Biography:
Lukas Baumgartel was born in Santa Fe, NM. He attended University of New Mexico (UNM) for undergraduate study, and then received a PhD in Physics from University of Southern California (USC). His dissertation research was comprised of a period in the USC MEMS group, thus beginning his experience in microelectronics fabrication. Following graduate school, he worked for 6+ years at Intel’s Technology Development fab in Portland, OR, doing process engineering, development tasks such as yield and performance optimization, as well as manufacturing support. He is currently at Inficon, where he works to develop next-generation sensors for use in fabs around the world.
Abstract:
Semiconductor process tools are outfitted with myriad sensors, both as manufactured by the tool OEM, and as retrofitted by end-users. Thus, the tool becomes itself a large and complex sensor. The resulting data stream is crucial for monitoring the health of the tool, and has been used in manufacturing for excursion prevention for decades. However, data from tool sensors is often blind to the actual process itself, necessitating ex-situ metrology, electrical testing, and material analysis to perform process development, process control, and fleet management tasks such as chamber matching.
In this talk I will discuss how Process Aware Sensors are becoming a reality. Such sensors measure, in real time, the end product of the various inputs to the process occurring at the wafer level. This end product is not necessarily well constrained by the monitors from the sensors embedded in the tool. Process Aware sensors therefore provide powerful signals that can be used for in-situ metrology, predictive process control, and casting the broadest possible FDC net.
I will illustrate with two examples from customers evaluating our Quartz Crystal Microbalance (QMC) sensor on 300mm process tools running a PDMAT ALD process. We show that it is possible to distinguish different recipes with precision of a few ALD cycles. We also show that the QCM can resolve small changes in ampoule temperature by measurement of dep rate alone.