Toward real-time estimation of surface evolution in plasma etching: isotropy, anisotropy, and self-calibration

Level set methods are proving to be an effective tool for simulating surface evolution during chip manufacturing processes such as etching, deposition, and lithographic development. These methods can be implemented using extremely fast and robust algorithms, making them ideal for real-time model-based control applications. An approach for isotropic etching is developed and demonstrated in simulation. Modifications necessary to address certain anisotropic processes and self-calibration of the estimator are sketched