Benchmark’s Visual Diagnostic Test Reticles are widely accepted and endorsed by both semiconductor manufacturers and equipment vendors, to rapidly determine stepper best focus without the use of a microscope. With these reticles, optimum focus can be found more quickly and with half the variability of conventional microscope linewidth measurement methods.

D-2 Full Field Visual Diagnostic Test Reticle

This Test Reticle can be used to create a focus/exposure matrix with best focus at the center. As energy increases, resist test structures clear out at extreme focus positions of the matrix. The resulting image resembles a histogram plot with a peak indicating the best focus setting. This reticle can also be used to evaluate

• illumination uniformity, coating,
• development and soft bake uniformity,
• wafer chuck effects including hot spots hot spots,
• wafer chuck flatness.

D-3 Test Reticle

Benchmark’s D-3 Test Reticles used to determine

• dose matching,
• focal plane tilt,
• Field curvature
• wafer leveling, and
• column alignment.

Features and Benefits for both reticles include:

• Reduce operator subjectivity
• Less variability resulting in tighter SPC control limits
• Optimize stepper utilization for reduced cost of ownership

Contact us to learn more about Visual Diagnostic Test Reticles