Improved Throughput and Cost of Ownership for Monitoring of FBEOL Etch Profile

Maximizing versatility of semiconductor foundry etch process tools for an increasing variety of integration schemes creates an inherent requirement for reliable monitoring of critical width and depth parameters. This paper discusses available metrology techniques for a selection of far back end of line (FBEOL) measurements from a measurement accuracy and throughput perspective. Measurement accuracy is evaluated by correlation to available reference metrology. The throughput of the alternative measurements is also assessed using the wafers per hour metric. The importance of metrology in the V Groove module of silicon photonics processing is also discussed.