Fast & Easy - New Wafer-like and Reticle-like Sensors Deliver Measurements Inside the Process Chamber

There are a number of critical in-chamber measurement operations that may impose inordinately large costs when they are required. They may be occasional, associated with tool setup or major maintenance and repair, or they may be routine, such as monitoring for particles or measuring gaps to ensure tool matching. They are often simple in concept but made difficult by poor access and limited space inside a process chamber. Their measurement cycles are often extended by the stringent requirements of the process environment for cleanliness, demanding lengthy cleaning and requalification cycles when anything foreign has entered the chamber. Consider something as simple as aligning a wafer chuck or a robot arm. It can be done with hand tools, perhaps a ruler and a level, but the challenge comes in gaining access to components inside the process chamber. The more the chamber is opened to allow access the greater the risk of contamination from the tools, the operator, or the ambient fab environment, and the more time it takes to return the tool to service.