IC Manufacturing
Solutions for the GDSII-to-Mask Flow
Mentor delivers solutions tailored to your key challenges in the GDSII-to-Mask flow including maintaining tight critical dimension (CD) control for high wafer yield and reducing time-to-mask, cost of operation, and the duration and cost of new technology development.
The Mentor tool suite provides seamless integration of the data manipulations required for resolution enhancement (RET), such as phase shift mask (PSM), scattering bars (SB) and optical proximity correction (OPC), as well as mask rule checking, mask writer process correction, and data format conversion, all in a single batch run. Our solution is built on a common hierarchical database and geometry processing engine, which provides functions like layer derivation, mirroring, scaling, rotation, planarization fill, and global and selective sizing. The flow concludes with output in the most important mask writer formats for advanced mask-making in the subwavelength era, such as MEBES and Variable-Shaped-Beam (VSB) formats, as well as GDSII.
Safety Critical Design Solutions
IC Manufacturing Design Tools
Calibre® Computational Lithography
The Calibre computational lithography solution provides core innovations that ensure image fidelity across multiple process conditions, providing more robustness and reliability in the manufacturing process.
Calibre Mask Process Correction
The Calibre Mask Process Correction solution applies Mentor's model-based OPC technology with optimizations specifically developed for e-beam mask writers.
Calibre Mask Data Preparation
Mentor's Mask Data Preparation (MDP) solution is fully compatible with the Calibre platform, enabling you to complete all resolution enhancement processing and mask data format conversion tasks in one mask fabrication batch run using a single control language.
More About IC Manufacturing
Leading-Edge Mask Enhancement and Fabrication
Over the last decade, we’ve helped dozens of fabs improve their mask quality and design-to-mask turnaround time (TAT) with a combination of:
- Best-in-class technology
- Flexible solutions that provide a wide choice of tool interfaces and hardware platforms
- An engineering support team that works as a trusted partner and advisor to ensure your success
Integrated Design-to-Mask Virtual Manufacturing Flow
- Layout physical and electrical verification
- Design-For-Manufacturing (DFM) modeling and optimization
- Comprehensive resolution enhancement techniques (RET)
- State-of-the-art optical proximity correction (OPC) and verification
- Dedicated mask writer process correction (MPC)
- Hierarchical mask rule checking (MRC)
- Mask fracturing and mask writer data conversion
Open and Accessible
All our tools are open and accessible through a variety of interfaces, allowing you to optimize your flow for the fastest tapeout-to-mask.
- Calibre and Oasis database APIs
- Lithography and metrology APIs
- Common rule and control languages
White Papers
Mask data preparation flow for advanced technology nodes
The trend to reduce critical features dimension has dramatically increased design file size. Design tape–out flows at the 28 nm technology node handle post-OPC data files that reach hundreds of gigabytes.... View White Paper
Roadmap to sub-nanometer OPC model accuracy
OPC models describe the entire patterning process, including photomask, optics, resist, and etch as a set of separately characterized modules. It is difficult, however, to definitively calibrate the optics... View White Paper