DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Election/Restrictions
Restriction to one of the following inventions is required under 35 U.S.C. 121:
I. Claims 1-14, drawn to an overlay metrology system, classified in G03F7/70633.
II. Claims 15-21, drawn to an overlay metrology collection sub-system, classified in G03F7/7085.
III. Claims 22-28, drawn to a detection method, classified in G03F7/70681.
During a telephone conversation with Matthew Poulsen on 02/05/2026 a provisional election was made without traverse to prosecute the invention of claims 1-14. Affirmation of this election must be made by applicant in replying to this Office action. Claims 15-21 and 22-28 are withdrawn from further consideration by the examiner, 37 CFR 1.142(b), as being drawn to non-elected inventions.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1, 7 and 12-14 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Manassen (US 2022/0291143 A1 – hereinafter “Manassen – ‘143”).
Regarding claim 1, Manassen – ‘143 discloses an overlay metrology system (100) (Fig. 1A-B; [0052]) comprising:
an illumination sub-system comprising:
one or more illumination sources (108) configured to generate two or more illumination beams (110), wherein the two or more illumination beams include at least a first illumination beam having a first wavelength and a second illumination beam having a second wavelength, wherein the first wavelength is different than the second wavelength (Fig. 1A-B; [0052]-[0053]); and
one or more illumination optics (126, 128) configured to direct the two or more illumination beams to an overlay target on a sample (106) as the sample is scanned relative to the two or more illumination beams along a scan direction when implementing a metrology recipe (Fig. 1A-B; [0043], lines 1-3; [0086]),
wherein the overlay target in accordance with the metrology recipe includes a grating-over-grating structure in one or more cells , wherein the grating-over-grating structure includes at least a first-layer grating feature on a first layer of the sample and a second-layer grating feature on a second layer of the sample, wherein the first-layer grating feature has a first pitch and the second-layer grating feature has a second pitch different than the first pitch (Fig. 2A-E; [0043]; [0045], last 6 lines; [0072]);
a collection sub-system comprising:
two or more photodetectors (114) located in a pupil plane (e.g., diffraction plane) to capture at least one diffraction order of the first illumination beam from the first-layer grating feature and at least one diffraction order of the second illumination beam from the second-layer grating feature of the grating-over-grating structure in the one or more cells when implementing the metrology recipe (Fig. 1A-B; [0061]); and
a controller (118) communicatively coupled to the two or more photodetectors, the controller including one or more processors (120) configured to execute program instructions causing the one or more processors (0064) to:
receive time-varying interference signals from the two or more photodetectors associated with the first-layer grating feature and the second-layer grating feature of the grating-over-grating structure in the one or more cells as the overlay target is scanned in accordance with the metrology recipe (Fig. 1A-B; [0059]; [0061]; [0079] – where obtaining overlay measurement while dynamically scanning a sample inherently involves time-varying interference signals); and
determine an overlay measurement between one of the first-layer grating feature and the second-layer grating feature of the sample based on the time-varying interference signals (Fig. 1A-B; [0059]; [0061]; [0079]).
Regarding claim 7, Manassen – ‘143 discloses the overlay metrology system of claim 1, as outlined above, and further discloses wherein the first-layer grating feature is formed of a first material and at least one of an intermediate-layer grating feature of a second-layer grating feature is formed of a second material, wherein the first material is different than the second material, wherein the first material of the first-layer grating feature absorbs a second wavelength of a second illumination beam, wherein the second material of at least one of the intermediate-layer grating feature of the second-layer grating feature absorbs a first wavelength of the first illumination beam ([0007], see claim 12, 41).
Regarding claim 12, Manassen – ‘143 discloses the overlay metrology system of claim 1, as outlined above, and further discloses wherein each of the two or more illumination beams (110) comprise a temporally coherent illumination beam (Fig. 1A-B; [0054]-[0055]; [0056], lines 1-5).
Regarding claim 13, Manassen – ‘143 discloses the overlay metrology system of claim 1, as outlined above, and further discloses
a translation stage (116) to translate the sample (106) along the scan direction, wherein the one or more illumination optics direct the two or more illumination beams (110) to the overlay target on the sample as the sample is scanned by the translation stage (Fig. 1A-B, 2A; [0031], lines 1-8; [0052], lines 1-4 and last 5 lines; [0059], lines 12-18).
Regarding claim 14, Manassen – ‘143 discloses the overlay metrology system of claim 1, as outlined above, and further discloses
one or more beam-scanning optics (126, 128) to scan the two or more illumination beams (110) along the scan direction (Fig. 1A-B; [0083]; [0086]).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
Claim(s) 2-3, 5 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Manassen – ‘143 in view of Frank et al. (NP 2017123 A).
Regarding claim 2, Manassen – ‘143 discloses the overlay metrology system of claim 1, as outlined above, but does not explicitly disclose
wherein the at least one diffraction order of the first illumination beam having the first wavelength from the first-layer grating feature fully overlaps with the at least one diffraction order of the second illumination beam having the second wavelength from the second-layer grating feature.
However, Frank, in the same field of endeavor of metrology systems and methods, discloses wherein at least one diffraction order of a first illumination beam having a first wavelength from a first-layer grating feature fully overlaps with at least one diffraction order of a second illumination beam having a second wavelength from a second-layer grating feature ([0073]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to configure Manassen’s – ‘143 system comprising a plurality of light sources and overlay features in such a way which allows for enabling pixel-to-pixel operations to be performed in order to obtain desired metrics, increasing the functionality of measurement system.
Regarding claim 3, Manassen – ‘143 discloses the overlay metrology system of claim 1, as outlined above, but does not explicitly disclose wherein a ratio of the first wavelength of the first illumination beam to the first pitch of the first-layer grating feature is equal to the ratio of the second wavelength of the second illumination beam to the second pitch of the second-layer grating feature.
However, Frank discloses wherein a ratio of a first wavelength of a first illumination beam to a first pitch of a first-layer grating feature is equal to a ratio of a second wavelength of a second illumination beam to a second pitch of a second-layer grating feature ([0073]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to configure Manassen – ‘143 with a system wherein a ratio of a first wavelength of a first illumination beam to a first pitch of a first-layer grating feature is equal to a ratio of a second wavelength of a second illumination beam to a second pitch of a second-layer grating feature, enabling pixel-to-pixel operations to be performed to obtain desired metrics, increasing the functionality of measurement system.
Regarding claim 5, Manassen – ‘143 discloses the overlay metrology system of claim 1, as outlined above, but does not explicitly disclose wherein the first wavelength of the first illumination beam is selected based on one or more properties of the time-varying interference signals of the first-layer grating feature, wherein the second wavelength of the second illumination beam is selected based on one or more properties of the time-varying interference signals of the second-layer grating feature.
However, Frank discloses wherein the first wavelength of the first illumination beam is selected based on one or more properties of the time-varying interference signals of the first-layer grating feature, wherein the second wavelength of the second illumination beam is selected based on one or more properties of the time-varying interference signals of the second-layer grating feature.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to configure Manassen – ‘143 with a system wherein illumination beam parameters are selected and tailored to the target(s) being measured, resulting in the desired metrics and increasing the overall functionality and signal-to-noise of the measurement system.
Claim(s) 6 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Manassen et al. (US 2022/0291143 A1 – hereinafter “Manassen – ‘143”) in view of Frank et al. (NP 2017123 A) further in view of Amit et al. (US 2016/0178351 A1).
Regarding claim 6, Manassen – ‘143 in view of Frank discloses the overlay metrology system of claim 5, as outlined above, but does not explicitly disclose wherein the one or more properties of the time-varying interference signals of the first-layer grating feature include a contrast above a selected threshold, wherein the one or more properties of the time-varying interference signals of the second-layer grating feature include a contrast above a selected threshold.
However, Amit, in the same field of endeavor of metrology systems and methods, discloses wherein one or more properties of time-varying interference signals of a first-layer grating feature include a contrast above a selected threshold, wherein one or more properties of time-varying interference signals of a second-layer grating feature include a contrast above a selected threshold (Abstract).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to modify Manassen – ‘143 in view of Frank with a system where optical signals of target features are detected with a contrast above a selected threshold, improving the signal-to-noise ratio of the measurement system.
Claim(s) 4, 8-11 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Manassen et al. (US 2022/0291143 A1 – hereinafter “Manassen – ‘143”) in view of Manassen et al. (US 2022/0034652 A1 – hereinafter “Manassen – ‘652”).
Regarding claim 4, Manassen – ‘143 discloses the overlay metrology system of claim 1, as outlined above, but does not explicitly disclose wherein an illumination intensity of at least one of the first illumination beam or the second illumination beam is adjusted, wherein an intensity of the time-varying interference signals associated with the first-layer grating feature is equal to an intensity of the time-varying interference signals associated with the second illumination beam from the second-layer grating feature
However, Manassen – ‘652, in the same field of endeavor of metrology systems and methods, discloses wherein an illumination intensity of at least one of a first illumination beam or a second illumination beam is adjusted, wherein an intensity of time-varying interference signals associated with a first-layer grating feature is equal to an intensity of the time-varying interference signals associated with the second illumination beam from a second-layer grating feature ([0061], last 9 lines; [0073]).
Though Manassen – ‘652 doesn’t explicitly disclose equalizing intensities of time-varying interference signals associated with their respective illumination beams, Manassen – ‘652 describes adjusting illumination and/or collection sub-system parameters (e.g., stops, pupils, or the like which inherently modifies illumination intensity of light beams) to provide a desired collection pupil distribution. Manassen – ‘652 further discloses calibrating the overlay measurement based on known, assumed, or measured features of the sample that may impact time-varying interference signals including sample asymmetries where the Examiner is interpreting calibration as implying configuring the system so that intensities of time-varying signals are equal. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to modify relative intensities in such a way in order to improve the overall signal-to-noise of the measurement system.
Regarding claim 8, Manassen – ‘143 discloses the overlay metrology system of claim 1, as outlined above, and further discloses wherein the two or more photodetectors (114) are located in the pupil plane at two or more locations in order to capture light from the sample (106) (Manassen – ‘143 : [0061]-[0062]; see claim 17).
Manassen – ‘143 does not explicitly disclose wherein a first location including a first photodetector includes a location of +1 grating order diffraction associated with grating diffraction from the first-layer grating feature overlapping with 0-order diffraction and grating diffraction from the second-layer grating feature overlapping with the 0-order diffraction, wherein a second location including a second photodetector includes a location of -1 grating order diffraction associated with grating diffraction from the first-layer grating feature overlapping with 0-order diffraction and grating diffraction from the second-layer grating feature overlapping with the 0-order diffraction.
However, Manassen – ‘652 discloses wherein a first location including a first photodetector includes a location of +1 grating order diffraction associated with grating diffraction from a first-layer grating feature overlapping with 0-order diffraction and grating diffraction from a second-layer grating feature overlapping with a 0-order diffraction, wherein a second location including a second photodetector includes a location of -1 grating order diffraction associated with grating diffraction from the first-layer grating feature overlapping with 0-order diffraction and grating diffraction from the second-layer grating feature overlapping with the 0-order diffraction (Abstract; [0034]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to modify Manassen – ‘143 system with such a detector configuration, allowing the 0-order diffraction to serve as a common reference for two time-varying interference signals, simplifying the measurement process (Manassen – ‘652: [0034], last 7 lines).
Regarding claim 9, Manassen – ‘143 discloses the overlay metrology system of claim 1, as outlined above, and discloses wherein the one or more processors are configured to execute program instructions causing the one or more processors to:
determine the overlay measurement between the first-layer grating feature and the second-layer grating feature of the sample (Manassen – ‘143: [0007]; [0024], last 4 lines; [0030]; [0031], lines 1-8; [0071]).
Manassen – ‘143 does not explicitly disclose wherein the one or more processors are configured to execute program instructions causing the one or more processors to:
extract phase information associated with the time-varying interference signals; and
determine the overlay measurement between the first-layer grating feature and the second-layer grating feature of the sample based on the phase information.
However, Manassen – ‘652 discloses wherein one or more processors are configured to execute program instructions causing one or more processors to:
extract phase information associated with time-varying interference signals ([0072], last 9; See claim 2); and
determine an overlay measurement between a first-layer grating feature and a second-layer grating feature of a sample based on the phase information ([0072], 1-7 and last 9 lines; See claim 2).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, that the overlay on a sample may be proportional to relative phase shifts between two time-varying signal and that such measurements of phase may be extracted in order to further characterize a sample, improving the functionality of the measurement device.
Regarding claim 10, Manassen – ‘143 discloses the overlay metrology system of claim 1, as outlined above, but does not explicitly disclose wherein the one or more illumination optics are configured to cause the first illumination beam and the second illumination beam to overlap.
However, Manassen – ‘652 discloses wherein one or more illumination optics are configured to cause a first illumination beam and a second illumination beam to overlap (Abstract; [0042]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to modify Manassen – ‘143 wherein the one or more illumination optics are configured to cause the first illumination beam and the second illumination beam to overlap, where simultaneous illumination using two or more beams allows for multiple optical configuration where parameters may be tailored to improve accuracy and/or sensitivity of the measurement (Manassen – ‘652: [0042]).
Regarding claim 11, Manassen – ‘143 discloses the overlay metrology system of claim 1, as outlined above, wherein the one or more illumination optics (126, 128) direct the two or more illumination beams (110) to the overlay target (see Fig. 2A) (Manassen – ‘143: Fig. 1A-B, 2A; [0043], lines 1-3; [0086]; [0090], last 6 lines).
Manassen – ‘143 does not explicitly disclose wherein the one or more illumination optics direct the two or more illumination beams to the overlay target at a normal incidence angle.
However, Manassen discloses wherein one or more illumination optics direct two or more illumination beams to an overlay target at a normal incidence angle (Abstract; [0058]; [0077]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to modify Manassen – ‘143 with a means for directing an illumination beam along a range of incidence angles, including a normal incidence, where such a modification would increase the functionality of the measurement system.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MAHER YAZBACK whose telephone number is (703)756-1456. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 8:30 am - 5:30 pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Michelle Iacoletti can be reached at (571)270-5789. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/MAHER YAZBACK/Examiner, Art Unit 2877
/MICHELLE M IACOLETTI/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2877