Patents by Inventor David A. Ziemer

David A. Ziemer has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Feedback method utilizing lithographic exposure field dimensions to predict process tool overlay settings
    Patent number: 6735492
    Abstract: A system and method of monitoring and predicting tool overlay settings comprise generating current lot information, generating historical data, categorizing (binning) the historical data into discrete exposure field size ranges, and predicting current lot tool overlay settings based on the current lot information and historical data. The method monitors the overlay errors during each lot pass through each lithographic process operation. Moreover, the method uses a feedback sorting criteria to monitor the tool overlay settings. Furthermore, the current lot information comprises lithographic field dimensions, wherein the lithographic field optics distortion data is derived from the current lithographic process tool. Additionally, the historical data comprises same-bin lithographic field size dimensions of previous lots, which statistically means the data is derived from the same (or similar) bin of like lots, on the current lithographic process tool.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 19, 2002
    Date of Patent: May 11, 2004
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Edward W. Conrad, John S. Smyth, Charles A. Whiting, David A. Ziemer
  • Feedback method utilizing lithographic exposure field dimensions to predict process tool overlay settings
    Publication number: 20040015256
    Abstract: A system and method of monitoring and predicting tool overlay settings comprise generating current lot information, generating historical data, categorizing (binning) the historical data into discrete exposure field size ranges, and predicting current lot tool overlay settings based on the current lot information and historical data. The method monitors the overlay errors during each lot pass through each lithographic process operation. Moreover, the method uses a feedback sorting criteria to monitor the tool overlay settings. Furthermore, the current lot information comprises lithographic field dimensions, wherein the lithographic field optics distortion data is derived from the current lithographic process tool. Additionally, the historical data comprises same-bin lithographic field size dimensions of previous lots, which statistically means the data is derived from the same (or similar) bin of like lots, on the current lithographic process tool.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 19, 2002
    Publication date: January 22, 2004
    Applicant: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Edward W. Conrad, John S. Smyth, Charles A. Whiting, David A. Ziemer