Method and system for automatically replacing CTC wafer of infiltration type photoetching machine
Through the automatic replacement method of CTC wafers controlled by the EAP system, the problem of offline shutdown in the CTC wafer replacement in the immersive lithography machine is solved, efficient wafer replacement is achieved, and production efficiency and capacity are improved.
Patent Information
- Application Number
- CN202510398547.X
- Authority / Receiving Office
- CN · China
- Patent Type
- Applications(China)
- Current Assignee / Owner
- Filing Date
- 2025-03-31
- Publication Date
- 2025-07-04
AI Technical Summary
In existing immersive lithography machines, CTC wafer replacement needs to be shut down offline, and frequent manual operations affect production efficiency and capacity.
The EAP system of the wafer manufacturer is used to control the track machine and the immersive lithography machine to realize automatic replacement of CTC wafers, including HMDS preprocessing and automatic instruction control. The wafer carrier position exchange technology is used to ensure that the new CTC wafers replace the old CTC wafers.
Significantly shorten the CTC wafer replacement time, improve the running time of the immersive lithography machine, and improve production efficiency and production capacity.
Smart Images
Figure CN120261365A_ABST
Abstract
Description
Technical Field
[0001] The present invention relates to the field of semiconductor integrated circuit manufacturing, and particularly to an automatic wafer replacement method for the chuck temperature condition (CTC) of an immersion lithography machine, and also to an automatic CTC wafer replacement system for an immersion lithography machine. Background Art
[0002] In various processing technologies of semiconductor devices, lithography is at the core of the silicon wafer processing process. Its essence is to copy the temporary circuit structure onto the silicon wafer that needs to be etched and ion-implanted. In this step, characteristic patterns are engraved on the photoresist by exposure and development, and then the patterns on the photomask are transferred to the substrate through the etching process. For lithography equipment, the immersion lithography machine is the core equipment for critical lithography levels. Due to the design of the immersion device, in order to keep it constantly in the immersion system during normal operation and idle periods of the lithography machine, 2 CTC wafers are always required to be in the wafer chuck, which can not only prevent the immersion water from flowing onto the wafer chuck, but also maintain good temperature control performance of the wafer chuck, thereby improving the OVL performance of the wafer product and increasing the yield.
[0003] The CTC wafers in the existing immersion lithography machines will accumulate particulate matter due to long-term use, which will indirectly contaminate the immersion device of the lithography machine, so they need to be replaced regularly. The current replacement mode is in the offline shutdown state, and manual replacement of CTC wafers is required, and production operations cannot be carried out during the process. As Figure 1 shown, it is the operation timing diagram of the immersion lithography machine when using the existing CTC wafer replacement method for the immersion lithography machine; in time period 101, the immersion lithography machine will perform normal production operations, and in time period 102, manual CTC wafer replacement will be carried out. Time period 102 includes a 10-minute waiting time before replacement, a 10-minute replacement time, and a 10-minute waiting time after replacement, totaling about 30 minutes. It can be seen that each replacement takes about 30 minutes, and it needs to be replaced once every 4 days. The replacement frequency is high, the Uptime is affected by 0.5%, and the annual cumulative impact on production capacity is 5400 pieces / unit. Summary of the Invention
[0004] The technical problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide an automatic CTC wafer replacement method for an immersion lithography machine, which can realize automatic replacement of CTC wafers, thereby saving the time for replacing CTC wafers, improving the running time (uptime) of the immersion lithography machine, and thus improving production efficiency and production capacity. For this purpose, the present invention also provides an automatic CTC wafer replacement system for an immersion lithography machine.
[0005] To solve the above technical problems, the present invention provides an automatic CTC wafer replacement method for an immersion lithography machine, which includes the following steps:
[0006] Provide a front-opening unified pod (FOUP) containing new CTC wafers, perform a unloading operation through the factory automation dispatch system (EAP) of the wafer fab (FAB), and move the FOUP to the track machine.
[0007] The track machine takes out the new CTC wafer from the FOUP and performs a hexamethyldisilazane (HMDS) pretreatment operation on the new CTC wafer.
[0008] The new CTC wafer is transferred from the track machine to the immersion lithography machine and the CTC wafer is automatically replaced through a first instruction to replace the old CTC wafer in the immersion lithography machine with the new CTC wafer.
[0009] The track machine performs a transfer operation to transfer the old CTC wafer back into the FOUP.
[0010] The EAP completes the shipping operation.
[0011] A further improvement is that the wafer stage of the immersion lithography machine includes a first wafer stage and a second wafer stage, the positions of the first wafer stage and the second wafer stage can be interchanged, one of the first wafer stage and the second wafer stage is located at the measurement end and the other of the first wafer stage and the second wafer stage is located at the exposure end.
[0012] The number of the old CTC wafers is 2.
[0013] Before the automatic replacement of the CTC wafer, one old CTC wafer is placed on each of the first wafer stage and the second wafer stage. The first old CTC wafer is located at the measurement end and the second old CTC wafer is located at the exposure end.
[0014] The number of the new CTC wafers is 2.
[0015] A further improvement is that the operation steps of the automatic replacement of the CTC wafer include:
[0016] Transfer the first new CTC wafer from the inlet of the immersion lithography machine to the pre-aligner and perform a pre-alignment operation in the pre-aligner.
[0017] The arm picks up the first new CTC wafer. At the same time, the first old CTC wafer at the measurement end is transferred to the out-arm and the second new CTC wafer is transferred to the pre-aligner for the pre-alignment operation.
[0018] Transfer the first new CTC wafer to the wafer carrier on the measurement end, and exchange the positions of the wafer carriers on the measurement end and the exposure end to transfer the first new CTC wafer to the exposure end. Meanwhile, the transfer arm obtains the second new CTC wafer and the first old CTC wafer and transfers them from the outgoing arm to the wafer storage unit.
[0019] After the position exchange of the wafer carrier is completed, the first new CTC wafer has been transferred to the exposure end and the second old CTC wafer has been transferred to the measurement end, transfer the first old CTC wafer from the wafer storage unit through the exit out of the immersion lithography machine to the track machine.
[0020] Transfer the second old CTC wafer to the outgoing arm, and the second new CTC wafer reaches the wafer carrier on the measurement end from the transfer arm; then, the second old CTC wafer reaches the wafer storage unit from the outgoing arm and is transferred out of the immersion lithography machine through the exit to the track machine.
[0021] A further improvement is that the first instruction is implemented through the EAP job instruction.
[0022] A further improvement is that before automatically replacing the CTC wafer, it is necessary to keep the communication codes of the EAP job instruction and the job instruction of the immersion lithography machine consistent.
[0023] The immersion lithography machine has a job type that supports the automatic replacement mode of the CTC wafer, and the immersion lithography machine communicates with the EAP by sending SECS international general instruction codes.
[0024] A further improvement is that after the old CTC wafer is transferred back into the FOUP, the position of the old CTC wafer in the FOUP is the same as the position of the new CTC wafer replacing the old CTC wafer in the FOUP.
[0025] A further improvement is that in the shipping operation, the EAP issues an instruction to move the FOUP away through the overhead crane system.
[0026] To solve the above technical problems, the automatic CTC wafer replacement system of the immersion lithography machine provided by the present invention includes: EAP, track machine and immersion lithography machine.
[0027] The EAP is used to control the operations of the track machine and the immersion lithography machine, and the operation steps include:
[0028] Provide a FOUP equipped with a new CTC wafer, perform the unloading operation through the EAP, and move the FOUP to the track machine.
[0029] The track machine takes out the new CTC wafer from the FOUP and performs the HMDS pretreatment operation on the new CTC wafer.
[0030] The new CTC wafer is transferred from the track machine to the immersion lithography machine and the CTC wafer is automatically replaced by the first instruction to replace the old CTC wafer in the immersion lithography machine with the new CTC wafer.
[0031] The track machine performs the transfer operation to transfer the old CTC wafer back into the FOUP.
[0032] The shipping operation is completed by the EAP.
[0033] A further improvement is that the wafer carrier of the immersion lithography machine includes a first wafer carrier and a second wafer carrier, the positions of the first wafer carrier and the second wafer carrier can be interchanged, one of the first wafer carrier and the second wafer carrier is located at the measurement end and the other of the first wafer carrier and the second wafer carrier is located at the exposure end.
[0034] The number of the old CTC wafers is 2.
[0035] Before the automatic replacement of the CTC wafer, one old CTC wafer is placed on each of the first wafer carrier and the second wafer carrier. The first old CTC wafer is located at the measurement end and the second old CTC wafer is located at the exposure end.
[0036] The number of the new CTC wafers is 2.
[0037] A further improvement is that the operation steps of the automatic replacement of the CTC wafer include:
[0038] Transfer the first new CTC wafer from the inlet of the immersion lithography machine to the pre-aligning unit and perform the pre-aligning operation in the pre-aligning unit.
[0039] The transfer arm obtains the first new CTC wafer. At the same time, the first old CTC wafer at the measurement end is transferred to the outgoing arm and the second new CTC wafer is transferred to the pre-aligning unit to perform the pre-aligning operation.
[0040] Transfer the first new CTC wafer to the wafer carrier stage at the measurement end, and swap the positions of the wafer carrier stages at the measurement end and the exposure end to transfer the first new CTC wafer to the exposure end. Meanwhile, the transfer arm retrieves the second new CTC wafer and the first old CTC wafer from the outgoing arm and transfers them to the wafer storage unit.
[0041] After the position swapping of the wafer carrier stage is completed, the first new CTC wafer has been transferred to the exposure end and the second old CTC wafer has been transferred to the measurement end. Transfer the first old CTC wafer from the wafer storage unit out of the immersion lithography machine through the exit to the track machine.
[0042] Transfer the second old CTC wafer to the outgoing arm, and the second new CTC wafer reaches the wafer carrier stage at the measurement end from the transfer arm; afterwards, the second old CTC wafer reaches the wafer storage unit from the outgoing arm and is transferred out of the immersion lithography machine through the exit to the track machine.
[0043] A further improvement is that the first instruction is implemented through the EAP job instruction.
[0044] A further improvement is that before automatically replacing the CTC wafer, it is necessary to keep the communication codes of the EAP job instruction and the job instruction of the immersion lithography machine consistent.
[0045] The immersion lithography machine has a job type that supports the automatic replacement mode of the CTC wafer, and the immersion lithography machine communicates with the EAP by sending SECS international general instruction codes.
[0046] A further improvement is that after the old CTC wafer is transferred back into the FOUP, the position of the old CTC wafer in the FOUP is the same as the position of the new CTC wafer that replaces the old CTC wafer in the FOUP.
[0047] A further improvement is that in the shipping operation, the EAP issues an instruction to transfer the FOUP away through the overhead crane system.
[0048] The present invention uses the EAP available in the wafer fabrication plant itself for unloading operations, and can control the operations of the track machine and the immersion lithography machine through the EAP. Among them, the track machine performs HMDS pretreatment operations on the new CTC wafer before the automatic replacement of the CTC wafer, which can ensure the quality of the new CTC wafer. The immersion lithography machine completes the automatic replacement of the CTC wafer under the control of the first instruction. The track machine can also perform a transfer operation after the automatic replacement of the CTC wafer to transfer the old CTC wafer out. Therefore, the present invention can achieve the automatic replacement of the CTC wafer, thereby saving the time for replacing the CTC wafer. Compared with the manual replacement of the CTC wafer in the existing method, the present invention can improve the uptime of the immersion lithography machine, thereby improving production efficiency and production capacity. Description of the Drawings
[0049] The present invention will be further described in detail below in conjunction with the drawings and specific embodiments:
[0050] Figure 1 is the operation timing diagram of the immersion lithography machine when using the existing method for replacing the CTC wafer of the immersion lithography machine;
[0051] Figure 2 is the flowchart of the method for automatically replacing the CTC wafer of the immersion lithography machine according to the embodiment of the present invention;
[0052] Figure 3 is the operation timing diagram of the immersion lithography machine when using the method for automatically replacing the CTC wafer of the immersion lithography machine according to the embodiment of the present invention;
[0053] Figures 4A - 4E is the wafer flow diagram of the automatic replacement of the CTC wafer in the method for automatically replacing the CTC wafer of the immersion lithography machine according to the embodiment of the present invention. Detailed Description of the Embodiments
[0054] As Figure 2 shown, it is the flowchart of the method for automatically replacing the CTC wafer of the immersion lithography machine according to the embodiment of the present invention; as Figures 4A to 4E shown, it is the wafer flow diagram of the automatic replacement of the CTC wafer in the method for automatically replacing the CTC wafer of the immersion lithography machine according to the embodiment of the present invention; the method for automatically replacing the CTC wafer of the immersion lithography machine according to the embodiment of the present invention includes the following steps:
[0055] Step S101: Provide a FOUP loaded with a new CTC wafer, and perform an unloading operation through the EAP of the FAB, and the FOUP moves to the track machine.
[0056] Step S102: The track machine takes out the new CTC wafer from the FOUP and performs HMDS pretreatment operations on the new CTC wafer.
[0057] HMDS is a waterproof functional layer, and the wafer processed by HMDS can be located in the immersion device.
[0058] Step S103: The new CTC wafer is transferred from the track machine to the immersion lithography machine, and the CTC wafer in the immersion lithography machine is automatically replaced by the new CTC wafer through the first instruction.
[0059] In the embodiment of the present invention, the wafer stage of the immersion lithography machine includes a first wafer stage and a second wafer stage, and the positions of the first wafer stage and the second wafer stage can be interchanged. As Figure 4A shown, one of the first wafer stage and the second wafer stage is located at the measurement end 305a, and the other of the first wafer stage and the second wafer stage is located at the exposure end 305b. Figure 4A In, the measurement end 305a is also represented by M, and the exposure end 305b is also represented by E.
[0060] The number of the old CTC wafers is 2.
[0061] Before the automatic replacement of the CTC wafer, one old CTC wafer is placed on each of the first wafer stage and the second wafer stage. The first old CTC wafer 307a is located at the measurement end 305a, and the second old CTC wafer 307b is located at the exposure end 305b.
[0062] The number of the new CTC wafers is 2.
[0063] The operation steps of the automatic replacement of the CTC wafer include:
[0064] Step S103a: As Figure 4A shown, the first new CTC wafer 306a is transferred from the inlet 301a of the immersion lithography machine to the pre-alignment unit 302 and pre-alignment operation is performed in the pre-alignment unit 302. Figure 4A In, the pre-alignment unit 302 is also represented by PA, and the transfer arm 303a is also represented by LR.
[0065] Step S103b: As Figure 4B shown, the transfer arm 303a obtains the first new CTC wafer 306a. At the same time, the first old CTC wafer 307a at the measurement end 305a is transferred to the transfer-out arm 303b, and the second new CTC wafer 306b is transferred to the pre-alignment unit 302 for the pre-alignment operation. Figure 4B In, the transfer-out arm 303b is also represented by UR.
[0066] Step S103c, as Figure 4C shown, transfer the first new CTC wafer 306a to the wafer carrier on the measurement end 305a, and swap the positions of the wafer carriers on the measurement end 305a and the exposure end 305b to transfer the first new CTC wafer 306a to the exposure end 305b. Meanwhile, the transfer arm 303a obtains the second new CTC wafer 306b and the first old CTC wafer 307a from the outgoing arm 303b and transfers them to the wafer storage unit 304. Figure 4C In Figure 4C , the rotation arrow indicates the position swap of the wafer carriers on the measurement end 305a and the exposure end 305b.
[0067] Step S103d, as Figure 4D shown, after the position swap of the wafer carriers is completed, the first new CTC wafer 306a has been transferred to the exposure end 305b and the second old CTC wafer 307b has been transferred to the measurement end 305a. Transfer the first old CTC wafer 307a from the wafer storage unit 304 out of the immersion lithography machine through the exit 301b to the track machine.
[0068] Step S103e, as Figure 4E shown, transfer the second old CTC wafer 307b to the outgoing arm 303b, and the second new CTC wafer 306b arrives at the wafer carrier on the measurement end 305a from the transfer arm 303a; then, the second old CTC wafer 307b arrives at the wafer storage unit 304 from the outgoing arm 303b and is transferred out of the immersion lithography machine through the exit 301b to the track machine.
[0069] In the embodiment of the present invention, the first instruction is implemented by an EAP job instruction.
[0070] Before performing the automatic replacement of the CTC wafer, it is necessary to keep the communication codes of the EAP job instruction and the job instruction of the immersion lithography machine consistent.
[0071] The immersion lithography machine has a job type that supports the automatic replacement mode of the CTC wafer (different from the job type of the traditional production mode), and the immersion lithography machine communicates with the EAP by sending SECS international general instruction codes.
[0072] Step S104, the track machine performs a transfer operation to transfer the old CTC wafer back into the FOUP.
[0073] In an embodiment of the present invention, after the old CTC wafer is returned to the FOUP, the position of the old CTC wafer in the FOUP is the same as the position of the new CTC wafer that replaces the old CTC wafer in the FOUP; keeping the positions of the CTC wafers the same can prevent problems of inconsistent mapping in subsequent operations; mapping is the mapping relationship between the wafer position and the wafer status in the FOUP, which can be sensed by a sensor.
[0074] Step S105: The EAP completes the shipping operation.
[0075] In the shipping operation, the FOUP is moved away through the overhead crane system by issuing an instruction through the EAP.
[0076] The embodiment of the present invention uses the EAP possessed by the wafer manufacturing factory itself to perform the unloading operation, and can control the operations of the track machine and the immersion lithography machine through the EAP. Among them, the track machine performs HMDS pretreatment operation on the new CTC wafer before the automatic replacement of the CTC wafer, which can ensure the quality of the new CTC wafer. The immersion lithography machine completes the automatic replacement of the CTC wafer under the control of the first instruction. The track machine can also perform a transfer operation after the automatic replacement of the CTC wafer to transfer the old CTC wafer out. Therefore, the embodiment of the present invention can realize the automatic replacement of the CTC wafer, thereby saving the time for replacing the CTC wafer. Compared with the manual replacement of the CTC wafer in the existing method, the embodiment of the present invention can improve the uptime of the immersion lithography machine, thereby improving production efficiency and production capacity.
[0077] As Figure 3 shown, it is the operation timing diagram of the immersion lithography machine when using the method for automatically replacing the CTC wafer of the immersion lithography machine according to the embodiment of the present invention; in time period 201, the immersion lithography machine performs normal production operations, and in time period 202, the automatic replacement of the CTC wafer is performed, and time period 202 only takes 1 minute. And Figure 1 compared, the embodiment of the present invention can greatly save the time for replacing the CTC wafer. In this way, the time for the normal production operation of the immersion lithography machine, that is, time period 201, will increase, thereby improving the uptime of the immersion lithography machine.
[0078] The system for automatically replacing the CTC wafer of the immersion lithography machine according to the embodiment of the present invention includes: an EAP, a track machine, and an immersion lithography machine.
[0079] The EAP is used to control the operations of the track machine and the immersion lithography machine, and the operation steps include:
[0080] Step S101: Provide a FOUP containing a new CTC wafer, perform an unloading operation through the EAP of the FAB, and the FOUP moves to the track machine.
[0081] Step S102: The track machine takes out the new CTC wafer from the FOUP and performs a hexamethyldisilazane (HMDS) pretreatment operation on the new CTC wafer.
[0082] Step S103: The new CTC wafer is transferred from the track machine to the immersion lithography machine, and the old CTC wafer in the immersion lithography machine is automatically replaced with the new CTC wafer by a first instruction.
[0083] In an embodiment of the present invention, the wafer stage of the immersion lithography machine includes a first wafer stage and a second wafer stage, and the positions of the first wafer stage and the second wafer stage can be interchanged. As Figure 4A shown, one of the first wafer stage and the second wafer stage is located at the measurement end 305a, and the other of the first wafer stage and the second wafer stage is located at the exposure end 305b. Figure 4A In the figure, the measurement end 305a is also denoted by M, and the exposure end 305b is also denoted by E.
[0084] The number of the old CTC wafers is 2.
[0085] Before the automatic replacement of the CTC wafer, one old CTC wafer is placed on each of the first wafer stage and the second wafer stage. The first old CTC wafer 307a is located at the measurement end 305a, and the second old CTC wafer 307b is located at the exposure end 305b.
[0086] The number of the new CTC wafers is 2.
[0087] The operation steps of the automatic replacement of the CTC wafer include:
[0088] Step S103a: As Figure 4A shown, the first new CTC wafer 306a is transferred from the inlet 301a of the immersion lithography machine to the pre-alignment unit 302 and a pre-alignment operation is performed in the pre-alignment unit 302. Figure 4A In the figure, the pre-alignment unit 302 is also denoted by PA, and the transfer arm 303a is also denoted by LR.
[0089] Step S103b: As Figure 4B shown, the transfer arm 303a picks up the first new CTC wafer 306a. At the same time, the first old CTC wafer 307a at the measurement end 305a is transferred to the transfer-out arm 303b, and the second new CTC wafer 306b is transferred to the pre-alignment unit 302 for the pre-alignment operation.Figure 4B Among them, the outgoing arm 303b is also represented by UR.
[0090] Step S103c: As Figure 4C shown, transfer the first new CTC wafer 306a to the wafer carrier on the measurement end 305a and swap the positions of the wafer carriers of the measurement end 305a and the exposure end 305b to transfer the first new CTC wafer 306a to the exposure end 305b. Meanwhile, the incoming arm 303a obtains the second new CTC wafer 306b and the first old CTC wafer 307a and transfers them from the outgoing arm 303b to the wafer storage unit 304. Figure 4C Among them, a rotation arrow is used to indicate the position swap of the wafer carriers of the measurement end 305a and the exposure end 305b.
[0091] Step S103d: As Figure 4D shown, the position swap of the wafer carrier is completed. The first new CTC wafer 306a has been transferred to the exposure end 305b and the second old CTC wafer 307b has been transferred to the measurement end 305a. Transfer the first old CTC wafer 307a from the wafer storage unit 304 out of the immersion lithography machine through the outlet 301b to the track tool.
[0092] Step S103e: As Figure 4E shown, transfer the second old CTC wafer 307b to the outgoing arm 303b, and the second new CTC wafer 306b reaches the wafer carrier on the measurement end 305a from the incoming arm 303a; then, the second old CTC wafer 307b reaches the wafer storage unit 304 from the outgoing arm 303b and is transferred out of the immersion lithography machine through the outlet 301b to the track tool.
[0093] In the embodiment of the present invention, the first instruction is implemented by an EAP job instruction.
[0094] Before performing the automatic replacement of the CTC wafer, it is necessary to keep the communication codes of the EAP job instruction and the job instruction of the immersion lithography machine consistent.
[0095] The immersion lithography machine has a job type that supports the automatic replacement mode of the CTC wafer, and the immersion lithography machine communicates with the EAP by sending SECS international general instruction codes.
[0096] Step S104: The track tool performs a transfer operation to transfer the old CTC wafer back into the FOUP.
[0097] In an embodiment of the present invention, after the old CTC wafer is returned to the FOUP, the position of the old CTC wafer in the FOUP is the same as the position of the new CTC wafer that replaces the old CTC wafer in the FOUP.
[0098] Step S105: The EAP completes the shipping operation.
[0099] In the shipping operation, the EAP issues an instruction to move the FOUP away through the overhead crane system.
[0100] The present invention has been described in detail through specific embodiments, but these do not constitute a limitation to the present invention. Without departing from the principle of the present invention, those skilled in the art can also make many deformations and improvements, which should also be regarded as the protection scope of the present invention.
Claims
1. An automatic CTC wafer replacement method for an immersion lithography machine, characterized in that, It includes the following steps: Provide a FOUP loaded with new CTC wafers, perform an unloading operation through the EAP, and move the FOUP to the track station; The track station takes out the new CTC wafer from the FOUP and performs an HMDS pretreatment operation on the new CTC wafer; The new CTC wafer is transferred from the track station to an immersion lithography machine and the CTC wafer is automatically replaced through a first instruction to replace the old CTC wafer in the immersion lithography machine with the new CTC wafer; The track station performs a transfer operation to transfer the old CTC wafer back into the FOUP; The EAP completes the shipping operation.
2. The CTC wafer automatic replacement method for an immersion lithography machine according to claim 1, wherein: The wafer stage of the immersion lithography machine includes a first wafer stage and a second wafer stage. The positions of the first wafer stage and the second wafer stage can be interchanged. One of the first wafer stage and the second wafer stage is located at the measurement end and the other of the first wafer stage and the second wafer stage is located at the exposure end; The number of the old CTC wafers is 2; Before the automatic replacement of the CTC wafer, one old CTC wafer is placed on each of the first wafer stage and the second wafer stage. The first old CTC wafer is located at the measurement end and the second old CTC wafer is located at the exposure end; The number of the new CTC wafers is 2.
3. The CTC wafer automatic replacement method for an immersion lithography machine according to claim 2, wherein: The operation steps of the automatic replacement of the CTC wafer include: Transfer the first new CTC wafer from the inlet of the immersion lithography machine to the pre-alignment unit and perform a pre-alignment operation in the pre-alignment unit; The transfer arm obtains the first new CTC wafer. At the same time, the first old CTC wafer at the measurement end is transferred to the transfer-out arm and the second new CTC wafer is transferred to the pre-alignment unit for the pre-alignment operation; Transfer the first new CTC wafer to the wafer stage at the measurement end and interchange the positions of the wafer stages at the measurement end and the exposure end to transfer the first new CTC wafer to the exposure end. At the same time, the transfer arm obtains the second new CTC wafer and the first old CTC wafer is transferred from the transfer-out arm to the wafer storage unit; After the position interchange of the wafer stage is completed, the first new CTC wafer has been transferred to the exposure end and the second old CTC wafer has been transferred to the measurement end. Transfer the first old CTC wafer from the wafer storage unit out of the immersion lithography machine through the outlet to the track station; Transfer the second old CTC wafer to the transfer-out arm. The second new CTC wafer reaches the wafer stage at the measurement end from the transfer arm; then, the second old CTC wafer reaches the wafer storage unit from the transfer-out arm and is transferred out of the immersion lithography machine through the outlet to the track station.
4. The CTC wafer automatic replacement method for an immersion lithography machine according to claim 3, characterized in that: The first instruction is implemented through an EAP job instruction.
5. The automatic CTC wafer replacement method for an immersion lithography machine according to claim 4, characterized in that: Before performing the automatic replacement of the CTC wafer, it is necessary to keep the communication codes of the EAP job instruction and the job instruction of the immersion lithography machine consistent; The immersion lithography machine has a job type that supports the automatic replacement mode of the CTC wafer. The immersion lithography machine maintains communication with the EAP by sending SECS international general instruction codes.
6. The automatic CTC wafer replacement method for an immersion lithography machine according to claim 1, characterized in that: After the old CTC wafer is transferred back into the FOUP, the position of the old CTC wafer in the FOUP is the same as the position of the new CTC wafer that replaces the old CTC wafer in the FOUP.
7. The CTC wafer automatic replacement method for an immersion lithography machine according to claim 1, characterized in that: In the shipping operation, the FOUP is removed by the EAP sending an instruction through the overhead crane system.
8. An immersion lithography machine CTC wafer automatic replacement system, characterized in that, Including: EAP, track machine and immersion lithography machine; The EAP is used to control the operations of the track machine and the immersion lithography machine. The operation steps include: Providing a FOUP containing a new CTC wafer, performing a unloading operation through the EAP, and moving the FOUP to the track machine; The track machine takes out the new CTC wafer from the FOUP and performs HMDS pretreatment operation on the new CTC wafer; The new CTC wafer is transferred from the track machine to the immersion lithography machine and the automatic replacement of the CTC wafer is performed through the first instruction to replace the old CTC wafer in the immersion lithography machine with the new CTC wafer; The track machine performs a transfer operation to transfer the old CTC wafer back into the FOUP; The shipping operation is completed by the EAP.
9. The CTC wafer automatic replacement system of the immersion lithography machine according to claim 8, characterized in that: The wafer stage of the immersion lithography machine includes a first wafer stage and a second wafer stage. The positions of the first wafer stage and the second wafer stage can be interchanged. One of the first wafer stage and the second wafer stage is located at the measurement end and the other of the first wafer stage and the second wafer stage is located at the exposure end; The number of the old CTC wafers is 2; Before the automatic replacement of the CTC wafer, one old CTC wafer is placed on each of the first wafer stage and the second wafer stage. The first old CTC wafer is located at the measurement end and the second old CTC wafer is located at the exposure end; The number of the new CTC wafers is 2.
10. The immersion lithography machine CTC wafer automatic replacement system according to claim 9, wherein: The operation steps of the automatic replacement of the CTC wafer include: Transferring the first new CTC wafer from the inlet of the immersion lithography machine to the pre-alignment unit and performing pre-alignment operation in the pre-alignment unit; The transfer arm obtains the first new CTC wafer. At the same time, the first old CTC wafer at the measurement end is transferred to the outgoing arm and the second new CTC wafer is transferred to the pre-alignment unit for the pre-alignment operation; Transfer the first new CTC wafer to the wafer carrier on the measurement end, and swap the positions of the wafer carriers on the measurement end and the exposure end to transfer the first new CTC wafer to the exposure end. Meanwhile, the transfer arm obtains the second new CTC wafer and the first old CTC wafer and transfers them from the outgoing arm to the wafer storage unit; After the position swapping of the wafer carrier is completed, the first new CTC wafer has been transferred to the exposure end and the second old CTC wafer has been transferred to the measurement end. Transfer the first old CTC wafer from the wafer storage unit out of the immersion lithography machine through the outlet to the track machine; Transfer the second old CTC wafer to the outgoing arm, and the second new CTC wafer reaches the wafer carrier on the measurement end from the transfer arm; afterwards, the second old CTC wafer reaches the wafer storage unit from the outgoing arm and is transferred out of the immersion lithography machine through the outlet to the track machine.
11. The immersion lithography machine CTC wafer automatic replacement system according to claim 10, characterized in that: The first instruction is implemented through the EAP job instruction.
12. The immersion lithography machine CTC wafer automatic replacement system according to claim 11, characterized in that: Before automatically replacing the CTC wafer, it is necessary to keep the communication codes of the EAP job instruction and the job instruction of the immersion lithography machine consistent; The immersion lithography machine has a job type that supports the automatic replacement mode of the CTC wafer, and the immersion lithography machine communicates with the EAP by sending SECS international general instruction codes.
13. The CTC wafer automatic replacement system of the immersion lithography machine according to claim 8, characterized in that: After the old CTC wafer is transferred back into the FOUP, the position of the old CTC wafer in the FOUP is the same as the position of the new CTC wafer that replaces the old CTC wafer in the FOUP.
14. The immersion lithography machine CTC wafer automatic replacement system according to claim 8, characterized in that: In the shipping operation, the FOUP is transferred away through the overhead crane system by sending an instruction through the EAP.