Photolithography machine silicon wafer transmission control method and photolithography machine

Abstract

The present invention provides a method for controlling silicon wafers in a lithography machine and a lithography machine. The method comprises: obtaining operating actions and operating sequences corresponding to different workstations included in the lithography machine, and monitoring the operating status of the different workstations in real time based on the operating actions, wherein the operating status includes a busy state and an idle state; when the operating status corresponding to a workstation is detected to be idle, transferring the silicon wafer that has completed the operating action corresponding to the previous workstation to the workstation corresponding to the idle state according to the operating sequence, so as to perform the operating action corresponding to the workstation corresponding to the idle state, and switching the operating state of the workstation corresponding to the idle state to a busy state, so as to control multiple silicon wafers in parallel; wherein the workstations include a manipulator, a pre-alignment position, and a workbench. Through the present invention, the control efficiency of silicon wafers in the lithography machine is guaranteed, and the production capacity of the lithography machine is further guaranteed.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of system control technology, and in particular to a photolithography machine silicon wafer transmission control method and a photolithography machine. Background Art

[0002] Silicon wafer transmission and control is an important component of the lithography machine, used to transmit and control the silicon wafer at different working positions (i.e., transmission control), and the transmission and control efficiency of the silicon wafer can directly affect the production efficiency of the lithography machine. Specifically, the transmission and control process of the silicon wafer includes: the robotic arm takes the silicon wafer out of the silicon wafer warehouse and transfers it to the pre-alignment position, then the loading robot transfers the silicon wafer to the upper position of the motion platform to transfer the silicon wafer to the motion platform for exposure, after the exposure of the silicon wafer is completed, the exposed silicon wafer is transferred to the lower position of the motion platform, and finally the robotic arm transfers the exposed silicon wafer from the lower position of the motion platform to the silicon wafer warehouse, thus completing the entire transmission and control process of the silicon wafer.

[0003] During the entire transmission and control process of the silicon wafer, the silicon wafer starts from the previous workstation and then is sequentially transferred to the next workstation. Although this method can normally complete the entire transmission and control process of the silicon wafer, the transmission and control time includes the time consumed by each workstation operation and the movement time of the robotic arm during the wafer feeding process. Only after the transmission and control process of a silicon wafer is completed will the second silicon wafer be taken out from the silicon wafer library for operation. As a result, when a silicon wafer is operating at a certain workstation (for example, the silicon wafer is exposed on a moving platform), the other workstations (for example, pre-alignment positions) are all idle, resulting in a defect of low silicon wafer transmission and control efficiency, which further affects the production capacity of the lithography machine.

[0004] In view of this, it is necessary to improve the transmission and control method of the lithography machine in the prior art to solve the above problems. Summary of the Invention

[0005] The purpose of the present invention is to solve the problem of low transmission and control efficiency caused by the fact that the transmission and control of a second silicon wafer is not carried out until the entire transmission and control process of one silicon wafer is completed during the transmission process of silicon wafers in the prior art lithography machine.

[0006] To achieve the above-mentioned object, the present invention provides a photolithography machine silicon wafer transmission control method, comprising:

[0007] Obtaining the operation actions and operation sequences corresponding to different workstations included in the lithography machine, and monitoring the operation status corresponding to the different workstations in real time based on the operation actions, wherein the operation status includes a busy state and an idle state;

[0008] When it is detected that the operation state corresponding to the work position is idle, the silicon chip that has completed the operation action corresponding to the previous work position is transferred from the previous work position to the work position corresponding to the idle state according to the operation sequence, so as to perform the operation action corresponding to the work position corresponding to the idle state, and the operation state of the work position corresponding to the idle state is switched to busy state, so as to control multiple silicon chips in parallel;

[0009] Wherein, the working position includes a manipulator, a pre-alignment position and a workbench.

[0010] As a further improvement of the present invention, the operation sequence is: the robot takes out the non-pre-aligned and unexposed silicon wafer from the wafer box and places it in the pre-alignment position for pre-alignment. After the pre-alignment is completed, the robot places the unexposed silicon wafer on the workbench for exposure. After the exposure is completed, the robot places the exposed silicon wafer in the wafer box.

[0011] As a further improvement of the present invention, the manipulator includes: a first manipulator and a second manipulator;

[0012] The first manipulator is used for transferring silicon wafers between the wafer box and the pre-alignment position and between the workbench and the wafer box, and the second manipulator is used for transferring silicon wafers between the pre-alignment position and the workbench.

[0013] As a further improvement of the present invention, the operation corresponding to the first manipulator includes: placing the non-pre-aligned and unexposed silicon wafers in the wafer cassette in the pre-alignment position and placing the exposed silicon wafers in the workbench in the wafer cassette;

[0014] The two operations are performed alternately.

[0015] or,

[0016] The operation time of the silicon wafer at the pre-alignment position and the operation time of the silicon wafer on the workbench are set to be performed alternately for a certain number of times.

[0017] As a further improvement of the present invention, the working position includes: an upper sheet position, a main body and a lower sheet position;

[0018] The upper wafer position is used for placing unexposed silicon wafers, the main body is used for exposing the unexposed silicon wafers, and the lower wafer position is used for placing exposed silicon wafers.

[0019] As a further improvement of the present invention, the film box includes: a first film box and a second film box;

[0020] The first wafer box is used to place non-pre-aligned and unexposed silicon wafers, and the second wafer box is used to place exposed silicon wafers.

[0021] As a further improvement of the present invention, the method of transferring the silicon wafer that has completed the operation corresponding to the previous work station from the previous work station to the work station corresponding to the idle state according to the operation sequence includes:

[0022] If the working position corresponding to the idle state is a pre-alignment position, the non-pre-aligned and unexposed silicon wafer is transferred from the robot to the pre-alignment position according to the operation sequence.

[0023] As a further improvement of the present invention, the method of transferring the non-pre-aligned and non-exposed silicon wafer from the robot to the pre-alignment position according to the operation sequence includes:

[0024] Determining whether the silicon wafer transferred by the robot is a non-pre-aligned and non-exposed silicon wafer;

[0025] If so, transferring the silicon wafer transferred by the robot to a pre-alignment position;

[0026] If not, the operation of transferring the silicon wafer transferred by the robot to the pre-alignment position is not performed.

[0027] As a further improvement of the present invention, the method of transferring the silicon wafer that has completed the operation corresponding to the previous work station from the previous work station to the work station corresponding to the idle state according to the operation sequence also includes:

[0028] If the workstation corresponding to the idle state is a workbench, the unexposed silicon wafer is transferred from the robot to the workbench according to the operation sequence.

[0029] Based on the same inventive concept, this application also discloses a photolithography machine,

[0030] Use the photolithography machine silicon wafer control method as described in any of the above inventions to control the silicon wafer

[0031] Compared with the prior art, the present invention has the following beneficial effects:

[0032] When it is monitored that the job status corresponding to the workstation is idle, the silicon wafer that has completed the job action corresponding to the previous workstation is transferred from the previous workstation to the workstation corresponding to the idle status according to the job sequence, so as to execute the job action corresponding to the workstation corresponding to the idle status, and switch the job status corresponding to the workstation corresponding to the idle status to busy status, so as to transmit and control multiple silicon wafers in parallel, thereby ensuring that the silicon wafers are taken out from the wafer box, pre-aligned, exposed and put back in the lithography machine in succession, reducing the waiting time between different workstations, ensuring that each workstation can be effectively utilized, thereby reducing the invalid transmission and control time as a whole, and then improving the transmission and control efficiency of the silicon wafers of the lithography machine, so as to further ensure the production capacity of the lithography machine. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0033] Figure 1A schematic diagram of the steps of a photolithography machine silicon wafer control method shown in the present invention;

[0034] Figure 2 This is a top view of the lithography machine;

[0035] Figure 3 A flow chart for transferring non-pre-aligned and unexposed silicon wafers from a robot to a pre-alignment position according to a job sequence;

[0036] Figure 4 The figure shows a flow chart of transferring the silicon wafer to be exposed from the robot to the workbench according to the job sequence. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0037] The present invention is described in detail below with reference to the various embodiments shown in the accompanying drawings, but it should be noted that these embodiments are not limitations of the present invention, and any equivalent transformations or substitutions in functions, methods, or structures made by ordinary technicians in this field based on these embodiments are all within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0038] Ginseng Figures 1 to 4 As shown, the present invention shows a method for controlling silicon wafers of a lithography machine, the method comprising: obtaining the job actions and job sequences corresponding to different workstations contained in the lithography machine, monitoring the job statuses corresponding to different workstations in real time based on the job actions, monitoring the job statuses corresponding to different workstations in real time based on the job actions, and when it is monitored that the job status corresponding to the workstation is an idle state, transferring the silicon wafer that has executed the job action corresponding to the previous workstation to the workstation corresponding to the idle state from the previous workstation according to the job sequence, so as to execute the job action corresponding to the workstation corresponding to the idle state, and switching the job status of the workstation corresponding to the idle state to a busy state, so as to control multiple silicon wafers in parallel. The application scenario of this photolithography machine silicon wafer transmission and control method is to transmit and control multiple silicon wafers in parallel in the photolithography machine. The silicon wafers are taken out from the wafer box, pre-aligned, exposed and put back in the photolithography machine in succession, reducing the waiting time between different work stations and ensuring that each work station can be effectively utilized, thereby reducing the overall ineffective transmission and control time, and then improving the transmission and control efficiency of the photolithography machine silicon wafers, so as to further ensure the production capacity of the photolithography machine, and solve the problem of low transmission and control efficiency caused by the transmission process of the silicon wafer of the photolithography machine in the prior art that the transmission and control of the second silicon wafer is carried out only after the entire transmission and control process of one silicon wafer is completed.

[0039] Ginseng Figure 1 As shown, the photolithography machine silicon wafer transmission control method includes the following steps S1 to S2.

[0040] Step S1: Obtain the operation actions and operation sequences corresponding to different workstations included in the lithography machine, and monitor the operation status corresponding to the different workstations in real time based on the operation actions.

[0041] For example, Figure 1 As shown, the lithography machine 100 includes: a wafer box 10, a robot (not marked, including a first robot 20 and a second robot 40), a pre-alignment position 30 and a workbench 50; wherein, the wafer box 10 is used to store silicon wafers (including unexposed silicon wafers and exposed silicon wafers), the robot is used to transfer silicon wafers between the wafer box 10, the pre-alignment position 30 and the work position 50, the pre-alignment position 30 is used to pre-align the silicon wafers, and the work position 50 is used to expose the silicon wafers.

[0042] The robot includes a first robot 20 and a second robot 40. The first robot 20 is used to transfer silicon wafers between the wafer cassette 10 and the pre-alignment station 30, and between the workbench 50 and the wafer cassette 10. The second robot 20 is used to transfer silicon wafers between the pre-alignment station 30 and the workbench 50. The wafer cassette 10 includes a first wafer cassette 101 and a second wafer cassette 102. The first wafer cassette 101 is used to hold silicon wafers that have not been pre-aligned and have not been exposed, and the second wafer cassette 102 is used to hold exposed silicon wafers. The workbench 50 includes an upper wafer position 501, a main body 502, and a lower wafer position 503. The upper wafer position 501 is used to hold pre-aligned silicon wafers, the main body 502 is used to expose pre-aligned silicon wafers, and the lower wafer position 503 is used to hold exposed silicon wafers.

[0043] The first film box 101 and the second film box 102 are symmetrically arranged on one side of the first robot 20, and the workbench 50 is arranged on the other side of the first robot 20 relative to the film box 10. Figure 1 From the perspective shown, a pre-alignment station 30 and a second robot 40 are sequentially positioned below the first robot 20. The upper wafer position 501 and lower wafer position 503 of the workbench 50 are positioned on the side close to the second robot 40 and the side close to the first robot 20, respectively. The first robot 20 removes a silicon wafer from the wafer cassette 10 and places it on the pre-alignment station 30. After pre-alignment is completed, the second robot 40 places the pre-aligned silicon wafer on the workbench 50 for exposure. After exposure is completed, the first robot 20 places the exposed silicon wafer back into the wafer cassette 10.

[0044] It should be noted that Figure 1The lithography machine 100 shown is explained illustratively by taking the wafer cassette 10 including the first wafer cassette 101 and the second wafer cassette 102 as an example. Fewer or more wafer cassettes may also be configured, and for example, only one wafer cassette is configured to place non-pre-aligned and unexposed silicon wafers and exposed silicon wafers through one wafer cassette. In actual application, in order to facilitate the distinction between silicon wafers, a preset number of positions from top to bottom may be used to place non-pre-aligned and unexposed silicon wafers, and a preset number of positions from bottom to top may be used to place exposed silicon wafers, or a preset number of positions from bottom to top may be used to place non-pre-aligned and unexposed silicon wafers, and a preset number of positions from top to bottom may be used to place exposed silicon wafers, or, when the robot arm clamps the silicon wafer, the silicon wafer is inspected to determine whether the silicon wafer is a non-pre-aligned and unexposed silicon wafer or an exposed silicon wafer, etc. This embodiment does not make specific limitations.

[0045] Similarly, the above-mentioned robot includes the first robot 20 and the second robot 40 as an example for illustrative explanation. More or fewer robots can also be configured, and for example, one robot or three robots can be configured. When one robot is configured, the transfer of silicon wafers between the wafer box 10, the pre-alignment position 30 and the workbench 50 is realized by one robot. When three robots are configured, the transfer of silicon wafers between the wafer box 10 and the pre-alignment position 30, the pre-alignment position 30 and the workbench 50, and the workbench 50 and the wafer box 10 can be realized respectively by the three robots. The three robots do not interfere with each other, and one robot needs to realize the transfer of silicon wafers between three workstations, which has the problem of low efficiency. Three robots realize the transfer of silicon wafers between three workstations respectively, which easily causes the problem of excessive accessories. Therefore, in this embodiment, the focus is on the consideration of both efficiency and energy saving, and it is preferably configured. Figure 1 Two manipulators (i.e., the first manipulator 20 and the second manipulator 40) are shown, but this does not limit the scope of protection of this application. In the following description, unless otherwise specified, the manipulators refer to the first manipulator 20 and the second manipulator 40. Similarly, the wafer cassette 10 refers to the first wafer cassette 101 and the second wafer cassette 102. The first wafer cassette 101 is used to hold non-pre-aligned and unexposed silicon wafers, and the second wafer cassette 102 is used to hold exposed silicon wafers.

[0046] Specifically, the different workstations included in the lithography machine 100 include: a cassette 10 (i.e., including a first cassette 101 and a second cassette 102), a robot (i.e., including a first robot 20 and a second robot 40), a pre-alignment station 30, and a workbench 50. The operation actions and operation sequences corresponding to the cassette 10, the robot (i.e., the first robot 20 and the second robot 40), the pre-alignment station 30, and the workbench 50 included in the lithography machine 100 are obtained, and the operation status of the cassette 10, the robot, the pre-alignment station 30, and the workbench 50 are monitored in real time based on the operation actions. The operating sequence of each workstation is as follows: the robot (i.e., first robot 20) removes a non-pre-aligned and unexposed silicon wafer from the wafer cassette 10 and places it in the pre-alignment station 30 for pre-alignment. After pre-alignment is completed, the robot (i.e., second robot 40) places the unexposed silicon wafer on the workbench 50 for exposure. After exposure is completed, the robot (i.e., first robot 20) places the exposed silicon wafer in the wafer cassette 10. The operating status includes a busy state and an idle state. The busy state indicates that a silicon wafer is stored at the workstation, while the idle state indicates that no silicon wafer is stored at the workstation.

[0047] The wafer box 10 is used to place silicon wafers. No corresponding specific operation action is set in this application. If the operation status corresponding to the first wafer box 101 is idle, it indicates that there are non-pre-aligned and non-exposed silicon wafers stored in the first wafer box 101; if the operation status corresponding to the first wafer box 101 is busy, it indicates that there are no non-pre-aligned and non-exposed silicon wafers stored in the first wafer box 101, that is, all the silicon wafers in the first wafer box 101 have been transferred and controlled for pre-alignment and exposure and then stored in the second wafer box 102. The staff needs to manually place non-pre-aligned and non-exposed silicon wafers in the first wafer box 101 or replace the first wafer box 101. Similarly, if the operation status corresponding to the second wafer box 102 is idle, it indicates that there is still vacant space in the second wafer box 102 for storing the exposed silicon wafers; if the operation status corresponding to the second wafer box 102 is busy, it indicates that the second wafer box 102 is full of exposed silicon wafers, that is, there is no vacant space in the second wafer box 102 for storing the exposed silicon wafers, and the staff needs to manually recover the exposed silicon wafers or replace the second wafer box 102.

[0048] The manipulators (i.e., including the first manipulator 20 and the second manipulator 40) are used to transfer silicon wafers between the wafer cassette 10, the pre-alignment position 30, and the workstation 50. The corresponding operation is called a transfer operation. Specifically, the first manipulator 20 is used to transfer silicon wafers between the wafer cassette 10 and the pre-alignment position 30, and between the workstation 50 and the wafer cassette 10. The corresponding operation includes placing non-pre-aligned and unexposed silicon wafers in the wafer cassette 10 in the pre-alignment position 30 and placing exposed silicon wafers in the workstation 50 in the wafer cassette 10. If the operation status corresponding to the first manipulator 20 is idle, it indicates that no silicon wafers (i.e., non-pre-aligned and unexposed silicon wafers or exposed silicon wafers) are stored on the first manipulator 20; if the operation status corresponding to the first manipulator 20 is busy, it indicates that silicon wafers (i.e., non-pre-aligned and unexposed silicon wafers or exposed silicon wafers) are stored on the first manipulator 20. Since the operation corresponding to the first robot 20 specifically includes two operation operations, the two operation operations can be performed alternately (that is, in the operation sequence, after the first robot 20 transfers the non-pre-aligned and unexposed silicon wafer from the wafer box 10 to the pre-alignment position 30, the next operation of the first robot 20 is to transfer the exposed silicon wafer to the workbench 50), or, according to the operation time of the silicon wafer at the pre-alignment position 30 and the operation time of the silicon wafer at the workbench 50, a certain number of operation operations are set to be performed alternately (for example, since the operation time of the silicon wafer being exposed on the workbench 50 is much longer than that of the silicon wafer being exposed at the pre-alignment position 30 is the operation time for pre-alignment, the non-pre-aligned and unexposed silicon wafers in the wafer box 10 can be placed in the pre-alignment position 30 twice, and the exposed silicon wafers in the workbench 50 can be placed in the wafer box 10 once. In the operation sequence, after the first robot 20 transfers the non-pre-aligned and unexposed silicon wafers from the wafer box 10 to the pre-alignment position 30, the next operation action of the first robot 20 is still to transfer the non-pre-aligned and unexposed silicon wafers from the wafer box 10 to the pre-alignment position 30, and then the next operation action of the first robot 20 is to place the exposed silicon wafers in the workbench 50 in the wafer box 10). Of course, the first robot 20 may also issue instructions after the pre-alignment position 30 or the workbench 50 completes the corresponding operation. The first robot 20 receives the instructions issued by the pre-alignment position 30 or the workbench 50 to perform the corresponding operation. If the pre-alignment position 30 issues instructions to the first robot 20, the first robot 30 transfers the non-pre-aligned and unexposed silicon wafer from the wafer box 10 to the pre-alignment position 30 after receiving the instructions; if the workbench 50 issues instructions to the first robot 20, the first robot 30 places the exposed silicon wafer in the workbench 50 in the wafer box 10 after receiving the instructions.The corresponding operation of the second robot 40 is to transfer the silicon wafer pre-aligned by the pre-alignment position 30 to the workbench 50. If the corresponding operation status of the second robot 40 is idle, it indicates that there is no silicon wafer stored on the second robot 40 (i.e., pre-aligned silicon wafer); if the corresponding operation of the second robot 40 is busy, it indicates that there is a silicon wafer stored on the second robot 40 (i.e., pre-aligned silicon wafer).

[0049] The pre-alignment position 30 is used to pre-align silicon wafers. If the corresponding operation status of the pre-alignment position 30 is idle, it indicates that no silicon wafer is stored on the pre-alignment position 30. If the corresponding operation status of the pre-alignment position 30 is busy, it indicates that a silicon wafer is stored on the pre-alignment position 30 (the silicon wafer is in the pre-alignment process or has not been removed by the second robot 40 after the pre-alignment is completed). The workbench 50 is used to expose silicon wafers. If the corresponding operation status of the workbench 50 is idle, it indicates that no silicon wafer is stored on the workbench 50. If the corresponding operation status of the workbench 50 is busy, it indicates that a silicon wafer is stored on the workbench 50 (the silicon wafer is in the exposure process or has not been removed by the first robot 20 after the exposure is completed).

[0050] It should be noted that the upper wafer position 501 included in the workbench 50 is used to place unexposed silicon wafers, and it can also be understood as a waiting position (i.e., the upper wafer position 501) for placing silicon wafers waiting to be exposed after pre-alignment; the main body 502 is used to expose unexposed silicon wafers; the lower wafer position 502 is used to place exposed silicon wafers, and it can also be understood as a waiting position (i.e., the lower wafer position 503) for placing silicon wafers waiting to be taken away by the first robot 20 after exposure. In other words, the workbench 50 specifically includes three working positions. After the silicon wafer is pre-aligned, it can be placed in the upper wafer position 501 for waiting, so as to ensure the shortest loading time for the silicon wafer to be exposed, thereby further shortening the control time; similarly, after the silicon wafer is exposed, it can be placed in the lower wafer position 503 for waiting, leaving the main body 502 free for the remaining silicon wafers to be exposed to be exposed, thereby further shortening the control time.

[0051] Step S2: When it is monitored that the job status corresponding to the workstation is in the idle state, the silicon wafer that has completed the job action corresponding to the previous workstation is transferred from the previous workstation to the workstation corresponding to the idle state according to the job sequence to execute the job action corresponding to the workstation corresponding to the idle state, and the job status corresponding to the workstation in the idle state is switched to the busy state to control multiple silicon wafers in parallel.

[0052] Specifically, the different workstations included in the lithography machine 100 are monitored in real time. If the workstation corresponding to the idle state detected is the first robot 20, the silicon wafer to be transferred (i.e., the non-pre-aligned and unexposed silicon wafer stored in the wafer box 10) is transferred from the wafer box 10 to the first robot 20 according to the operation sequence to perform the operation corresponding to the first robot 20, that is, the first robot 20 takes out the non-pre-aligned and unexposed silicon wafer from the wafer box 10, and when the operation state corresponding to the pre-alignment position 30 is the idle state, the non-pre-aligned and unexposed silicon wafer on the first robot 20 is transferred to the pre-alignment position 30.

[0053] If the workstation corresponding to the idle state detected is the pre-alignment station 30, then the non-pre-aligned and unexposed silicon wafer is transferred from the robot (i.e., the first robot 20) to the pre-alignment station 30 according to the operation sequence to perform the operation corresponding to the pre-alignment station 30, that is, the pre-alignment station 30 receives the non-pre-aligned and unexposed silicon wafer transferred from the first robot 20 and performs pre-alignment. Figure 3 As shown, the process of transferring the un-pre-aligned and unexposed silicon wafer from the robot (ie, the first robot 20 ) to the pre-alignment position 30 according to the operation sequence specifically includes the following steps S31 to S33 .

[0054] Step S31 , determining whether the silicon wafer transferred by the robot arm is a non-pre-aligned and non-exposed silicon wafer; if so, executing step S32 ; if not, executing step S33 .

[0055] Step S32: Transfer the silicon wafer to a pre-alignment position.

[0056] Step S33: The operation of transferring the silicon wafer to the pre-alignment position is not performed.

[0057] If the work position corresponding to the monitored idle state is the second robot 40, the silicon wafer to be transferred (i.e., the silicon wafer after pre-alignment in the pre-alignment position 30) is transferred from the pre-alignment position to the second robot 40 according to the operation sequence to perform the corresponding operation action of the second robot 40, that is, the second robot 40 takes out the unexposed silicon wafer from the pre-alignment position 30, and when the operation state corresponding to the workbench 50 is the idle state, the unexposed silicon wafer on the second robot 40 is transferred to the loading position 501.

[0058] If the workstation corresponding to the idle state detected is the workbench 50, the silicon wafer to be exposed (i.e., the unexposed silicon wafer) is transferred from the second robot 40 to the workbench 50 according to the operation sequence, so as to perform the operation corresponding to the workbench 50, that is, the workbench 50 receives the silicon wafer transferred from the second robot 40 and performs exposure. Figure 4 As shown, the process of transferring the silicon wafer to be exposed from the robot (ie, the second robot 40 ) to the workbench 50 according to the operation sequence specifically includes the following steps S41 to S43 .

[0059] Step S41 , determining whether the silicon wafer transferred by the robot is an unexposed silicon wafer; if so, executing step S42 ; if not, executing step S43 .

[0060] Step S42: Transfer the silicon wafer to the workbench.

[0061] Step S43: The operation of transferring the silicon wafer to the workbench is not performed.

[0062] It should be noted that, since the operation sequence is that the robot (i.e., the first robot 20) takes out the non-pre-aligned and non-exposed silicon wafer from the wafer cassette 10 and places it in the pre-alignment position 30 for pre-alignment, after the pre-alignment is completed, the robot (i.e., the second robot 40) places the non-exposed silicon wafer on the workbench 50 for exposure, and after the exposure is completed, the robot (i.e., the first robot 20) places the exposed silicon wafer in the wafer cassette 10. Therefore, in the present application, the silicon wafer needs to be pre-aligned first and then exposed, that is, the silicon wafer that is not pre-aligned must also be unexposed. Therefore, the aforementioned silicon wafer to be pre-aligned (or silicon wafer that is not pre-aligned) refers to the silicon wafer that is not pre-aligned and unexposed, and the silicon wafer to be exposed (or unexposed silicon wafer) refers to the silicon wafer that has been pre-aligned but not exposed. The robot in the aforementioned step S31 refers to the first robot 20, and the robot in the aforementioned step S41 refers to the second robot 40.

[0063] When it is monitored that the job status corresponding to the work station is in the idle state, the silicon wafer that has completed the job action corresponding to the previous work station is transferred from the previous work station to the work station corresponding to the idle state according to the job sequence to execute the job action corresponding to the work station corresponding to the idle state, and the job status corresponding to the work station corresponding to the idle state is switched to the busy state, so as to transmit and control multiple silicon wafers in parallel, thereby ensuring that the silicon wafers are taken out from the wafer box 10, pre-aligned, exposed and put back in the lithography machine 100 in succession, reducing the waiting time between different work stations, ensuring that each work station can be effectively utilized, thereby reducing the invalid transmission and control time as a whole, and then improving the transmission and control efficiency of the silicon wafers of the lithography machine 100, so as to further ensure the production capacity of the lithography machine 100, and solving the problem of low transmission and control efficiency caused by the transmission process of the silicon wafer of the lithography machine in the prior art that the transmission and control of the second silicon wafer is performed only after the entire transmission and control process of one silicon wafer is completed.

[0064] Based on the same invention idea, Figure 2 As shown, this embodiment also discloses a lithography machine 100, which uses a lithography machine silicon wafer control method disclosed above to control the silicon wafer. The details can be found in the above description and will not be repeated here.

[0065] The series of detailed descriptions listed above are only specific descriptions of feasible implementation methods of the present invention. They are not intended to limit the scope of protection of the present invention. Any equivalent implementation methods or changes that do not deviate from the technical spirit of the present invention should be included in the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0066] It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the present invention is not limited to the details of the exemplary embodiments described above and that the invention can be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics of the invention. Therefore, the embodiments should be considered in all respects as illustrative and non-restrictive, and the scope of the invention is defined by the appended claims, not the foregoing description, and all variations within the meaning and range of equivalents of the claims are intended to be included therein. Any reference sign in a claim should not be construed as limiting the claim to which it relates.

[0067] In addition, it should be understood that although this specification is described in terms of implementation methods, not every implementation method contains only one independent technical solution. This narrative method of the specification is only for the sake of clarity. Those skilled in the art should regard the specification as a whole. The technical solutions in each embodiment can also be appropriately combined to form other implementation methods that can be understood by those skilled in the art.

Claims

1. A photolithography machine silicon wafer control method, characterized in that: include: Obtaining the operation actions and operation sequences corresponding to different workstations included in the lithography machine, and monitoring the operation status corresponding to the different workstations in real time based on the operation actions, wherein the operation status includes a busy state and an idle state; When it is detected that the operation state corresponding to the work position is idle, the silicon chip that has completed the operation action corresponding to the previous work position is transferred from the previous work position to the work position corresponding to the idle state according to the operation sequence, so as to perform the operation action corresponding to the work position corresponding to the idle state, and the operation state of the work position corresponding to the idle state is switched to busy state, so as to control multiple silicon chips in parallel; Wherein, the working position includes a manipulator, a pre-alignment position and a workbench; The operation sequence is as follows: the robot takes out the un-pre-aligned and unexposed silicon wafer from the wafer cassette and places it in the pre-alignment position for pre-alignment. After the pre-alignment is completed, the robot places the unexposed silicon wafer on the workbench for exposure. After the exposure is completed, the robot places the exposed silicon wafer in the wafer cassette. The manipulator includes: a first manipulator and a second manipulator, the first manipulator is used for transferring silicon wafers between the wafer box and the pre-alignment position and between the workbench and the wafer box, and the second manipulator is used for transferring silicon wafers between the pre-alignment position and the workbench.

2. The photolithography machine silicon wafer control method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The operation actions corresponding to the first robot include: placing the unaligned and unexposed silicon wafers in the wafer cassette in the pre-alignment position and placing the exposed silicon wafers in the workbench in the wafer cassette; The two operations are performed alternately. or, The operation time of the silicon wafer at the pre-alignment position and the operation time of the silicon wafer on the workbench are set to be performed alternately for a certain number of times.

3. The photolithography machine silicon wafer control method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The working positions include: a sheet loading position, a main body and a sheet loading position; The upper wafer position is used for placing unexposed silicon wafers, the main body is used for exposing the unexposed silicon wafers, and the lower wafer position is used for placing exposed silicon wafers.

4. The method for controlling silicon wafer transmission of a lithography machine according to claim 1, wherein: The film box includes: a first film box and a second film box; The first wafer box is used to place non-pre-aligned and unexposed silicon wafers, and the second wafer box is used to place exposed silicon wafers.

5. The photolithography machine control method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The method of transferring the silicon chip that has completed the operation corresponding to the previous work station from the previous work station to the work station corresponding to the idle state according to the operation sequence includes: If the working position corresponding to the idle state is a pre-alignment position, the non-pre-aligned and unexposed silicon wafer is transferred from the robot to the pre-alignment position according to the operation sequence.

6. The photolithography machine control method according to claim 5, characterized in that: The method of transferring the non-pre-aligned and non-exposed silicon wafer from the robot to the pre-alignment position according to the operation sequence includes: Determining whether the silicon wafer transferred by the robot is a non-pre-aligned and non-exposed silicon wafer; If so, transferring the silicon wafer transferred by the robot to a pre-alignment position; If not, the operation of transferring the silicon wafer transferred by the robot to the pre-alignment position is not performed.

7. The photolithography machine control method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The method further includes: transferring the silicon chip that has completed the operation action corresponding to the previous work station from the previous work station to the work station corresponding to the idle state according to the operation sequence; If the workstation corresponding to the idle state is a workbench, the unexposed silicon wafer is transferred from the robot to the workbench according to the operation sequence.

8. A photolithography machine, characterized in that: The photolithography machine silicon wafer control method according to any one of claims 1 to 7 is used to control the silicon wafer.

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