Mask Manufacturing Equipment

Photomask manufacturing equipment plays a very important role in IC chip processing. The improvements of lithography technologies depend on micrometer/nanometer pattern transferring and mask manufacturing technologies. Even NGL (Next-Generation Lithography) technologies such as EUV (Extreme Ultra-Violet) Lithography, EBL (Electron Beam Lithography), X-ray Lithography, and IL (Interference Lithography) currently or will rely on advanced photomask-making technologies. This chapter will mainly introduce mask pattern layout edit and data processing equipment, mask quality inspection and defects detecting and repairing equipment, mask direct writing equipment, optical pattern generators, laser pattern generators (LPG), and Electron Beam Pattern Generators.