U.S. patent application number 14/984178 was filed with the patent office on 2017-07-06 for self-sustained in-situ thermal control apparatus.
The applicant listed for this patent is Lam Research Corporation. Invention is credited to Allan Ronne, Michael Tseng, Henry Wang.
Application Number | 20170191685 14/984178 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 59235415 |
Filed Date | 2017-07-06 |
United States Patent
Application |
20170191685 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Ronne; Allan ; et
al. |
July 6, 2017 |
SELF-SUSTAINED IN-SITU THERMAL CONTROL APPARATUS
Abstract
A thermal management system for a substrate processing tool
located in a fabrication room includes a blower that draws air from
the fabrication room and causes the air to flow through a process
module of the substrate processing tool. Heat is transferred from
the process module to the air and the air is exhausted from the
process module. A heat exchanger receives the air exhausted from
the process module, cools the air, and provides the cooled air to
at least one of the fabrication room, a subfloor of the fabrication
room, and the process module.
Inventors: |
Ronne; Allan; (Santa Clara,
CA) ; Tseng; Michael; (San Jose, CA) ; Wang;
Henry; (Union City, CA) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Lam Research Corporation |
Fremont |
CA |
US |
|
|
Family ID: |
59235415 |
Appl. No.: |
14/984178 |
Filed: |
December 30, 2015 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H01L 21/67017 20130101;
H01L 21/6719 20130101; H01L 21/67109 20130101; F24F 7/08
20130101 |
International
Class: |
F24F 7/08 20060101
F24F007/08; F24F 11/00 20060101 F24F011/00; F24F 7/10 20060101
F24F007/10 |
Claims
1. A thermal management system for a substrate processing tool
located in a fabrication room, the thermal management system
comprising: a blower that draws air from the fabrication room and
causes the air to flow through a process module of the substrate
processing tool, wherein heat is transferred from the process
module to the air and the air is exhausted from the process module;
and a heat exchanger that receives the air exhausted from the
process module, cools the air, and provides the cooled air to at
least one of the fabrication room, a subfloor of the fabrication
room, and the process module.
2. The thermal management system of claim 1, wherein at least one
of the blower and the heat exchanger is located in the subfloor of
the fabrication room.
3. The thermal management system of claim 1, wherein the substrate
processing tool includes a plurality of process modules including
the process module, and wherein each of the plurality of process
modules is in fluid communication with a different one of a
plurality of blowers.
4. The thermal management system of claim 1, wherein the substrate
processing tool includes a plurality of process modules including
the process module, and wherein each of the plurality of process
modules is in fluid communication with a different one of a
plurality of heat exchangers.
5. The thermal management system of claim 1, wherein the substrate
processing tool includes a plurality of process modules including
the process module, and wherein each of the plurality of process
modules is in fluid communication with (i) a different one of a
plurality of blowers and (ii) the heat exchanger.
6. The thermal management system of claim 5, further comprising a
manifold that receives the air exhausted from each of the plurality
of process modules and routes the air exhausted from each of the
plurality of process modules to the heat exchanger.
7. The thermal management system of claim 1, wherein the heat
exchanger includes a first heat exchanger and a second heat
exchanger connected in series.
8. The thermal management system of claim 1, wherein the blower
includes (i) a first blower connected between the process module
and the heat exchanger in a flow path of the air exhausted from the
process module and (ii) a second blower connected between the heat
exchanger and the fabrication room in a flow path of the air cooled
by the heat exchanger.
9. The thermal management system of claim 1, further comprising a
damper connected between the process module and the heat exchanger
in a flow path of the air exhausted from the process module.
10. The thermal management system of claim 1, further comprising a
user interface module that monitors a parameter associated with the
thermal management system and selectively controls at least one of
the blower and the heat exchanger based on the monitored
parameter.
11. The thermal management system of claim 10, wherein the
parameter includes at least one of a temperature and a flow rate
associated with the thermal management system.
12. A thermal management method for a substrate processing tool
located in a fabrication room, method comprising: drawing air from
the fabrication room and causing the air to flow through a process
module of the substrate processing tool, wherein heat is
transferred from the process module to the air; exhausting the air
from the process module; receiving the air exhausted from the
process module; cooling the air; and providing the cooled air to at
least one of the fabrication room, a subfloor of the fabrication
room, and the process module.
13. The method of claim 12, further comprising providing at least
one of a blower and a heat exchanger in the subfloor of the
fabrication room.
14. The method of claim 12, further comprising providing fluid
communication between each of a plurality of the process modules
and a respective one of a plurality of blowers.
15. The method of claim 12, further comprising providing fluid
communication between each of a plurality of the process modules
and a respective one of a plurality of heat exchangers.
16. The method of claim 12, further comprising providing fluid
communication between each of a plurality of the process modules
and (i) a respective one of a plurality of blowers and (ii) a heat
exchanger.
17. The method of claim 16, further comprising receiving the air
exhausted from each of the plurality of the process modules at a
manifold and routing the air exhausted from each of the plurality
of the process modules from the manifold to the heat exchanger.
18. The method of claim 12, further comprising monitoring a
parameter associated with the cooled air and selectively
controlling at least one of a blower and a heat exchanger based on
the monitored parameter.
19. The method of claim 18, wherein the parameter includes at least
one of a temperature and a flow rate.
Description
FIELD
[0001] The present disclosure relates to substrate processing
systems, and more particularly to thermal management systems and
methods for substrate processing systems.
BACKGROUND
[0002] The background description provided here is for the purpose
of generally presenting the context of the disclosure. Work of the
presently named inventors, to the extent it is described in this
background section, as well as aspects of the description that may
not otherwise qualify as prior art at the time of filing, are
neither expressly nor impliedly admitted as prior art against the
present disclosure.
[0003] Substrate processing systems may be used to perform
deposition, etching and/or other treatment of substrates such as
semiconductor wafers. During processing, a substrate is arranged on
a substrate support such as a pedestal in a processing chamber of
the substrate processing system. Gas mixtures including one or more
precursors are introduced into the processing chamber and plasma
may be struck to activate chemical reactions.
[0004] During processing, heat is generated, which increases
temperatures of various components of a substrate processing tool.
The substrate processing tool draws in ambient air (e.g., cleanroom
air in a fabrication room of a facility in which the substrate
processing tool is located) to cool the heated components.
[0005] As shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, an example facility 100
includes one or more fabrication rooms 104-1, 104-2, . . . , and
104-n, referred to collectively as fabrication rooms 104. Each of
the rooms 104 includes one or more substrate processing tools
108-1, 108-2, . . . , and 108-m, referred to collectively as
substrate processing tools 108. Each of the substrate processing
tools 108 includes one or more process modules (not shown).
[0006] The substrate processing tools 108 draw in cool ambient air
112 from within the rooms 104 to cool heated components of the
substrate processing tools 108. For example, the air 112 is drawn
into enclosures corresponding to respective process modules of the
substrate processing tools 108 (e.g., via ports, screens, vents,
etc. arranged in respective enclosure surfaces of the substrate
processing tools 108). Typically, the rooms 104 correspond to
fabrication cleanrooms. Accordingly, the air 112 within the rooms
104 is filtered and controlled to minimize contaminants. Heat from
the respective components of the substrate processing tools 108 is
transferred to the air 112, which is heated accordingly. The heated
air 116 is exhausted from the substrate processing tools 108 via
respective conduits or ducts 120. For example, the exhausted heated
air 116 is drawn through the conduits 120 by a thermal exhaust
treatment system 124, which then routes the heated air 116 into the
environment outside of the facility 100.
SUMMARY
[0007] A thermal management system for a substrate processing tool
located in a fabrication room includes a blower that draws air from
the fabrication room and causes the air to flow through a process
module of the substrate processing tool. Heat is transferred from
the process module to the air and the air is exhausted from the
process module. A heat exchanger receives the air exhausted from
the process module, cools the air, and provides the cooled air to
at least one of the fabrication room, a subfloor of the fabrication
room, and the process module.
[0008] A thermal management method for a substrate processing tool
located in a fabrication room include drawing air from the
fabrication room and causing the air to flow through a process
module of the substrate processing tool to transfer heat from the
process module to the air, exhausting the air from the process
module, receiving the air exhausted from the process module,
cooling the air, and providing the cooled air to at least one of
the fabrication room, a subfloor of the fabrication room, and the
process module.
[0009] Further areas of applicability of the present disclosure
will become apparent from the detailed description, the claims and
the drawings. The detailed description and specific examples are
intended for purposes of illustration only and are not intended to
limit the scope of the disclosure.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0010] The present disclosure will become more fully understood
from the detailed description and the accompanying drawings,
wherein:
[0011] FIG. 1A is an example fabrication room including one or more
substrate processing tools;
[0012] FIG. 1B is an example facility including a plurality of
fabrication rooms;
[0013] FIG. 2A is an example fabrication room including one or more
substrate processing tools according to the principles of the
present disclosure;
[0014] FIG. 2B is another example fabrication room including one or
more substrate processing tools according to the principles of the
present disclosure;
[0015] FIG. 2C is another example fabrication room including one or
more substrate processing tools according to the principles of the
present disclosure;
[0016] FIG. 2D is another example fabrication room including one or
more substrate processing tools according to the principles of the
present disclosure;
[0017] FIG. 3 is an example substrate processing tool according to
the principles of the present disclosure;
[0018] FIG. 4A is an example thermal management system according to
the principles of the present disclosure;
[0019] FIG. 4B is another example thermal management system
according to the principles of the present disclosure;
[0020] FIG. 5A is an example thermal management assembly according
to the principles of the present disclosure;
[0021] FIG. 5B is another example thermal management assembly
according to the principles of the present disclosure; and
[0022] FIG. 6 is an example thermal management method according to
the principles of the present disclosure.
[0023] In the drawings, reference numbers may be reused to identify
similar and/or identical elements.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0024] Substrate processing facilities typically use a centralized
thermal exhaust treatment system to draw heated exhaust air from
fabrication rooms. The thermal exhaust treatment system routes the
heated exhaust air out of the facility and into the environment.
Accordingly, cleanroom air inside the fabrication rooms is consumed
(e.g., the cleanroom air is used to cool substrate processing tools
and then removed from the fabrication rooms and the facility) and
must be replaced. Because every substrate processing tool is
serviced by the same thermal exhaust treatment system, the
operation of each tool affects the overall performance and
efficiency of the system. The location of each tool (e.g., the
distance of the tool from the thermal exhaust treatment system)
further affects performance and efficiency.
[0025] Thermal exhaust treatment systems and methods according to
the present disclosure provide separate exhaust treatment systems
for each process module of a substrate processing tool. For
example, each process module is provided a respective blower and
heat exchanger. Each blower draws the heated exhaust air from the
respective process module and routes the exhaust air through the
heat exchanger. The exhaust air flows through the heat exchanger to
be cooled and the resulting cooled air is provided back into the
fabrication room (or, in some examples, the cooled air may be
provided back to the same process module). Accordingly, the
cleanroom air is recycled and reused instead of being exhausted
from the facility. For example only, the blower and/or heat
exchanger for each process module may be located in a subfloor
region below a floor of the fabrication room.
[0026] Respective flow rates and temperatures for each of the
process modules may be individually monitored, controlled, and
adjusted. Further, service and/or maintenance on one of the exhaust
treatment systems does not require interruption of the operation of
other process modules and their respective exhaust treatment
systems.
[0027] Referring now to FIGS. 2A 2B, 2C, and 2D an example
fabrication room 200 includes one or more substrate processing
tools 204. For example, the room 200 corresponds to a fabrication
room supplied with cleanroom air (i.e., air that is filtered and
controlled to minimize contaminants). Although only one substrate
processing tool 204 is shown, the fabrication room 200 may include
two or more of the substrate processing tools 204. The substrate
processing tool 204 includes one or more process modules 208, which
may be enclosed within a chassis or other enclosure 210. Cool
ambient air 212 is drawn into portions of the substrate processing
tools 204 corresponding to the process modules 208 from within the
room 200 to cool respective components of the process modules 208.
For example only, the air 212 is drawn in through respective ports
214 (e.g., ducts, screens, vents, etc. arranged in respective
surfaces of the enclosures 210) to be routed over various external
surfaces and/or components of the process modules 208, through
conduits or channels adjacent to external surfaces and/or
components of the process modules 208, etc. Heat from the
components of the process modules 208 is transferred to the air
212.
[0028] Heated air 216 is exhausted from the process modules 208 and
drawn into respective conduits or ducts 220. For example, the
heated air 216 is drawn into the conduits 120 by respective blowers
or fans 224. The blowers 224 draw the heated air 216 through the
conduits 120 and into respective heat exchangers 228, which cool
the heated air 216. For example, the heat exchangers 228 may
implement a cold fluid cooling system (e.g., including cooling
water or other fluids) to draw out heat from the heated air 216. As
shown, the blowers 224 and heat exchangers 228 are each located
below a floor 232 of the room 200 in a subfloor compartment 236.
However, in other implementations, the blowers 224 and/or the heat
exchangers 228 may be located within the room 200. Further,
although one blower 224 is shown for each of the process modules
208, two or more of the blowers 224 may be used. For example, one
of the blowers 224 may be arranged upstream of the heat exchanger
228 while another blower 224 is arranged downstream of the heat
exchanger 228.
[0029] As shown in FIGS. 2A and 2C, cooled air 240 is routed back
into the fabrication room 200. Accordingly, the same cleanroom air
that was drawn into process modules 208 is heated, cooled, and then
returned to the fabrication room 200. Although shown being returned
to the ambient cleanroom air of the fabrication room 200, the
cooled air 240 may be routed back into the process modules 208 in
some embodiments to provide additional cooling. In example
embodiments shown in FIGS. 2B and 2D, the cooled air 240 is routed
into the subfloor compartment 236.
[0030] A flow rate of the heated air 216 and the cooled air 240 may
be controlled by adjusting respective speeds of the blowers 224. In
some embodiments, adjustable dampers 244 (e.g., gate valve dampers,
butterfly valve dampers, etc.) may be provided to further control
flow rates. A temperature of the cooled air 240 may be controlled
by controlling a temperature and flow rate of the cold fluid in the
heat exchangers 228. Accordingly, flow rates and temperatures of
air provided to the respective process modules 208 can be
individually monitored and controlled.
[0031] For example only, each of the blowers 224 (and/or the heat
exchangers 228) receive power from the respective substrate
processing tools 204. For example, the blowers 224 receive DC power
from the substrate processing tools 204. Each of the blowers 224
may be configured to be powered on whenever the substrate
processing tools 204 are powered on, only when a respective process
module 208 is powered on, or may include respective switches to be
selectively powered on. In some embodiments, the substrate
processing tools 204 may be configured to selectively power on and
adjust flow rates of the blowers 224 (and/or to selectively adjust
the dampers 244) based on process steps being performed by the
process modules 208.
[0032] Referring now to FIG. 2B, two or more process modules 208
may share one or more heat exchangers 228 and blowers 224. Although
only one heat exchanger 228 is shown, two or more of the heat
exchangers 228 may be provided in series. The heated air 216 from
the respective conduits 220 is provided to an exhaust manifold 248,
which routes the heated air 216 into the heat exchanger 228. In
this embodiment, one or more of the blowers 224 may implement a
variable frequency driver 252 to maintain a constant pressure and
flow rate.
[0033] Referring now to FIG. 3 and with continued reference to
FIGS. 2A and 2B, a top-down view of an example substrate processing
tool 300 according to the principles of the present disclosure is
shown. The substrate processing tool 300 includes a plurality of
process modules 304. For example only, each of the process modules
304 may be configured to perform one or more respective processes
on a substrate. Substrates to be processed are loaded into the
substrate process tool 300 via ports of a loading station 308 and
then transferred into one or more of the process modules 304. For
example, a substrate may be loaded into each of the process modules
304 in succession.
[0034] Each of the process modules 304 draws in cleanroom ambient
air 312 and exhausts the heated air through respective conduits
316, downward through floor 320, and into respective heat
exchangers (e.g., the heat exchangers 228) as described above in
FIG. 2. Although shown arranged on same respective sides of the
process modules 304, the conduits 316 may be arranged on an
opposite respective side of a process module 304 as shown at
318.
[0035] A user interface module 324 (e.g., an interface including
output devices such as a display, LEDs, speakers, etc. and input
devices such as a buttons, switches, knobs, dials, touchscreen,
etc.) may be provided for controlling various functions of the tool
300. For example, a user may use the user interface module 324 to
control operation of the blowers 224 and the heat exchangers 228.
For example, the user interface module 324 may be used to
selectively power the blowers 224 and the heat exchangers 228 on
and off (e.g., individually and/or collectively), open and close
the dampers 244, set desired respective setpoint flow rates and
temperatures for the blowers 224 and the heat exchangers 228, etc.,
and may further be used to monitor flow rates and temperatures.
[0036] Referring now to FIGS. 4A and 4B, an example flow schematic
of a thermal management system 400 that draws in cool cleanroom air
and exhausts heated cleanroom air to cool components of respective
process modules 404. In FIG. 4A, each of the process modules 404
exhausts the heated cleanroom air through dampers 408 (e.g.,
including gate valves or butterfly valves) and openings in floor
412 to heat exchangers 416. The heat exchangers 416 cool the air
by, for example, flowing cold water or another fluid drawn in
through inlets 420 and out through outlets 424. Heat from the air
is transferred from the heated air to the fluid flowing through the
heat exchangers 416, and the cooled air is drawn by blowers 428 to
be returned to the environment above the floor 412 and/or to the
process modules 404. In some examples, sensors 432 and 436 (e.g.,
temperature sensors, such as thermocouples, pressure sensors, flow
sensors, etc.) monitor flow rates and temperatures of the heated
air flowing out of the process modules 404 and out of the cooled
air flowing out of the blowers 428, respectively. Signals
indicative of the monitored flow rates and temperatures are
provided to a user interface module 440.
[0037] In FIG. 4B, each of the process modules 404 exhausts the
heated cleanroom air through dampers 408 (e.g., including gate
valves or butterfly valves) and openings in floor 412 to manifold
444. The manifold 444 routes the heated air 216 into one or more
heat exchangers 448 (e.g., as shown, two heat exchangers 448
connected in series). In this embodiment, one or more of the
blowers 428 may implement a variable frequency driver 452 to
maintain a constant pressure and flow rate. For example, the user
interface module 440 may control the variable frequency driver 452
based on the monitored flowrates, a monitored pressure within the
manifold 444, etc.
[0038] Referring now to FIGS. 5A and 5B, an example thermal
management assembly 500 is arranged in a subfloor region 504 of a
fabrication room 508. In FIG. 5A, the assembly 500 is shown in a
horizontal arrangement. In FIG. 5B, the assembly 500 is shown in a
vertical arrangement. Heated exhaust air is drawn downward through
a floor 512 via a conduit 516. The conduit 516 and/or the floor 512
may include a screen or filter 520 at an interface between the
fabrication room 508 and the subfloor region 504.
[0039] The heated exhaust air is routed to a heat exchanger 524 to
cool the heated exhaust air. A first blower 528 is arranged to draw
the heated exhaust air from the conduit 516 into the heat exchanger
524. A second blower 532 is arranged to draw cooled air into a
conduit 536 to be provided to the fabrication room 508. Adaptors
540 may be provided to connect the conduit 516 to the first blower
528, to connect the first blower 528 to the heat exchanger 524, to
connect the heat exchanger 524 to the second blower 532, and to
connect the second blower 532 to the conduit 536. At least one
sensor 545 may be arranged to sense parameters of the air at
various locations within the assembly 500 (e.g., temperature,
pressure, flow rate, etc.). For example only, the sensor 545 may
correspond to a thermocouple. Although shown on opposing sides of
the heat exchanger 524 (e.g., on an upstream side and a downstream
side of the heat exchanger 524, respectively), in some examples the
first blower 528 and the second blower 532 may each be arranged on
a same side of the heat exchanger 524. In one example, the first
blower 528 and the second blower 532 are both arranged on the
upstream side of the heat exchanger 524. In another example, the
first blower 528 and the second blower 532 are both arranged on the
downstream side of the heat exchanger 524.
[0040] Referring now to FIG. 6, an example thermal management
method 600 begins at 604. At 608, the method 600 begins to perform
a processing step on a substrate. For example, the method 600
performs the processing step within a process module of a substrate
processing tool. At 612, the method 600 determines whether to power
on, or continue powering on, a thermal management system (e.g., a
blower and/or a heat exchanger). For example, the method 600 may
power on the thermal management system in response to the substrate
processing tool being turned on, in response to a processing step
being initiated, in response to a temperature of the process module
reaching a threshold, etc. If true, the method 600 continues to
616. If false, the method continues to 620. At 620, the method 600
determines whether the processing step is complete. If true, the
method 600 ends at 624. If false, the method 600 continues to
612.
[0041] At 616, the method 600 determines whether to adjust one or
more components of the thermal management system based on
respective monitored parameters. For example, adjustable components
include, but are not limited to, dampers, heat exchangers, and
blowers. The respective monitored parameters include, but are not
limited to, a temperature of heated exhaust air, a temperature of
cooled air returned from the thermal management system, a flow rate
of the heated exhaust air out of the substrate processing tool, a
flow rate of the cooled air, a pressure within a manifold, etc. At
628, the method 600 selectively adjusts the one or more components
of the thermal management system and continues to 620.
[0042] The foregoing description is merely illustrative in nature
and is in no way intended to limit the disclosure, its application,
or uses. The broad teachings of the disclosure can be implemented
in a variety of forms. Therefore, while this disclosure includes
particular examples, the true scope of the disclosure should not be
so limited since other modifications will become apparent upon a
study of the drawings, the specification, and the following claims.
It should be understood that one or more steps within a method may
be executed in different order (or concurrently) without altering
the principles of the present disclosure. Further, although each of
the embodiments is described above as having certain features, any
one or more of those features described with respect to any
embodiment of the disclosure can be implemented in and/or combined
with features of any of the other embodiments, even if that
combination is not explicitly described. In other words, the
described embodiments are not mutually exclusive, and permutations
of one or more embodiments with one another remain within the scope
of this disclosure.
[0043] Spatial and functional relationships between elements (for
example, between modules, circuit elements, semiconductor layers,
etc.) are described using various terms, including "connected,"
"engaged," "coupled," "adjacent," "next to," "on top of," "above,"
"below," and "disposed." Unless explicitly described as being
"direct," when a relationship between first and second elements is
described in the above disclosure, that relationship can be a
direct relationship where no other intervening elements are present
between the first and second elements, but can also be an indirect
relationship where one or more intervening elements are present
(either spatially or functionally) between the first and second
elements. As used herein, the phrase at least one of A, B, and C
should be construed to mean a logical (A OR B OR C), using a
non-exclusive logical OR, and should not be construed to mean "at
least one of A, at least one of B, and at least one of C."
[0044] In some implementations, a controller is part of a system,
which may be part of the above-described examples. Such systems can
comprise semiconductor processing equipment, including a processing
tool or tools, chamber or chambers, a platform or platforms for
processing, and/or specific processing components (a wafer
pedestal, a gas flow system, etc.). These systems may be integrated
with electronics for controlling their operation before, during,
and after processing of a semiconductor wafer or substrate. The
electronics may be referred to as the "controller," which may
control various components or subparts of the system or systems.
The controller, depending on the processing requirements and/or the
type of system, may be programmed to control any of the processes
disclosed herein, including the delivery of processing gases,
temperature settings (e.g., heating and/or cooling), pressure
settings, vacuum settings, power settings, radio frequency (RF)
generator settings, RF matching circuit settings, frequency
settings, flow rate settings, fluid delivery settings, positional
and operation settings, wafer transfers into and out of a tool and
other transfer tools and/or load locks connected to or interfaced
with a specific system.
[0045] Broadly speaking, the controller may be defined as
electronics having various integrated circuits, logic, memory,
and/or software that receive instructions, issue instructions,
control operation, enable cleaning operations, enable endpoint
measurements, and the like. The integrated circuits may include
chips in the form of firmware that store program instructions,
digital signal processors (DSPs), chips defined as application
specific integrated circuits (ASICs), and/or one or more
microprocessors, or microcontrollers that execute program
instructions (e.g., software). Program instructions may be
instructions communicated to the controller in the form of various
individual settings (or program files), defining operational
parameters for carrying out a particular process on or for a
semiconductor wafer or to a system. The operational parameters may,
in some embodiments, be part of a recipe defined by process
engineers to accomplish one or more processing steps during the
fabrication of one or more layers, materials, metals, oxides,
silicon, silicon dioxide, surfaces, circuits, and/or dies of a
wafer.
[0046] The controller, in some implementations, may be a part of or
coupled to a computer that is integrated with the system, coupled
to the system, otherwise networked to the system, or a combination
thereof. For example, the controller may be in the "cloud" or all
or a part of a fab host computer system, which can allow for remote
access of the wafer processing. The computer may enable remote
access to the system to monitor current progress of fabrication
operations, examine a history of past fabrication operations,
examine trends or performance metrics from a plurality of
fabrication operations, to change parameters of current processing,
to set processing steps to follow a current processing, or to start
a new process. In some examples, a remote computer (e.g. a server)
can provide process recipes to a system over a network, which may
include a local network or the Internet. The remote computer may
include a user interface that enables entry or programming of
parameters and/or settings, which are then communicated to the
system from the remote computer. In some examples, the controller
receives instructions in the form of data, which specify parameters
for each of the processing steps to be performed during one or more
operations. It should be understood that the parameters may be
specific to the type of process to be performed and the type of
tool that the controller is configured to interface with or
control. Thus as described above, the controller may be
distributed, such as by comprising one or more discrete controllers
that are networked together and working towards a common purpose,
such as the processes and controls described herein. An example of
a distributed controller for such purposes would be one or more
integrated circuits on a chamber in communication with one or more
integrated circuits located remotely (such as at the platform level
or as part of a remote computer) that combine to control a process
on the chamber.
[0047] Without limitation, example systems may include a plasma
etch chamber or module, a deposition chamber or module, a
spin-rinse chamber or module, a metal plating chamber or module, a
clean chamber or module, a bevel edge etch chamber or module, a
physical vapor deposition (PVD) chamber or module, a chemical vapor
deposition (CVD) chamber or module, an atomic layer deposition
(ALD) chamber or module, an atomic layer etch (ALE) chamber or
module, an ion implantation chamber or module, a track chamber or
module, and any other semiconductor processing systems that may be
associated or used in the fabrication and/or manufacturing of
semiconductor wafers.
[0048] As noted above, depending on the process step or steps to be
performed by the tool, the controller might communicate with one or
more of other tool circuits or modules, other tool components,
cluster tools, other tool interfaces, adjacent tools, neighboring
tools, tools located throughout a factory, a main computer, another
controller, or tools used in material transport that bring
containers of wafers to and from tool locations and/or load ports
in a semiconductor manufacturing factory.
* * * * *