an overlay error is periodically performed by exposing an original plate for overlay inspection under the exposure conditions actually used, and this error is managed and corrected at the time of exposure. This processing is a technique for the exposure apparatus to perform sufficiently high-accuracy and stable exposure processing. The master plate for overlay inspection is different from the master plate used when manufacturing a product, for example, a mark for overlay inspection is formed. In this way, in the inspection sequence, an inspection original plate or substrate is used. In addition, the overlay inspection may be performed in the exposure apparatus, which is different from the product sequence. For this reason, in order to perform the inspection sequence, a recipe different from the product sequence is required for the exposure apparatus.

  On the other hand, in recent years, there is a tendency for a small quantity and a wide variety of product groups such as semiconductor integrated circuits and liquid crystal panels manufactured by an exposure apparatus. Along with this, the types of products manufactured by one exposure apparatus are increasing. Therefore, the number of exposure sequence recipes managed by the exposure apparatus is also increasing. In addition, since the period for switching the products produced by one exposure apparatus is shortened, the frequency of recipe switching is increasing. For these reasons, the exposure apparatus is required to have a control technique for suppressing a production loss that occurs when a product to be produced is switched. In Patent Document 2, in order to solve these problems, it is possible to quickly and accurately switch lots in a semiconductor device manufacturing operation, and to perform interrupt processing even when an urgent lot occurs. Is disclosed. Here, a lot is a processing unit in which a plurality of substrates (usually about 25) are taken as one unit, and exposure processing is generally performed for each lot.

JP 2006-108582 A Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 08-167562

  Performing the inspection sequence periodically is a technique that enables highly accurate and stable exposure processing. However, the inspection sequence has the following problems. As described above, in the same inspection, a common inspection original plate or substrate is used. For this reason, in the inspection sequence recipe, parameters common to the same inspection are used in addition to the exposure conditions depending on the product. As an example of a parameter having a common value in the same inspection recipe, there is layout information of a substrate or an original plate. Although these parameters are common if they are the same inspection, there are parameters that should be set individually such as exposure conditions for each inspection, so a recipe must be created for each inspection object. In addition, when a plurality of inspection sequences using the same substrate or original plate are executed, an inspection recipe is created and executed for each inspection sequence even if the same common parameters are used. For this reason, each time the inspection work is changed, the same type of setting must be set for a plurality of inspection recipes, and the change of the inspection work is complicated and the complexity of the recipe management is also increased. . Further, as described above, the number of recipes managed by the exposure apparatus and the frequency of switching the recipes in the exposure apparatus are increasing with the production of a small variety of products. This tendency is the same in the product sequence and the inspection sequence.

  An object of the present invention is to provide a recipe generation method in which a recipe generation burden is reduced.

  A first aspect of the present invention is a method for generating a recipe to be used in an exposure process by a computer, wherein a template including at least one parameter among parameters to be included in a generated recipe is specified for the template. A recipe including a first selection step for selecting from a plurality of templates based on one index and at least one other parameter among parameters to be included in the recipe to be generated is based on a second index for identifying the recipe. A second selection step for selecting from a plurality of registered recipes; an acquisition step for acquiring the at least one other parameter from the recipe selected in the second selection step; and a template selected in the first selection step. An additional recording step of additionally recording at least one other parameter acquired in the acquisition step And wherein the door.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a program for causing a computer to generate a recipe for use in exposure processing, wherein a template including at least one parameter among parameters to be included in the generated recipe is used as the template. A first selection step of selecting from a plurality of templates based on a first index for specifying a recipe, and a recipe including at least one other parameter among parameters to be included in a recipe to be generated. A second selection step of selecting from a plurality of recipes registered based on the index, an acquisition step of acquiring the at least one other parameter from the recipe selected in the second selection step, and the first selection step. At least one other acquired in the acquisition step in the selected template Characterized by comprising a write-once step of appending a parameter, a.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the production | generation method of the recipe with which the production | generation burden of the recipe was reduced can be provided.

Schematic diagram showing how to generate inspection recipes Schematic diagram showing a semiconductor manufacturing system Schematic diagram showing an example of a semiconductor manufacturing system Schematic diagram showing another example of a semiconductor manufacturing system Schematic diagram showing an example of an exposure apparatus Schematic diagram showing a two-stage exposure apparatus The schematic diagram which shows the production | generation of the recipe in Example 1 The schematic diagram which shows the other example of the production | generation of the recipe in Example 1. Recipe generation flowchart The figure which shows the input screen for selecting a recipe and a template The schematic diagram which shows the production | generation of the recipe in Example 2 The schematic diagram which shows the production | generation of the recipe in Example 3 The flowchart which shows the recipe production | generation in Example 3. Schematic diagram showing lot cue The figure which shows the input screen for selecting the recipe and template in Example 3.

  A recipe generation method, an exposure apparatus, and a device manufacturing method according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[Example 1]
FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a semiconductor manufacturing system including an exposure apparatus. In the semiconductor device manufacturing factory 101, one or more exposure apparatuses 102 and other semiconductor device manufacturing apparatuses 103 are arranged. One or more exposure apparatuses 102 and other semiconductor device manufacturing apparatuses 103 are connected by a control device 104 and an internal communication network 105 such as a local area network of the semiconductor device manufacturing factory 101. The control device 104 controls the exposure apparatus 102 and another semiconductor device manufacturing apparatus 103 to produce semiconductor devices.

  FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram for explaining the exposure apparatus 102 and other semiconductor manufacturing apparatuses. Reference numeral 106 denotes a substrate delivery mechanism for delivering a substrate between the exposure apparatus 102 and another manufacturing apparatus 103. The other manufacturing apparatuses 103 can include a pre-process manufacturing apparatus 103a that performs a pre-process of the exposure process and a post-process manufacturing apparatus 103b that performs a post-process of the exposure process. The substrate preprocessed by the pre-process manufacturing apparatus 103 a is sent to the exposure apparatus 102 by the substrate delivery mechanism 106. The substrate exposed by the exposure apparatus 102 is sent to the post-process manufacturing apparatus 103b by the substrate delivery mechanism 106. The exposure apparatus 102 includes an exposure unit 111 that exposes a substrate, a lot management unit 110, and a recipe management unit 109. The lot management unit 110 manages information on the substrate sent from the manufacturing apparatus 103a that has performed the previous process. The recipe management unit 109 manages a recipe that is source information for generating an exposure sequence instructed to the exposure unit 111. Note that the recipe management unit 109 may be arranged outside the exposure apparatus 102 connected by the internal communication network 105 as shown in FIG. 4 so that the recipe can be used in common by the plurality of exposure apparatuses 102.

  Next, the exposure apparatus 102 will be described. FIG. 5 is a schematic view showing an example of an exposure apparatus. The exposure apparatus 102 includes a control unit 113, one or more communication units 114, a storage unit 115, one or more operation units 116, and an exposure unit 111. The control unit 113 controls the exposure unit 111 and can be configured by a known computer or board computer. The control unit 113 controls the exposure unit 111 according to control information such as software and data stored in the storage unit. The storage unit can be composed of a hard disk as an external storage, and data is stored in the hard disk using software or a database system. The control unit 113 is connected to the internal communication network 105 via one of the communication units 114.

  Next, as an example of the exposure apparatus 102 in FIG. 5, an exposure apparatus 102 having a two-stage configuration in which two wafer stages for holding a substrate are mounted will be described with reference to FIG. The exposure apparatus 102 includes a measurement station 201 and an exposure station 202. In the exposure station 202, a reticle stage 204 that supports the reticle 203 and a wafer stage 206a that supports the wafer 205a are arranged. The exposure station 202 projects the exposure optical system 208 that illuminates the reticle 203 supported by the reticle stage 204 with exposure light, and the pattern of the reticle 203 illuminated with the exposure light onto the wafer 205 a on the wafer stage 206. An optical system 209. On the other hand, the measurement station 201 includes a focus detection system 212 that detects position information on the surface of the wafer 205 and a wafer alignment detection system 213 that is an alignment detection system that detects the positions of the wafer 205 and the stage reference mark 211. In the measurement station, a wafer stage 206b that supports the wafer 205b to be measured is arranged. Two wafer stages 206 a and 206 b that can move between the two stations are supported by a top plate 207. In this embodiment, an exposure apparatus having a two-stage configuration in which two wafer stages 206 are arranged is shown, but an exposure apparatus having one or three or more wafer stages 206 may be used. Here, a case where a scanning exposure apparatus (scanner) that exposes the pattern formed on the reticle 203 onto the wafer 205 while moving the reticle 203 and the wafer 205 synchronously with each other in the scanning direction will be described as an example. Of course, a batch transfer type exposure apparatus (stepper) can also be used.

  In the following description, the direction that coincides with the optical axis of the projection optical system 209 is the Z-axis direction, and the synchronous movement direction (scanning direction) of the reticle 203 and the wafer 205 in the plane perpendicular to the Z-axis direction is the Y-axis direction. A direction (non-scanning direction) perpendicular to the axial direction and the Y-axis direction is taken as an X-axis direction. Further, the directions around the X axis, the Y axis, and the Z axis are defined as θX, θY, and θZ directions, respectively. A predetermined illumination area on the reticle 203 is illuminated with exposure light having a uniform illuminance distribution by an illumination optical system 208. As the exposure light emitted from the illumination optical system 208, a silver lamp, a KrF excimer laser, an ArF excimer laser, an F2 laser, and extreme ultraviolet light (Extreme Ultra Violet: EUV light) are generally used. However, exposure light other than those does not have to be used. The reticle stage 204 supports the reticle 203, and can perform two-dimensional movement in a plane perpendicular to the optical axis of the projection optical system 209, that is, the XY plane, and fine rotation in the θZ direction. The reticle stage 204 is driven by a reticle stage driving device (not shown) such as a linear motor, and the reticle stage driving device is controlled by the control unit 113 in FIG. A mirror is provided on the reticle stage 204. A laser interferometer (not shown) is provided at a position facing the mirror. The position of the reticle 203 on the reticle stage 204 in the two-dimensional direction in the XY plane and the rotation angle θZ are measured in real time by the laser interferometer, and the measurement result is output to the control unit 113. The control unit 113 positions the reticle 203 supported by the reticle stage 204 by driving the reticle stage driving device based on the measurement result of the laser interferometer.

  The projection optical system 209 projects and exposes the pattern of the reticle 203 onto the wafer 205 at a predetermined projection magnification β, and is composed of a plurality of optical elements. These optical elements are supported by a lens barrel as a metal member. Has been. In this embodiment, the projection optical system 209 is a reduction projection system having a projection magnification β of, for example, 1/4 or 1/5. Each wafer stage 206 supports the wafer 205 and includes a Z stage that holds the wafer 205 through a wafer chuck, an XY stage that supports the Z stage, and a base that supports the XY stage. The wafer stage 206 is driven by a wafer stage driving device (not shown) such as a linear motor. The wafer stage driving device is controlled by the control unit 113. A mirror that moves together with the wafer stage 206 is provided on the wafer stage 206. A laser interferometer (not shown) is provided at a position facing the mirror. The position of the wafer stage 206 in the XY direction and θZ are measured in real time by the laser interferometer, and the measurement result is output to the control unit 113. Further, the position of the wafer stage 206 in the Z direction, and θX and θY are measured in real time by a laser interferometer, and the measurement results are output to the control unit 113. The position of the wafer 205 in the XYZ directions is adjusted by driving the XYZ stage through the wafer stage driving device based on the measurement result of the laser interferometer, and the wafer 205 supported by the wafer stage 206 is positioned.

  In the vicinity of the reticle stage 204, a reticle alignment detection system for detecting a stage reference mark 211 (211a and 211b) on the wafer stage 206 through the reticle reference mark 210 on the reticle stage 204 and the projection optical system 209 is provided. . The stage reference mark 211 is aligned with respect to the reticle reference mark 210 by using this reticle alignment detection system.

  The position information on the surface of the wafer 205 includes position information and tilt information in the Z-axis direction. The focus detection system 212 includes a projection system that projects detection light onto the surface of the wafer 205 and a light receiving system that receives reflected light from the wafer 205, and the detection result (measurement value) of the focus detection system 212 is the control unit 113. Is output. The control unit 113 drives the Z stage based on the detection result of the focus detection system 212, and adjusts the position (focus position) and tilt angle of the wafer 205 held on the Z stage in the Z-axis direction. Further, the position detection result (measured value) between the wafer 205 and the stage reference mark 211 by the wafer alignment detection system 213 is output to the control unit 113 as alignment position information within the coordinates defined by the laser interferometer.

  The stage reference mark 211 is installed at almost the same height as the surface of the wafer 205, and is used to detect the position by the reticle alignment detection system and the wafer alignment detection system 213 as shown in FIG. The stage reference mark 211 also has a substantially flat surface, and also serves as a reference surface for the focus detection system 212. The stage reference mark 211 may be arranged at a plurality of corners of the wafer stage 206.

  The wafer 205 has a wafer alignment mark detected by the wafer alignment detection system 213. A plurality of wafer alignment marks are provided around each shot area on the wafer, and the positional relationship (XY direction) between the wafer alignment mark and the shot area is known.

  The exposure apparatus 102 having such a two-stage configuration replaces and measures the second wafer 205b on the wafer stage 206b in the measurement station 201, for example, during the exposure processing of the first wafer 205a on the wafer stage 206a. I do. When each operation is completed, the wafer stage 206a of the exposure station 202 moves to the measurement station 201. At the same time, the wafer stage 206b of the measurement station 201 moves to the exposure station 202, and exposure processing is performed on the second wafer 205b.

  Next, the exposure method will be described. After the wafer 205 is loaded into the measurement station 201, the wafer alignment detection system 213 detects the stage reference mark 211. For this purpose, the control unit 113 moves the wafer stage 206 while monitoring the output of the laser interferometer so that the optical axis of the wafer alignment detection system 213 is on the stage reference mark 211. Thereby, the position information of the stage reference mark 211 is measured by the wafer alignment detection system 213 within the coordinate system defined by the laser interferometer. Similarly, at the measurement station 201, the focus detection system 212 detects the position information of the surface of the stage reference mark 211.

  Next, the position of the shot area of the wafer 205 is detected. The control unit 113 moves the wafer stage 206 while monitoring the output of the laser interferometer so that the optical axis of the wafer alignment detection system 213 advances on the wafer alignment mark around each shot area of the wafer 205. During the movement, the wafer alignment detection system 213 detects a plurality of wafer alignment marks formed around the shot area of the wafer 205. As a result, the position of each wafer alignment mark in the coordinate system defined by the laser interferometer is detected. The positional relationship between the stage reference mark 211 and each wafer alignment mark is obtained from the detection result of the stage reference mark 211 by the wafer alignment detection system 213 and each wafer alignment mark. Since the positional relationship between each wafer alignment mark and each shot region is known, the positional relationship between the stage reference mark 211 and each shot region on the wafer 205 in the XY plane is also determined.

  Next, the focus detection system 212 detects position information on the surface of the wafer 205 for every shot area on the wafer 205. The detection result corresponds to the position in the XY direction within the coordinate system defined by the laser interferometer, and is stored in the control unit 113. The positional relationship between the surface of the stage reference mark 211 and the surface of each shot area on the wafer 205 based on the detection result of the position information of the surface of the stage reference mark 211 by the focus detection system 212 and the position information of all the shot area surfaces on the wafer 205. Is decided.

  Next, exposure is performed at the exposure station 202 based on the measurement processing of the wafer 205 measured at the measurement station 201. The control unit 113 moves the wafer stage 206 so that the stage reference mark 211 can be detected using the reticle alignment detection system.

  Next, the reticle alignment detection system detects the stage reference mark 211 through the reticle reference mark 210 and the projection optical system 209. That is, the relationship between the reticle reference mark 210 and the stage reference mark 211 in the XY direction and the relationship in the Z direction are detected through the projection optical system 209. As a result, the position of the reticle pattern image projected onto the wafer 205 by the projection optical system 209 is detected using the stage reference mark 211 through the projection optical system 209.

  When the position detection of the reticle pattern image formed by the projection optical system 209 is completed, the control unit 113 moves the wafer stage 206 and exposes the wafer 205 under the projection optical system 209 in order to expose each shot area on the wafer 205. Move to the upper shot area. Then, the control unit 113 scans and exposes each shot area on the wafer 205 using each measurement result obtained in the measurement station 201. During exposure, each shot area on the wafer 205 and the reticle 203 are aligned. The alignment reference is the positional relationship between the wafer reference mark 211 obtained by the measurement station 201 and each shot area, and the projection positional relationship between the stage reference mark 211 obtained by the exposure station 202 and the reticle pattern image.

  During scanning exposure, the positional relationship between the surface of the wafer 205 and the reticle pattern image plane projected by the projection optical system 209 is adjusted. The adjustment is based on the positional relationship between the surface of the stage reference mark 211 and the surface of the wafer 205 obtained at the measurement station 201 and the positional relationship between the surface of the stage reference mark 211 obtained at the exposure station 202 and the reticle pattern image plane formed by the projection optical system 209. Based on.

  FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating generation of an inspection recipe in the first embodiment. In this embodiment, the recipe to be generated is an inspection recipe used in an inspection sequence for selecting an optimum exposure condition. However, the present invention can also be applied to a product recipe used in a normal exposure process for manufacturing a product. 1 is a template for an inspection recipe including at least one parameter among parameters to be included in an inspection recipe to be generated, and a plurality of templates are prepared. The parameters included in the template 1 are common parameters 4 for inspection for executing the inspection sequence, and are, for example, parameters of an original for inspection and a substrate. More specifically, the inspection master and substrate layout information, alignment mark information, sample shot information, and the like. Reference numeral 2 denotes a product recipe including product exposure condition parameters 6 necessary for executing a product sequence and product parameters 5 such as product original plate and substrate parameters, and a plurality of product recipes are registered. In a normal exposure process, a sequence for exposing a product substrate from the product recipe 2 is generated, and the exposure apparatus 102 executes the sequence. Of the parameters included in the product recipe 2, the exposure condition parameter 6 for the product is another parameter necessary for generating the inspection recipe. Reference numeral 3 denotes an inspection recipe for causing the exposure apparatus 102 to actually execute an inspection sequence. The inspection recipe 3 includes the common parameter 4 included in the inspection recipe template 1 and the exposure condition parameter 6 included in the product recipe 2. In the inspection sequence, a sequence is generated from the common parameter 4 and the exposure condition parameter, and the exposure apparatus 102 executes the sequence. The generated inspection recipe 3 may actually have the common parameter 4 and the exposure condition parameter 6 in the recipe as in the product recipe 2, but for example, the product without holding the exposure condition parameter 6. A configuration in which only link information for instructing the recipe 2 is held may be used.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram showing the relationship among the recipe management unit 109, the lot management unit 110, and the exposure unit 111. The recipe management unit 109 includes a product recipe management unit 118, an inspection recipe template management unit 119, and an inspection recipe generation unit 120. The product recipe management unit 118 manages a plurality of registered product recipes 2, inputs the product recipe 2 to the lot management unit 110, and causes the exposure unit 111 to execute a product exposure sequence. The inspection recipe template management unit 119 manages the common parameter 4 shared between the inspection sequences as the inspection recipe template 1. The inspection recipe generation unit 120 generates the inspection recipe 3 based on the exposure condition parameter 6 for the product input from the product recipe management unit 118 and the common parameter 4 for inspection input from the inspection recipe template management unit 119. . The inspection recipe generation unit 120 inputs the inspection recipe 3 to the lot management unit 110 and causes the exposure unit 111 to execute an inspection sequence. Reference numeral 121 denotes a lot queue for temporarily accumulating lot information accumulated in the lot management unit 110. As shown in FIG. 8, the inspection recipe 3 may be once registered in the product recipe management unit 118 and then processed as a normal recipe.

  Next, a method of generating the recipe used in the exposure process including the inspection recipe 3 by the computer (recipe management unit 109) will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. Reference numeral 301 denotes a plurality of recipes (product recipes) managed by the product recipe management unit 118. Reference numeral 302 denotes a plurality of templates managed by the inspection recipe template management unit 119. In step S001, the recipe management unit 109 selects the template 302 including the common parameter 4 to be included in the generated recipe (inspection recipe) from a plurality of templates based on the first index that identifies the template 302. Step S001 is a first selection step or a first selection step. In step S002, the recipe management unit 109 selects a plurality of recipes 301 registered in the product recipe management unit 118 based on the second index that identifies the recipe 301 including the exposure condition parameter 6 to be included in the generated recipe. Select from the recipe. Step S002 is a second selection step or a second selection step. In step S003, the inspection recipe generation unit 120 acquires only the exposure condition parameter 6 related to the exposure condition defined in advance among all the parameters included in the recipe 301 selected in the second selection step. Step S003 is an acquisition process or an acquisition step. In step S004, the inspection recipe generating unit 120 generates a new recipe by adding the exposure condition parameter 6 acquired in the acquisition process to the template 302 selected in the first selection process. Step S004 is an additional recording process or additional recording step.

  In this embodiment, a new recipe is generated by adding the exposure condition parameter 6 to the template 302. However, the common parameter 4 is acquired from the template 302, and the inspection recipe generation unit 120 combines the acquired common parameter 4 and the exposure condition parameter 6 acquired in the acquisition process to generate a new recipe. May be. Further, when not all the parameters to be included in the recipe to be generated can be included in the template after the additional recording process, the following command process can be provided immediately after step S004. That is, in the command process, the inspection recipe generation unit 120 determines whether or not all necessary parameters are included in the post-addition template, and if not, the command to input parameters not included in the template is determined. To do.

  In step S005, the recipe generated by the inspection recipe generation unit 120 is input to the lot management unit 110 (recipe input process). In step S006, the exposure unit 111 executes the exposure process according to the recipe input to the lot management unit 110 when the order set by the queue (lot queue) 121 that sets the order of the exposure process is reached (exposure process step).

  A method in which the first index for specifying the template 302 to be selected and the second index for specifying the product recipe to be selected are determined according to a command from the user will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 10 shows a screen configuration for the user to command the first index and the second index. For example, this is an operation screen of the operation unit 116 in the exposure apparatus 102 of FIG. Reference numeral 401 denotes a form for displaying a list of pre-registered product recipes 2 and instructing the user about the product recipe 2 to be inspected. Reference numeral 402 denotes a form for displaying a list of pre-registered inspection recipe templates 1 and instructing the user about the inspection recipe template 1 to be inspected. Reference numeral 403 denotes a form for instructing the system to confirm the form 401 and the form 402 selected. The user instructs the product recipe 2 to be inspected on the form 401. Next, the inspection recipe template 1 matched with the inspection substrate is instructed on the form 402. Finally, when the form 403 is instructed, a first index for specifying the template 1 and a second index for specifying the product recipe 2 are determined based on the information instructed in the form 401 and form 402. Note that the order of the instructions on the form 401 and form 402 may be reversed.

  As described above, the system including the exposure apparatus 102 of the present invention includes the inspection recipe template management unit 119 and the inspection recipe generation unit 120. Thereby, it is possible to execute the inspection sequence of the exposure apparatus 102 by an easy operation of designating two of the product recipe 2 and the inspection recipe template 1. At the same time, since it is not necessary to generate an inspection recipe from scratch, the burden of generating an inspection recipe can be reduced.

  By storing a program for executing the processing from steps S001 to S006 shown in FIG. 9 in a computer storage medium, the computer can generate the inspection recipe 3 and perform the inspection exposure processing. In addition, when the computer reads the program code from the recording medium on which the program is recorded, the inspection recipe 3 can be generated and the inspection exposure process can be executed.

[Example 2]
Another embodiment for generating the inspection recipe will be described with reference to FIG. In the second embodiment, the inspection recipe 3 includes two or more exposure condition parameters 6a to 6c, and then exposure is performed under a plurality of exposure conditions in one lot. The inspection recipe 3 is different in that it includes a common parameter 4 included in one inspection recipe template 1 and exposure condition parameters 6a to 6c acquired from a plurality of product recipes 2, 2, and 2. Reference numeral 501 indicates that when there are a plurality of substrates in one lot when performing inspection exposure, the exposure conditions are switched for each substrate. Reference numeral 502 denotes that the exposure condition is switched for each area to be exposed on one inspection substrate.

  There are three differences between the second embodiment and the first embodiment. The first is that two or more product recipes are to be selected and acquired in the second selection step S002 and the acquisition step S003. Second, the exposure condition parameters of two or more recipes are additionally written in the additional writing step S004. Third, the inspection exposure sequence outputs a plurality of sequence instructions to one inspection recipe 4. When the inspection exposure sequence is generated in the exposure processing step S006, for example, an inspection exposure sequence is generated in which the number of substrates in the inspection lot is a multiple of the exposure conditions, and the exposure conditions in the inspection recipe are sequentially switched for each multiple of the substrates. It is possible to do. For example, when the number of substrates in the inspection lot is one, the number of exposure areas in the substrate is divided by the number of exposure conditions, and an inspection exposure sequence is generated by sequentially switching the exposure conditions in the inspection recipe for each area. It is possible.

  Example 2 includes two steps. The first is a step of generating an inspection recipe 3 using an inspection recipe template 1 that holds a plurality of exposure condition parameters 6a to 6c. The second is an exposure processing step in which an inspection exposure sequence under a plurality of exposure conditions is collectively performed on one substrate or one lot. As a result, it is possible to execute an inspection sequence of a plurality of exposure apparatuses with one inspection lot or one inspection substrate.

[Example 3]
Still another embodiment 3 for generating the inspection recipe 3 will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 12 is a schematic diagram illustrating a relationship among the recipe management unit 109, the lot management unit 110, and the exposure unit 111 according to the third embodiment. In the third embodiment, an inspection target product recipe selection unit 122 and an inspection recipe template selection unit 121 are added to the first embodiment. The inspection target product recipe selection unit 122 extracts a product lot whose exposure conditions change from the product recipe group registered in the lot queue 110a, and uses the product recipe 2 used in the lot as a product recipe management unit. Obtained from 118 and output. The inspection recipe selection unit 121 receives the product recipe 2 as an input and selects an inspection recipe template 1 that meets the conditions. That is, in the third embodiment, both the first index for specifying the inspection recipe template 1 to be selected and the second index for specifying the product recipe 2 to be selected are determined by the computer without a user command. . In the present embodiment, both the first index and the second index are determined by the computer, but the first index and the second index can be modified so that either the first index or the second index is determined by the computer.

  FIG. 13 is a flowchart of a method for generating the inspection recipe 3 in the third embodiment. In step S010, the inspection recipe template 1 is registered in the inspection recipe template management unit 119. In the third embodiment, in addition to the common parameter 4 necessary for the inspection recipe template 1, a first index for specifying the inspection recipe template 1 is further registered in the registration operation of the inspection recipe template. The registered first index may be the same as one or more parameters in the exposure condition parameter 6 included in the product recipe 2, for example. In this case, the first index may be a second index that identifies the product recipe. The first index may be an expression that can describe a set of character strings such as a regular expression. In step S011, when an inspection lot is registered in the lot queue 110a, the inspection target product recipe selection unit 122 extracts a product lot 303 whose exposure condition changes next among product lots registered thereafter. The inspection target product recipe selection unit 122 extracts a product lot 303 to be inspected by sequentially reading out product lots whose parameters indicating predefined exposure conditions change from the entries in the lot queue 110a. In step S012, the inspection target product recipe selection unit 122 specifies the product recipe 301 from the product lot 303 and selects the product recipe 301 from the product recipe management unit 118. In step S013, the inspection recipe template selection unit 121 selects an inspection recipe template 302 that is included in the selected product recipe 301 and that matches at least one exposure condition parameter serving as a first index. As a first index for selecting the inspection recipe template 302 by the inspection recipe template selection unit 121, a combination of a weighted total for each exposure condition parameter and a second index for specifying the product recipe is used. May be. Further, the first index may be the number of parameters for specifying a product recipe that simply matches. The first index may be information included in the inspection lot in the lot queue 110a or the inspection lot itself. Subsequent process steps S014 to S016 are the same as steps S003 to S006 in the first embodiment. In this way, the inspection recipe 3 can be obtained only by performing a preliminary operation in which the user registers the first index for specifying the inspection recipe template 302 or the first index common to the second index for specifying the product recipe 301 in the inspection recipe template 1. Can be created automatically by the computer.

  FIG. 14 shows a specific example. FIG. 14 shows that product lots 601, 603 to 605 and inspection lot 602 registered in the lot queue 110a are accumulated. New lots are added at the bottom, and processed lots are picked up in order from the top. In product lots 601, 603 to 605, product recipe information is registered, but in FIG. 14, only the portion related to the exposure conditions is expressed. In FIG. 14, the processing is planned in the order of product lot 601, inspection lot 602, and product lots 603 to 605. The exposure conditions of the product lots 603 and 604 after the inspection lot 602 are the exposure conditions A. The exposure condition for product lot 605 is exposure condition B. Therefore, it is the product lot 605 that changes the exposure conditions in the product lots 603 to 605 after the inspection lot 602. In this embodiment, the exposure condition of the inspection lot 602 is set as the exposure condition B of the product lot 605 based on the change in the lot queue 110a.

  As a modification of the third embodiment, an example in which the user's involvement can be allowed is shown in FIG. FIG. 15 is a screen configuration of the operation unit 116 of the modification of the third embodiment corresponding to FIG. 10 of the first embodiment. Reference numeral 404 denotes a form for switching whether or not the user is involved in the generation of the inspection recipe 3. When the form 404 is checked, the inspection recipe 3 is automatically generated without the user's involvement, and when the form 404 is unchecked, the user's involvement is allowed. When the form 404 is checked, the exposure apparatus 102 automatically determines all selection of the product recipe 301 and the inspection recipe template 302, so that designation in the form 401 and the form 402 is not necessary. When the form 401 or the form 402 is designated, the designation is given priority. If the check of the form 404 is removed, the operation is the same as that of the first embodiment.

[Computer program]
By storing a program for executing the processes from steps S011 to S017 shown in FIG. 13 in a computer storage medium, the computer can generate the inspection recipe 3 and perform the inspection exposure processing. In addition, when the computer reads the program code from the recording medium on which the program is recorded, the inspection recipe 3 can be generated and the inspection exposure process can be executed.

[Device manufacturing method]
Next, device manufacturing methods such as semiconductor integrated circuit elements and liquid crystal display elements will be exemplarily described. The device exposes the substrate using the illumination condition determined using the determination method described above, develops the substrate exposed in the exposure step, and processes the substrate developed in the development step It is manufactured through other known processes. Other known processes are etching, resist stripping, dicing, bonding, packaging processes, and the like.

Claims (10)

A method of generating a recipe used in an exposure process by a computer,
A first selection step of selecting a template including at least one parameter among parameters to be included in a recipe to be generated from a plurality of templates based on a first index that identifies the template;
A second selection step of selecting a recipe including at least one other parameter among parameters to be included in the recipe to be generated from a plurality of registered recipes based on a second index that identifies the recipe;
An acquisition step of acquiring the at least one other parameter from the recipe selected in the second selection step;
An additional recording step of adding at least one other parameter acquired in the acquisition step to the template selected in the first selection step;
A method comprising the steps of:   The method according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the first index and the second index is determined according to a command from a user.   The method according to claim 1, wherein the second index is determined by a computer based on a queue that defines an order of exposure processing. The template further includes the first indicator in addition to the at least one parameter;
The first indicator is identical to at least one parameter of the at least one other parameter;
4. The template according to claim 1, wherein in the first selection step, a template is determined based on a parameter included in the recipe selected in the second selection step. 5. Method.   It is determined whether all parameters that should be included in the recipe to be generated are included in the template after being added in the additional recording step, and when it is determined that there are parameters that are not included, the parameters that are not included The method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, further comprising a commanding step of commanding a template to be input to the template.   Two or more recipes are selected in the second selection step, the other parameters are acquired from the two or more selected recipes in the acquisition step, and the other two or more recipes acquired in the additional writing step The method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein a parameter is additionally written.   7. The method according to claim 1, wherein the at least one parameter includes at least one parameter of an original and a substrate, and the at least one other parameter includes an exposure condition parameter. . A program for causing a computer to generate a recipe used in exposure processing,
A first selection step of selecting a template including at least one parameter among parameters to be included in the recipe to be generated from a plurality of templates based on a first index that identifies the template;
A second selection step of selecting a recipe including at least one other parameter among parameters to be included in the recipe to be generated from a plurality of registered recipes based on a second index that identifies the recipe;
An acquisition step of acquiring the at least one other parameter from the recipe selected in the second selection step;
An appending step of appending at least one other parameter acquired in the acquiring step to the template selected in the first selecting step;
The program characterized by including.   An exposure apparatus for exposing a substrate according to a recipe generated by the method according to claim 1. Exposing the substrate using the exposure apparatus according to claim 9;
Developing the exposed substrate;
A device manufacturing method including:

Images