Wafer coordinate identification device and semiconductor measurement equipment

Abstract

The utility model provides a wafer coordinate identification device and semiconductor measuring equipment, the wafer coordinate identification device comprises at least one digital laser, the digital laser is arranged along the normal direction of a wafer to be measured, and the projection of the digital laser on the wafer is located in the edge area of the wafer. The digital laser comprises a transmitting end and a receiving end. The transmitting end and the receiving end are located on the two sides of the wafer in the normal direction of the wafer, the transmitting end is used for transmitting optical signals to the wafer, and the receiving end is used for receiving the optical signals penetrating through the wafer. The wafer coordinate recognition device directly recognizes the coordinates of the edge of the wafer through the digital laser, improves the recognition efficiency of the coordinates of the edge of the wafer, and finally improves the detection speed of semiconductor equipment.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This utility model relates to the field of semiconductor technology, specifically to a wafer coordinate identification device and a semiconductor measurement equipment. Background Technology

[0002] Efficiency is paramount in the production of large-scale integrated circuits. With increasing market demand and continuous technological advancements, production line throughput needs to be constantly increased to meet the massive demand for large-scale integrated circuit products. This requires semiconductor equipment, especially metrology equipment, to maintain high precision while achieving faster testing speeds and higher levels of automation. This involves multiple aspects, including the accuracy of metrology equipment, testing speed, optimization of algorithm software, and the application of automation tools. In existing semiconductor metrology equipment, the center position of the wafer is typically determined before performing formal measurements of key parameters.

[0003] Currently, the commonly used method for wafer centering is to use a CCD camera to confirm the position of multiple points on the wafer edge and then calculate the wafer center coordinates. While this method can meet production requirements to some extent, it suffers from low efficiency. This is because the camera needs to identify the coordinates of each point on the wafer edge individually, a process that is relatively time-consuming. This efficiency bottleneck becomes even more pronounced on high-throughput production lines. Utility Model Content

[0004] In view of the problems existing in the prior art described above, this application provides a wafer coordinate identification device and a semiconductor measurement equipment. By directly identifying the coordinates of the wafer edge using a digital laser, the identification efficiency of the wafer edge coordinates is improved, ultimately increasing the detection efficiency of the semiconductor equipment.

[0005] To achieve the above and other related objectives, this utility model provides a wafer coordinate identification device, including at least one digital laser. The digital laser is arranged along the normal direction of the wafer to be measured, and the projection of the digital laser on the wafer is located in the edge region of the wafer. The digital laser includes:

[0006] The transmitter and receiver are located on opposite sides of the wafer along the normal direction of the wafer. The transmitter is used to transmit optical signals to the wafer, and the receiver is used to receive optical signals passing through the wafer.

[0007] Optionally, the number of digital lasers is greater than or equal to 2, each digital laser having a transmitter and a receiver, and the multiple digital lasers are uniformly distributed along the radial direction of the wafer.

[0008] Optionally, the number of digital lasers is one, which has one emitter and multiple receivers, and the multiple receivers are uniformly distributed along the radial direction of the wafer.

[0009] Optionally, the projection of the transmitter on the wafer plane falls into the projection of the receiver on the wafer plane.

[0010] Optionally, the wafer coordinate identification device further includes:

[0011] A support device used to support a wafer; the diameter of the support device is smaller than the diameter of the wafer.

[0012] The control unit is communicatively connected to the carrier to control the rotation of the carrier.

[0013] A fixed plate is positioned above and opposite the support device, with the emitting end of the digital laser located on the side of the fixed plate opposite to the support device.

[0014] Optionally, the wafer coordinate identification device further includes: an optomechanical device for real-time monitoring of wafer defects and dimensional changes, with the fixing plate being the base plate of the optomechanical device.

[0015] Optionally, the receiver of the digital laser is disposed on the side wall of the carrier device.

[0016] Optionally, the distance between the transmitter and receiver of the digital laser is between 90mm and 110mm.

[0017] Optionally, the wafer coordinate identification device further includes: a data processing device, which includes:

[0018] The data acquisition unit is communicatively connected to the receiver of the digital laser to collect the coordinate data of the wafer edge identified by the receiver;

[0019] The data analysis unit communicates with the data acquisition unit to receive coordinate data and process the coordinate data to obtain the coordinates of the wafer center.

[0020] Another aspect of this utility model provides a semiconductor measurement device, including a measurement chamber and a wafer coordinate identification device. The wafer coordinate identification device includes the wafer coordinate identification device described above. The supporting device, digital laser, and optomechanical device of the wafer coordinate identification device are disposed in the measurement chamber. The supporting device is located below the measurement chamber, the optomechanical device is located above the measurement chamber, and the data processing device of the wafer coordinate identification device is located outside the measurement chamber.

[0021] As described above, the wafer coordinate identification device and semiconductor measurement equipment provided by this utility model have at least the following beneficial technical effects:

[0022] The wafer coordinate identification device of this invention includes at least one digital laser. The digital laser is positioned along the normal direction of the wafer under test, and its projection onto the wafer is located in the edge region of the wafer. The digital laser includes a transmitter and a receiver. The transmitter and receiver are located on opposite sides of the wafer along the normal direction. The transmitter emits light signals into the wafer, and the receiver receives light signals passing through the wafer. This wafer coordinate identification device directly identifies the coordinates of the wafer edge using a digital laser, improving the identification efficiency of wafer edge coordinates and ultimately increasing the detection speed of semiconductor equipment. Attached Figure Description

[0023] Figure 1 The diagram shows the structure of the wafer coordinate identification device and measurement chamber provided in Embodiment 1 and Embodiment 2 (optional embodiments) of this utility model.

[0024] Figure 2 This utility model is shown. Figure 1 A schematic diagram showing the positional relationship between the wafer and the emitter of the digital laser.

[0025] Figure 3 The diagram shows a schematic of the wafer coordinate identification device and measurement chamber provided in another optional embodiment of Embodiment 1 and Embodiment 2 of this utility model.

[0026] Figure Labels

[0027] 01. Measurement chamber; 1. Wafer coordinate identification device; 11. Digital laser; 111. Transmitter; 112. Receiver; 12. Wafer; 13. Support device; 131. Side wall; 14. Optomechanical device; 141. Base plate; 142. Fixing plate; 15. Control unit; 2. Data processing device; 21. Correction unit; 22. Data acquisition unit; 23. Data analysis unit. Detailed Implementation

[0028] The following specific examples illustrate the implementation of this utility model. Those skilled in the art can easily understand other advantages and effects of this utility model from the content disclosed in this specification. This utility model can also be implemented or applied through other different specific embodiments, and various details in this specification can also be modified or changed based on different viewpoints and applications without departing from the spirit of this utility model.

[0029] It should be noted that the illustrations provided in this embodiment are only schematic representations of the basic concept of this utility model. Although the illustrations only show components related to this utility model and are not drawn according to the actual number, shape and size of the components, the shape, quantity, positional relationship and proportion of each component can be arbitrarily changed under the premise of realizing the technical solution of this utility model, and the layout of the components may also be more complex.

[0030] Example 1

[0031] Reference Figure 1 This embodiment provides a wafer coordinate identification device for identifying the coordinates of the edge of a wafer 12. The wafer coordinate identification device of this embodiment includes at least one digital laser 11, which is disposed along the normal direction of the wafer 12 to be measured. The projection of the digital laser 11 onto the wafer 12 is located in the edge region of the wafer 12. The digital laser 11 includes a transmitting end 111 and a receiving end 112. The projection of the transmitting end 111 onto the plane of the wafer 12 falls into the projection of the receiving end 112 onto the plane of the wafer 12.

[0032] Reference Figures 1 to 3 The wafer coordinate identification device also includes a carrier device 13, a control unit 15, and a fixing plate 142. The carrier device 13 is used to support the wafer 12 to be manufactured, and the diameter of the carrier device 13 is smaller than the diameter of the wafer 12. The control unit 15 is communicatively connected to the carrier device 13 to control the rotation of the carrier device 13. The fixing plate 142 is disposed above the carrier device 13 and is disposed opposite to the carrier device 13. The emitting end 111 of the digital laser 11 is disposed on the side of the fixing plate 142 opposite to the carrier device 13. In the semiconductor manufacturing process, the wafer 12 needs to be inspected and measured multiple times to ensure the stability of the process and the yield of the product. The optomechanical device 14 quickly captures the optical signals on the wafer 12 and converts them into electrical signals for processing, thereby realizing real-time monitoring of defects and dimensional changes on the wafer 12. This efficient detection method greatly improves the inspection efficiency of semiconductor manufacturing and shortens the production cycle. In this embodiment, the fixing plate 142 can be the base plate 141 of the optomechanical device 14.

[0033] Reference Figure 1 As the core component of the wafer coordinate identification device, the stability of the data acquisition by the digital laser 11 is crucial to the quality of wafer 12 production. Repeated data acquisition tests can evaluate the data acquisition performance and stability of the digital laser 11 under different conditions. To verify the data acquisition stability of the digital laser 11 during wafer 12 production, repeated data acquisition tests are necessary. This can be achieved by continuously acquiring the coordinate data of the wafer 12's edges as the wafer 12 moves up and down.

[0034] Optionally, refer to Figure 1 and Figure 2 The number of digital lasers 11 is greater than or equal to two, each digital laser 112 has a transmitter 111 and a receiver 112, and the multiple digital lasers 11 are uniformly distributed along the radial direction of the wafer. Specifically, in an optional embodiment of this example, referring to... Figure 1 and Figure 2 The number of digital lasers 11 is four. The angle formed by the connection lines between any two adjacent digital lasers 11 and the wafer 12 is 90°. The transmitter 111 is located directly above the edge of the wafer 12, and the light signal emitted by the transmitter 111 passes through the edge of the wafer 12. Preferably, to reduce unnecessary structural costs and facilitate the installation of the digital lasers 11, in another optional embodiment of this embodiment, referring to... Figure 1 The emitting end 111 of the digital laser 11 is disposed on the side of the base plate 141 of the optomechanical device 14 opposite to the carrier device 13, and the receiving end 112 of the digital laser 11 is disposed on the side wall 131 of the carrier device 13. In this embodiment, before performing wafer 12 coordinate identification, the carrier device 13 can be rotated by the control unit 15 to drive the receiving end 112 on the side wall 131 of the carrier device 13 to rotate, thereby further aligning the receiving end 112 with the emitting end 111, so that the receiving end 112 can better receive the light signal emitted by the emitting end 111 that passes through the wafer 12.

[0035] The detection range of the light signal emitted by the transmitter 111 is ≤10mm, meaning that the light signal mainly focuses on the area near the edge of the wafer 12, which helps reduce unnecessary interference and improve detection accuracy. The wavelength is 660nm, which is within the visible light range and close to the wavelength of red light. Lasers of this wavelength generally have good penetration and visibility. The receiver 112 is positioned directly below the edge of the wafer 12 to receive the light signal emitted by the transmitter 111, and then processes the light signal emitted by the transmitter 111 to identify the coordinate data of the edge of the wafer 12. In this embodiment, the distance between the transmitter 111 and the receiver 112 of the digital laser 11 is between 90mm and 110mm. This distance range ensures that the light signal can pass through the edge of the wafer 12 and be effectively received by the receiver 112, while avoiding measurement errors caused by distances that are too close or too far. To ensure consistency in coordinate identification, the transmitters 111 and receivers 112 of multiple digital lasers 11 all share the same coordinate system. The receiver 112 of the digital laser 11 uses a line charge-coupled device (LCD) as the detection element. This detection element features high precision and high sensitivity, making it ideal for such high-precision measurement tasks. The receiver 112 achieves a repeatability of 5 μm and a linearity of ±0.1%. That is, the deviation between results in each measurement will not exceed 5 μm, and the linear relationship between the output signal and the input signal at the output terminal 112 is very close to the ideal state, with an error within ±0.1%.

[0036] In another optional embodiment of this example, refer to Figure 3 The system employs a single digital laser 11, which has a transmitter 111 and multiple receivers 112, uniformly distributed radially along the wafer 12. The transmitter 111 is positioned directly above the edge of the wafer 12, and the light signal emitted by the transmitter 111 passes through the edge of the wafer 12. The multiple receivers 112 are uniformly positioned directly below the edge of the wafer 12 to receive the light signal emitted by the transmitter 111. In an optional embodiment, the multiple receivers 112 are uniformly positioned on the sidewall 131 of the support device 13. The rotation of the support device 13 causes the wafer 12 and the receivers 112 to rotate, ensuring that all receivers 112 receive the light signal from the transmitter 111. Each receiver 111 then processes the light signal emitted by the transmitter 111 to identify the coordinates of the wafer 12 edge. A greater number of receivers 112 in the digital laser 11 results in higher accuracy in identifying the wafer 12 edge coordinates, but also increases the system's complexity and cost. Therefore, in practical applications, the choice should be made based on specific needs.

[0037] Reference Figures 1 to 3The wafer coordinate identification device 1 also includes a data processing device 2, which comprises a data acquisition unit 22 and a data analysis unit 23. The data acquisition unit 22 is communicatively connected to the receiver 111 of the digital laser 11 to collect coordinate data of the edges of the wafer 12 identified by the receiver 111. The data analysis unit 23 is communicatively connected to the data acquisition device 22 to receive the coordinate data and process it to obtain the coordinates of the center of the wafer 12. Specifically, after receiving the coordinate data of multiple wafer 12 edges collected by the data acquisition unit 22, the data analysis unit 23 fits the contour of the wafer 12 based on the multiple coordinate data to form a complete contour shape of the wafer 12. An XY coordinate system is established using the fitted contour shape of the wafer 12, and the coordinates of the center of the wafer 12 are calculated based on the multiple wafer 12 coordinate data. The wafer coordinate identification device 1 also includes a correction unit 21, which is used to correct the digital laser 11 so that the optical signal emitted by the transmitter 111 can pass through the wafer 12 and be received by the receiver 112 before wafer 12 coordinate identification is performed.

[0038] Reference Figures 1 to 3 The wafer coordinate identification device of this embodiment sets at least one digital laser 11, and the transmitting end 111 and the receiving end 112 of the digital laser 11 are arranged on both sides of the wafer 12 along the normal direction of the wafer 12. The transmitting end 111 is used to emit light signals to the wafer 12, and the receiving end 112 is used to receive light signals passing through the wafer 12, so as to realize the rapid identification of the coordinates of the edge of the wafer 12, improve the identification efficiency of the edge coordinates of the wafer 12, and ultimately improve the detection speed of semiconductor equipment.

[0039] Example 2

[0040] Reference Figure 1 and Figure 3 This embodiment provides a semiconductor measurement device, which includes a wafer coordinate identification device 1, the same as the wafer coordinate identification device 1 in Embodiment 1. The semiconductor measurement device also includes a measurement chamber 01. The main function of the chamber 01 is to provide a stable, clean, and controlled environment to ensure that the wafer coordinate identification device 1 can accurately perform its measurement tasks. The chamber 01 can prevent external contamination, vibration, and temperature changes from affecting the measurement results. The carrier device 13, digital laser 11, and optomechanical device 14 of the wafer coordinate identification device 1 are disposed within the measurement chamber 01, with the carrier device 13 located below the measurement chamber 01 and the optomechanical device 14 located above the measurement chamber 01. For ease of operation, the data processing device 2 of the wafer coordinate identification device 1 is located outside the measurement chamber 01.

[0041] To ensure the quality of wafer 12, the semiconductor metrology equipment system pre-sets thresholds for several key dimensional and positional parameters. These thresholds are determined based on manufacturing process requirements and product quality standards. When the actual measured dimensions or positional parameters of wafer 12 during production exceed the preset thresholds, the system immediately triggers an alarm. This alerts operators to promptly identify the problem and take appropriate measures to correct or prevent potential quality issues.

[0042] The semiconductor metrology equipment in this embodiment uses the wafer coordinate recognition device 1 to identify the coordinates of multiple wafer edges and then calculates the center coordinates of the wafer. By setting the digital laser in the wafer coordinate recognition device 1, the efficiency of the semiconductor metrology equipment in the wafer edge coordinate recognition stage is improved, thereby increasing the overall detection speed of the semiconductor metrology equipment.

[0043] The above embodiments are merely illustrative of the principles and effects of this utility model and are not intended to limit the scope of this utility model. Any person skilled in the art can modify or alter the above embodiments without departing from the spirit and scope of this utility model. Therefore, all equivalent modifications or alterations made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and technical concept disclosed in this utility model should still be covered by the claims of this utility model.

Claims

1. A wafer coordinate recognition apparatus characterized by comprising: The digital laser includes at least one digital laser arranged along the normal direction of the wafer to be measured, and the projection of the digital laser on the wafer is located at the edge region of the wafer, and the digital laser includes: a transmitting end and a receiving end, the transmitting end and the receiving end are located on both sides of the wafer along the normal direction of the wafer, the transmitting end is used for transmitting optical signals to the wafer, and the receiving end is used for receiving optical signals passing through the wafer.

2. The wafer coordinate recognition apparatus according to claim 1, wherein The number of the digital lasers is greater than or equal to 2, each of the digital lasers has one transmitting end and one receiving end, and a plurality of the digital lasers are uniformly distributed along the radial direction of the wafer.

3. The wafer coordinate recognition apparatus according to claim 1, wherein The number of the digital lasers is one, the digital laser has one transmitting end and a plurality of receiving ends, and the plurality of receiving ends are uniformly distributed along the radial direction of the wafer.

4. The wafer coordinate recognition apparatus according to claim 1, wherein The projection of the transmitting end on the wafer plane falls into the projection of the receiving end on the wafer plane.

5. The wafer coordinate recognition apparatus according to claim 1, wherein Further comprising: a bearing device for bearing the wafer, the diameter of the bearing device is smaller than the diameter of the wafer; a control unit in communication connection with the bearing device to control the rotation of the bearing device; a fixed plate arranged above the bearing device and opposite to the bearing device, and the transmitting end of the digital laser is arranged on the side of the fixed plate opposite to the bearing device.

6. The wafer coordinate recognition apparatus according to claim 5, wherein Further comprising: an optical machine device for real-time monitoring of defects and size changes of the wafer, and the fixed plate is the bottom plate of the optical machine device.

7. The wafer coordinate recognition apparatus according to claim 5 or 6, wherein The receiving end of the digital laser is arranged on the side wall of the bearing device.

8. The wafer coordinate recognition apparatus according to claim 1, wherein The distance between the transmitting end and the receiving end of the digital laser is between 90mm and 110mm.

9. The wafer coordinate recognition apparatus according to claim 1, wherein Further comprising: a data processing device, the data processing device includes: a data acquisition unit in communication connection with the receiving end of the digital laser to collect coordinate data of the wafer edge identified by the receiving end; a data analysis unit in communication connection with the data acquisition unit to receive the coordinate data and process the coordinate data to obtain the coordinates of the center of the wafer.

10. A semiconductor metrology apparatus, characterized by, The wafer coordinate identification device includes a measurement chamber and a wafer coordinate identification device, the wafer coordinate identification device includes any one of the wafer coordinate identification devices in claims 1-9, wherein the bearing device, the digital laser, and the optical machine device of the wafer coordinate identification device are arranged in the measurement chamber, the bearing device is located below the measurement chamber, the optical machine device is located above the measurement chamber, and the data processing device of the wafer coordinate identification device is located outside the measurement chamber.

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