Multibeam inspection applications development for advanced logic device nodes

E-beam inspection has been used for detecting electrical defects, patterning defects, and sub-surface (buried) defects for decades, leveraging its unique capabilities in voltage contrast (VC) mode, high resolution, and backscattered electron (BSE) mode. As critical dimensions continue to shrink and device structures transition from 2D to 3D, e-beam inspection is playing an increasingly vital role in process development for R&D and process monitoring in high-volume manufacturing (HVM). With the growing number of killer defect types detectable only by e-beam inspection, the demand for faster throughput to cover larger die and wafer areas is becoming crucial. To address the throughput limitations of single-beam inspection, HMI developed the first-generation multibeam inspection system, aiming to achieve an order of magnitude improvement in throughput. This paper introduces the design principles and capabilities of the first-generation multibeam inspection system, as well as its performance in voltage contrast inspection use cases applied to advanced logic device nodes, possibly based on FinFET or Nanosheet structures with EUV patterning techniques.