High-Resolution Transmission Electron Microscopy Calibration of Critical Dimension Reference Materials

Published

February 1, 2001

Author(s)

Richard A. Allen, T J. Headley, Sarah C. Everist, Rathindra Ghoshtagore, Michael W. Cresswell, Loren W. Linholm

Abstract

NIST and Sandia have developed a procedure for producing and calibrating critical dimension (CD), or linewidth reference materials. These reference materials will be used to calibrate metrology instruments used in semiconductor manufacturing. The reference features, with widths down to 100 nm, are produced in monocrystalline silicon with all feature edges aligned to specific crystal planes. A two-part calibration of these linewidths is used: the primary calibration, with accuracy to within a few lattice plane thicknesses, is accomplished by counting the lattice plans across the sample as-imaged through use of high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM). The secondary calibration is the high-precision electrical CD technique.

Citation

IEEE Transactions on Semiconductor Manufacturing

Volume

14

Issue

1

Pub Type

Journals

Keywords

critical dimension (cd), linewidth, reference materials, semiconductor metrology

Citation

Allen, R. , Headley, T. , Everist, S. , Ghoshtagore, R. , Cresswell, M. and Linholm, L. (2001), High-Resolution Transmission Electron Microscopy Calibration of Critical Dimension Reference Materials, IEEE Transactions on Semiconductor Manufacturing (Accessed October 14, 2025)