Efficient ILT via Multi-level Lithography Simulation

Shuyuan Sun, Fan Yang, Bei Yu, Li Shang, Xuan Zeng

Abstract: Inverse Lithography Technology (ILT) is a widely investigated method to improve the yield of chip manufacturing. However, high computational complexity and difficulty in fabricating curvilinear shapes have hindered the widespread adoption of ILT. This paper presents an efficient ILT framework, including a multi-level resolution method for simulation acceleration, a downsampling strategy for mask optimization, and an improved mask binary function to improve mask printability. Experimental results show that the proposed method outperforms state-of-the-art methods with at least a 33.8% reduction in L2 loss and a 15.5% reduction in PVBand.