PCB position monitoring device

Abstract

An instrumentation board is used in a board processing system to determine the offset relative to the chuck and focus ring. The instrumentation board includes a line sensor that generates a line image and a controller that determines the offset based on the line image. Furthermore, a board handler repositions the instrumentation board to reduce the offset.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] Cross - reference to Related Applications This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 63 / 445,704, filed on February 14, 2023, entitled "A SUBSTRATE POSITION MONITORING DEVICES", which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

[0002] The present invention generally relates to devices for monitoring wafers, and more particularly to devices for monitoring the position of wafers.

Background Art

[0003] Accurate positioning and position information are important for substrate processing and post - processing inspection. For example, inspection tools may have electron microscopes or other electron beam systems that can resolve features at very small micro - scale or nano - scale. The inspection tool may have a very narrow field of view that requires the substrate to be accurately positioned relative to the tool in order to localize particles or defects on the substrate and collect useful data. Thus, accurate information regarding the position of the substrate relative to the tool becomes important for localizing specific small - scale defects, particles, or other areas of interest on the substrate.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Patent Document 2

Patent Document 3

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] Therefore, it would be advantageous to provide devices, systems, and methods that solve the aforementioned shortcomings. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] An instrumentation board will be described according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure. The instrumentation board may include a board including a board center, a power supply, a communication interface, at least three position units, each of which is configured to include an illumination source configured to generate illumination and a line sensor configured to generate a plurality of line images based on the illumination, the line sensor being aligned to the board center, and a controller, which includes a memory for holding program instructions and one or more processors configured to execute program instructions, the controller including one or more processors that cause one or more processors to receive a plurality of line images and determine an offset between the board and the chuck between the board center and the chuck center based on the plurality of line images.

[0007] In some embodiments, the technology described herein relates to an instrumentation substrate in which one or more processors determine the offset between a substrate and a chuck by detecting a plurality of chuck edges in a plurality of line images, determining a plurality of chuck non-concentric offsets between the plurality of chuck edges, and determining the offset between the substrate and the chuck based on the plurality of chuck non-concentric offsets.

[0008] In some embodiments, the technology described herein relates to an instrumentation board in which a program instruction causes one or more processors to determine an offset between a substrate and a ring based on a plurality of line images.

[0009] In some embodiments, the technology described herein relates to an instrumentation board in which the substrate is a circular substrate.

[0010] In some embodiments, the technology described herein relates to an instrumentation substrate in which the substrate comprises at least one of quartz, glass, silicon, silicon nitride, carbon fiber stabilized epoxy matrix, or a combination thereof.

[0011] In some embodiments, the technology described herein relates to an instrumentation board including one or more additional sensors, wherein the one or more additional sensors are configured to generate one or more sensor readings, and a controller is configured to detect the presence of a chuck based on the one or more sensor readings.

[0012] In some embodiments, the technology described herein relates to an instrumentation board in which one or more additional sensors include at least one of a pressure sensor, a multi-axis accelerometer, a multi-axis angular velocity sensor, a temperature sensor, a light sensor, or a capacitive sensor.

[0013] In some embodiments, the technology described herein relates to an instrumentation board in which, in response to one or more sensor readings satisfying a trigger threshold, one or more processors cause an illumination source to generate illumination and a line sensor to generate multiple line images.

[0014] In some embodiments, the technology described herein relates to an instrumentation board in which the substrate includes a diffusion region, the diffusion region being located below a light source.

[0015] In some embodiments, the technology described herein relates to an instrumentation board in which each of at least three position units includes a collimator, and a line sensor is imaged by the collimator.

[0016] In some embodiments, the technology described herein relates to an instrumentation substrate in which the collimator includes a collimated hole array.

[0017] In some embodiments, the technology described herein relates to an instrumentation substrate in which the collimator includes a layered collimator.

[0018] In some aspects, the technology described herein relates to instrumentation substrates where the collimator is in the near field of the line sensor.

[0019] In some aspects, the technology described herein relates to instrumentation substrates where one or more reflectors are defined within the bottom surface of the substrate.

[0020] In some aspects, the technology described herein relates to instrumentation substrates where each of at least three position units includes a cylindrical lens and the line sensor is imaged by the cylindrical lens.

[0021] In some aspects, the technology described herein relates to instrumentation substrates where the cylindrical lens is a layered cylindrical lens that functions as a directional collimator.

[0022] In some aspects, the technology described herein relates to instrumentation substrates where each of at least three position units includes an optical element, the optical element includes a beam splitter, an absorber, an objective lens, and a condenser lens, and the line sensor is imaged by the optical element.

[0023] In some aspects, the technology described herein relates to instrumentation substrates where each of at least three position units includes a metasurface lens and the line sensor is imaged by the metasurface lens.

[0024] In some aspects, the technology described herein relates to instrumentation substrates where each of at least three position units includes a microlens array, a first lens, a first folding mirror, a prism, a second lens, a second folding mirror, an aperture stop, a third lens, and a cylindrical lens, and the illumination follows an illumination path from the illumination source through the microlens array, the first lens, the first folding mirror, and the prism to the chuck, and the illumination follows an imaging path from the chuck through the prism, the second lens, the second folding mirror, the aperture stop, the third lens, and the cylindrical lens to the line sensor.

[0025] In some aspects, the technology described herein relates to instrumentation substrates where the illumination includes one or more angles of incidence onto the chuck and one or more angles of reflection from the chuck, and where the one or more angles of incidence are different from the one or more angles of reflection.

[0026] In some aspects, the technology described herein relates to instrumentation substrates where at least two of a microlens array, a first lens, a first folding mirror, a prism, a second lens, a second folding mirror, an aperture stop, a third lens, or a cylindrical lens are part of a monolithic molded assembly.

[0027] In some aspects, the technology described herein relates to instrumentation substrates where each of at least three position units includes a microlens array, a first lens, a first aperture stop, a prism, a second lens, a second aperture stop, and a third lens, and where the illumination follows an illumination path from an illumination source through the microlens array, the first lens, the first aperture stop, and the prism to the chuck, and where the illumination follows an imaging path from the chuck through the prism, the second lens, the second aperture stop, and the third lens to a line sensor.

[0028] In some aspects, the technology described herein relates to instrumentation substrates where the illumination includes one or more angles of incidence onto the chuck and one or more angles of reflection from the chuck, and where the one or more angles of incidence are different from the one or more angles of reflection.

[0029] In some aspects, the technology described herein relates to instrumentation substrates where each of at least three position units includes a microlens array, a first lens, a first aperture stop, a second lens, a second aperture stop, and a third lens, and where the illumination follows an illumination path from an illumination source through the microlens array, the first lens, and the first aperture stop to the chuck, and where the illumination follows an imaging path from the chuck through the second lens, the second aperture stop, and the third lens to a line sensor.

[0030] In some embodiments, the technology described herein relates to an instrumentation board in which illumination includes one or more angles of incidence onto a chuck and one or more angles of reflection from the chuck, wherein one or more angles of incidence are at the same angle as one or more angles of reflection.

[0031] A substrate processing system will be described according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure. The substrate processing system may include a chuck including a chuck center, a focus ring, a substrate handler, and an instrumentation board, the instrumentation board including a substrate including a substrate center, a power supply, a communication interface, at least three position units, each of which is configured to generate illumination, a light source, and a line sensor, each configured to generate a plurality of line images based on the illumination, wherein the line sensor is aligned to the substrate center, and the controller includes a memory for holding program instructions, and one or more processors configured to execute program instructions, wherein the program instructions cause one or more processors to receive a plurality of line images and determine an offset between the substrate and the chuck between the substrate center and the chuck center based on the plurality of line images.

[0032] In some embodiments, the technology described herein relates to a substrate handling system in which a substrate handler is configured to receive an offset between the substrate and a chuck from an instrumentation substrate, and the substrate handler is configured to reposition the instrumentation substrate on the chuck based on the offset between the substrate and the chuck.

[0033] Many of the advantages of this disclosure can be better understood by those skilled in the art by referring to the accompanying figures. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0034] [Figure 1A] The image shows a top view of an instrumentation board according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 1B]A block diagram of a controller for an instrumentation board according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure is shown. [Figure 1C] The following are partial top views of an instrumentation board according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 1D] The image shows a block diagram of sensor readings received by a trigger model according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 2A] The image shows a top view of a substrate processing system according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 2B] The images show cross-sectional views of a substrate processing system according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 2C] The images show cross-sectional views of a substrate processing system according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 3A] Line images according to one or more embodiments of this disclosure are shown. [Figure 3B] Line images according to one or more embodiments of this disclosure are shown. [Figure 3C] Line images according to one or more embodiments of this disclosure are shown. [Figure 4A] The images show cross-sectional views of a substrate processing system according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 4B] The following are perspective views of cylindrical lenses according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 5] The images show cross-sectional views of a substrate processing system according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 6] The images show cross-sectional views of a substrate processing system according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 7] This is a flowchart of a method according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 8A] A partial top view of a substrate processing system, including an instrumentation substrate, a chuck, and a focus ring, according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure, is shown. [Figure 8B] The diagram shows a cross-sectional view of a substrate processing system, including an instrumentation substrate and a chuck, according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 8C]A partial top view of a substrate processing system, including an instrumentation substrate, a chuck, and a focus ring, according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure, is shown. [Figure 8D] The diagram shows a cross-sectional view of a substrate processing system, including an instrumentation substrate and a chuck, according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 9A] A partial top view of a substrate processing system, including an instrumentation substrate, a chuck, and a focus ring, according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure, is shown. [Figure 9B] The diagram shows a cross-sectional view of a substrate processing system, including an instrumentation substrate and a chuck, according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 9C] The diagram shows a cross-sectional view of a substrate processing system, including an instrumentation substrate and a chuck, according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 10A] A partial top view of a substrate processing system, including an instrumentation substrate, a chuck, and a focus ring, according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure, is shown. [Figure 10B] The diagram shows a cross-sectional view of a substrate processing system, including an instrumentation substrate and a chuck, according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0035] This disclosure is shown and described in particular with respect to specific embodiments and their particular features. The embodiments described herein are construed to be illustrative and not limiting. It will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications in form and detail can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of this disclosure. The disclosed subject matter shown in the accompanying drawings will now be referenced in detail.

[0036] Embodiments of this disclosure relate to an instrumentation board. The instrumentation board may be used in a board processing system to determine the offset from the instrumentation board to a chuck and focus ring. The instrumentation board may include a line sensor that generates a line image and a controller that uses the line image to determine the offset. Furthermore, a board handler may reposition the instrumentation board to reduce the offset.

[0037] U.S. Patent No. 9,620,400, entitled "Position sensitive substrate device", U.S. Patent Publication No. 2019 / 0172742, entitled "Teaching method", U.S. Patent Publication No. 2021 / 0252695, entitled "Teaching method", U.S. Patent No. 7,289,230, entitled "Wireless substrate-like sensor", and U.S. Patent No. 11,668,601, entitled "Instrumented substrate apparatus", are each incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

[0038] Figures 1A to 1D show an instrumentation board 100 according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure. In the embodiments, the instrumentation board 100 may include a substrate 102, a position unit 104, a controller 110, a power supply 114, a communication interface 116, and / or one or more sensors 118. For the purposes of the present disclosure, the instrumentation board 100 may also be referred to as an instrumentation board assembly, a substrate device, an instrumentation wafer, an instrumentation wafer substrate, a sensor wafer, a substrate monitoring device, an instrumentation board device, an inspection substrate, an inspection wafer, a measurement wafer, a registration measurement substrate, and a registration wafer, among other things.

[0039] The substrate 102 may include any substrate known in the field of semiconductor fabrication monitoring. For example, the substrate 102 may include a wafer. For example, the substrate 102 may include a wafer structure formed from quartz, glass, silicon (e.g., single-crystal silicon), silicon nitride, carbon fiber stabilized epoxy matrix, one or more ceramic materials, glass carbon fiber, one or more composite materials, or a combination thereof. For example, the substrate 102 may be formed from a composite material comprising two or more layers of materials that can be bonded together, or two or more materials that can be mixed in a single layer or multiple layers. The substrate 102 may also be a composite material such as graphite / epoxy, or a laminate formed from silicon, graphite / epoxy, or silicon.

[0040] The substrate 102 may have physical parameters that approximate the physical parameters of a production substrate used in the manufacture of integrated circuits or other electronic devices. The substrate 102 may include a circular substrate (e.g., a circular wafer) having a selected diameter. For example, the substrate 102 may have a diameter of 25 to 450 mm. For example, the substrate 102 may include a diameter of 100 to 300 mm. Furthermore, the substrate 102 may have a thickness of 275 to 925 μm. In embodiments, the thickness may be based on the diameter. In embodiments, the substrate 102 has dimensions that conform to the dimensions of a Semiconductor Manufacturing Equipment and Materials Association (SEMI®) wafer. The substrate 102 may also have a thickness that approximates the corresponding thickness of a production substrate, although the thickness may be slightly greater than that of a production substrate to accommodate additional electronic devices and / or other components of the instrumentation substrate 100.

[0041] The substrate 102 may include a substrate center 103. The substrate center 103 may be located at the center or midpoint of the substrate 102. For example, the substrate center 103 may be at a point equidistant from the edge of the substrate 102.

[0042] The substrate 102 may include a top surface and / or a bottom surface. In embodiments, the top surface and / or bottom surface of the substrate 102 may be planar. The bottom surface may also be called the back surface.

[0043] In an embodiment, the position unit 104 may include one or more edge position units. In an embodiment, the position unit 104 may be disposed on and / or embedded in the substrate 102. In an embodiment, the position unit 104 may include one or more optical units configured to optically measure the position of the instrumentation substrate 100 relative to another component.

[0044] In embodiments, the position unit 104 may include two or more position units 104. For example, the instrumentation board 100 may include at least three position units 104. In the case of two or more position units, the position units 104 may be arranged radially. For example, the position units 104 may be evenly spaced across the edge of the board 102. In embodiments, the position units 104 may be positioned in one or more orientations across the circumference of the board 102. The position units 104 may be spaced across the edge of the board 102. The position units 104 may be positioned across the edge of the board 102, preferably three, and may be positioned at 120° angular intervals across the board 102. The position units 104 may be built on the board 102 or embedded within the board. The position unit 104 may include one or more components, but are not limited to, such as an illumination source 106 and a line sensor 108.

[0045] In embodiments, the illumination source 106 may be a light source. The illumination source 106 may produce illumination 107. Illumination 107 may include one or more selected wavelengths of light, including, but not limited to, vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) radiation, deep ultraviolet (DUV) radiation, ultraviolet (UV) radiation, visible light, or infrared (IR) radiation. Illumination 107 may include any range of the selected wavelengths. The illumination source 106 may include any suitable illumination source configured to produce illumination 107. For example, the illumination source 106 may include one or more light-emitting diodes (LEDs). In embodiments, the illumination source 106 may include at least two LEDs positioned at opposing ends of the line sensor 108. The illumination source 106 may provide edge-light illumination to the line sensor 108. The LEDs may include incoherent LEDs. In embodiments, the illumination source 106 may be a coherent laser light source. In embodiments, illumination 107 may extend to illuminate all pixels of the line sensor 108. For example, the position unit 104 may include an illumination source 106 that extends along the length of the line sensor 108.

[0046] In the embodiment, the line sensor 108 may be a linear sensor, a linear imaging sensor, a line detector, and / or a line imaging photonics sensor. The line sensor 108 may include, but is not limited to, any suitable line sensors such as complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) line sensors and charge-coupled device (CCD) linear sensors.

[0047] The line sensors 108 can be aligned toward the center 103 of the substrate. The line sensors 108 of the position unit 104 do not have to be aligned with each other or parallel to each other. In this embodiment, virtual lines extending from the line sensors 108 may intersect at the center 103 of the substrate.

[0048] The line sensor 108 may include a linear array of photosensitive diodes (not shown). The photosensitive diodes may include a selected pixel size. The pixel size may be rectangular in shape with a selected aspect ratio. The aspect ratio may be much larger in one dimension and smaller in another. For example, the aspect ratio may be 1:16. For example, the pixel size may be 120 × 7.5 μm. The aspect ratio of the line sensor 108 may enable the detection of features along the length of the line sensor 108, where the length may correspond to the longer dimension of the aspect ratio. The aspect ratio of the line sensor 108 may or may not enable the detection of features along the width of the line sensor 108, where the width may correspond to the shorter dimension of the aspect ratio.

[0049] The line sensor 108 can receive the illumination 107. The line sensor 108 can receive the illumination 107 generated by the illumination source 106.

[0050] The line sensor 108 can generate a line image 109. The line sensor 108 can generate a line image 109 based on the received illumination 107. The line image 109 may be a one-dimensional image. The line image 109 may be a one-dimensional image in the longitudinal direction along the line sensor 108. The one-dimensional image may be an image with linear resolution. The linear resolution may include 1 × N pixels, where N is an integer. For example, the line image 109 may include 1000 or more pixels along the length of the line sensor 108. Each photodiode of the line sensor 108 may generate one pixel in the line image 109. For example, the line image may be a one-dimensional image in the longitudinal direction along the photodiode of the line sensor 108. The linear resolution may be high, and it may have a signal sufficient to perform reasonable measurements under low light conditions. The line image 109 may also be a data graph showing the signal as a function of the pixel number (N).

[0051] The controller 110 may be communicatively coupled to the position unit 104. For example, the controller 110 may be communicatively coupled to the line sensor 108. The controller 110 may be configured to receive data including, but not limited to, line images 109. The controller 110 may be embedded within the substrate 102. The controller 110 may provide data acquisition and data storage functions to the instrumentation board 100.

[0052] The controller 110 may include one or more processors 111 and memory 112. The one or more processors 111 may be configured to execute program instructions held in memory 112. In this regard, the one or more processors 111 of the controller 110 may perform any of the various process steps described throughout this disclosure.

[0053] In this embodiment, the memory 112 may hold the offset 113 between the substrate and the chuck and / or the offset 115 between the substrate and the ring. The memory 112 may hold the offset 113 between the substrate and the chuck and / or the offset 115 between the substrate and the ring after the controller 110 has determined the respective offsets.

[0054] The offset 113 between the substrate and the chuck and / or the offset 115 between the substrate and the ring can be an offset, offset correction, correction offset, center offset, center position offset, and / or center offset correction solution. The offset 113 between the substrate and the chuck and / or the offset 115 between the substrate and the ring can be an XY distance. The XY distance can refer to an X-direction offset and a Y-direction offset defined with reference to the XY coordinate plane. The offset can be measured from the center 103 of the substrate.

[0055] In one embodiment, the controller 110 may be configured to determine the offset 113 between the substrate and the chuck and / or the offset 115 between the substrate and the ring. The controller 110 may determine the offset 113 between the substrate and the chuck and / or the offset 115 between the substrate and the ring based on the line image 109.

[0056] In the embodiment, the controller 110 may determine the offset 113 between the substrate and the chuck and / or the offset 115 between the substrate and the ring based on the line images 109 by performing autocorrelation between the line images 109 from each of the position units 104. Thus, the controller 110 may include one or more data processing methods for performing autocorrelation between different locations.

[0057] In the embodiment, when the line image 109 is received from the line sensor 108, the controller 110 may determine the offset 113 between the substrate and the chuck and / or the offset 115 between the substrate and the ring. Thus, the offsets can be determined in real time or near real time. Determining the offset 113 between the substrate and the chuck and / or the offset 115 between the substrate and the ring when the line image 109 is received may be beneficial in reducing the memory requirements of 112. For example, the offset 113 between the substrate and the chuck and / or the offset 115 between the substrate and the ring can be stored in memory 112 without storing the line image 109 in memory.

[0058] The power supply 114 may include one or more batteries or wired power supplies. The power supply 114 may supply power to any of the various components of the instrumentation board 100. The power supply 114 may optionally include one or more solar cells. The power supply 114 may be embedded in the board 102. The power supply 114 may provide a power storage function to the instrumentation board 100.

[0059] The communication interface 116 may include any wired communication protocol (e.g., DSL-based interconnect, cable-based interconnect, T9-based interconnect, and USB) or wireless communication protocol (e.g., GSM, GPRS, CDMA, EV-DO, EDGE, WiMAX, 3G, 4G, 4G LTE, 5G, Wi-Fi protocol, RF, Bluetooth®, and Intermediate System-Intermediate System (IS-IS)). As another example, the communication interface 116 may include communication protocols, but are not limited to, radio frequency identification (RFID) protocols and open-source radio frequencies. As yet another example, the communication interface 116 may include inductive wireless communication and / or inductive wireless charging. For example, the communication interface 116 may use on-off keying and backscatter modulation for bidirectional data transfer, along with inductive power transmission for battery charging. Thus, interactions between various devices may be determined based on one or more characteristics, but are not limited to, cellular signatures, IP addresses, MAC addresses, Bluetooth signatures, and radio frequency identification (RFID) tags.

[0060] The sensor 118 may be positioned on the substrate 102, embedded within the substrate 102, and / or disposed beneath the substrate 102. The sensor 118 may be an additional sensor to the position unit 104. The sensor 118 may generate one or more sensor readings. The sensor 118 may include, but is not limited to, a multi-axis accelerometer 118a, a multi-axis angular velocity sensor 118b, an optical sensor 118c, a barometric pressure sensor 118d, a temperature sensor 118e, a capacitance sensor 118f, and / or a time sensor 118g.

[0061] The multi-axis accelerometer 118a can generate acceleration data 119a. The acceleration data 119a may include the X, Y, and Z motion of the instrumentation board 100. The multi-axis accelerometer 118a may be an acceleration measuring type that measures 3 axes or 6 axes.

[0062] In this embodiment, the multi-axis angular velocity sensor 118b may be a gyroscope. The multi-axis angular velocity sensor 118b may generate rotational speed data 119b. The rotational speed data 119b may be the rotational speed of the instrumentation board 100. The multi-axis angular velocity sensor 118b may measure the rotational speed of three axes.

[0063] The optical sensor 118c can generate ambient light data 119c. The optical sensor 118c may be an optical measurement type with an excitation source. The optical sensor 118c may be used together with any of the sensors 118 to determine the state of the instrumentation board 100.

[0064] The pressure sensor 118d can generate pressure data 119d. The pressure data 119d provides local pressure information for the instrumentation board 100. The pressure data 119d can be used for indexing load lock or chamber transfer.

[0065] The temperature sensor 118e can generate temperature data 119e. The temperature data 119e may include the temperature of the substrate 102, etc.

[0066] The capacitance sensor 118f can directly sample the proximity of the instrumentation board 100 to another component. The capacitance sensor 118f may be a capacitance-type proximity sensor. The capacitance sensor 118f can generate capacitance data 119f.

[0067] The time sensor 118g can generate one or more time delay parameters 119g.

[0068] In an embodiment, the controller 110 may include a trigger model 117. The trigger model 117 may be a triggering model and / or a trigger module. The trigger model 117 may be stored in memory 112. The trigger model 117 may be executed by a processor 111.

[0069] The trigger model 117 may receive one or more sensor readings from the line sensor 108 and / or sensor 118. For example, the trigger model 117 may receive a line image 109, acceleration data 119a, rotational speed data 119b, ambient light data 119c, barometric pressure data 119d, temperature data 119e, capacitance data 119f, and / or time delay parameter 119g. The trigger model 117 may use the sensor readings as input to trigger one or more processes. For example, the controller 110 may use the sensor readings from sensor 118 to determine whether the substrate 102 has reached the process chamber and may start acquiring the line image 109.

[0070] The trigger model 117 can evaluate the line sensor 108 and / or sensor values ​​from sensor 118 against one or more trigger thresholds. In embodiments, the trigger thresholds may be trigger conditions and / or trigger points. The trigger thresholds may be predefined. For example, the trigger thresholds may be user-defined in advance. The controller 110 may cause the line sensor 118 to generate a line image 109 in response to the sensor values ​​from sensor 108 satisfying one or more trigger thresholds. For example, the controller 110 may cause the position unit 104 to start an edge sensor data acquisition sequence by generating illumination 107 via the illumination source 106 and generating a line image 109 by the line sensor 108. Thus, the processor 111 may cause the illumination source 106 to generate illumination 107 and the line sensor 108 to generate a line image 109 in response to one or more sensor readings satisfying trigger thresholds.

[0071] The trigger model 117 may include trigger thresholds based on sensor values ​​from any of the sensors 118. The trigger thresholds may include trigger thresholds for acceleration data 119a from a multi-axis accelerometer 118a, rotational velocity data 119b from a multi-axis angular velocity sensor 118b, ambient light data 119c from an optical sensor 118c, barometric pressure data 119d from a barometric pressure sensor 118d, temperature data 119e from a temperature sensor 118e, capacitance data 119f from a capacitance sensor 118f, and / or a time delay parameter 119g from a time sensor 118g. For example, the trigger model 117 may include a temperature threshold. The trigger model 117 may include a temperature threshold to cause the instrumentation board 100 to monitor the ambient temperature based on the temperature data 119e. As another example, the trigger model 117 may use one or more time delay parameters.

[0072] In the embodiment, the controller 110 may support multiple trigger thresholds within the trigger model 117. Supporting multiple trigger thresholds enables the controller 110 to collect a large number of measurements. The trigger model 117 may evaluate multiple sensor inputs. The trigger thresholds may be combined with either an optical or mechanical configuration.

[0073] Next, with reference to Figures 2A to 2C, a substrate processing system 200 according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure will be described. The substrate processing system 200 may include an instrumentation substrate 100, a chuck 202, a focus ring 204, and a substrate handler 206. The substrate processing system 200 may be used in the manufacture of semiconductor devices and other electronic devices. In embodiments, the substrate processing system 200 may be part of a tool. The tool may be a tool for examining the substrate, such as an inspection tool or a measuring tool. The tool may include an electron microscope or other electron beam system. In embodiments, the substrate processing system 200 may be configured to process using plasma or the like.

[0074] In embodiments, the chuck 202 may be a process chuck, a process chamber chuck, a support surface, and / or a mounting table. In embodiments, the chuck 202 may include a mechanism for securely fixing the instrumentation board 100 in place. The chuck 202 may be configured to clamp and unclamp the instrumentation board 100 to securely fix it in place. For example, the chuck 202 may be a mechanical chuck, a vacuum chuck, a magnetic chuck, or an electrostatic chuck. In this example, the instrumentation board 100 may be electrostatically clamped to the chuck 202.

[0075] The instrumentation board 100 may be mounted on the chuck 202. For example, the instrumentation board 100 may be mounted on the chuck 202 after being positioned on the chuck 202 by the board handler 206. The chuck 202 may support the instrumentation board 100. In some embodiments, the chuck 202 may directly support the instrumentation board 100. Therefore, the chuck 202 does not need to be separated from the instrumentation board 100 by a gap or fork, etc. During operation, the bottom surface of the board 102 may be mounted on the chuck 202. In the case of a chuck 202 using an electrostatic clamp, it is desirable that the bottom surface of the board 102 be flat for mechanical integrity and to prevent back surface gas leakage. Preventing back surface gas leakage may not affect the fidelity of the line image 109. However, excessive back surface gas leakage may cause a failure trip of the board processing system 200.

[0076] The chuck 202 may be a circular chuck having a selected diameter. In embodiments, the diameter of the chuck 202 may be smaller than the diameter of the substrate 102. The chuck 202 may include a chuck center 203. The chuck center 203 may be located at the center or midpoint of the chuck 202. For example, the chuck center 203 may be at a point equidistant from the chuck edge 207. The chuck 202 may also include a chuck edge 207. The chuck edge 207 may be an outward curved edge that wraps around the cylindrical surface of the chuck 202. The chuck edge 207 may connect to the upper surface of the chuck 202 on which the substrate 102 is disposed.

[0077] In the embodiment, the focus ring 204 may be an edge ring, a silicon ring, and / or a dielectric isolation ring. The focus ring 204 may be used in one or more plasma processes. For example, the focus ring 204 may suppress the plasma and / or gas around the substrate 102 and / or chuck 202.

[0078] The focus ring 204 may be a circular ring having a selected diameter. In some embodiments, the diameter of the focus ring 204 may be greater than the diameter of the substrate 102 and / or the chuck 202. The focus ring 204 may include a focus ring center 205. The focus ring center 205 may be located at the center or midpoint of the focus ring 204. For example, the focus ring center 205 may be located at a point equidistant from the focus ring edge 209. The focus ring 204 may also include a focus ring edge 209. The focus ring edge 209 may be an inwardly curved edge that wraps around the cylindrical surface of the focus ring 204. The focus ring edge 209 may be the inner diameter of the focus ring 204.

[0079] In embodiments, the focus ring 204 may surround the chuck 202. For example, the focus ring 204 may surround the chuck edge 207. For example, the focus ring edge 209 may surround the chuck edge 207. The focus ring edge 209 may have a larger diameter than the diameter of the chuck edge 207. In embodiments, the substrate 102 and positioning unit 104 may overhang the chuck edge 207 and / or the focus ring edge 209. The substrate processing system 200 may include a defined gap between the chuck 202 and the focus ring 204. The gap may be defined by the chuck edge 207 and the focus ring edge 209. Illumination 107 may be lost due to the defined gap between the chuck 202 and the focus ring 204 and not reflected by the line sensor 108.

[0080] The instrumentation board 100 may be configured to generate line images 109 of the chuck 202 and the focus ring 204 while the instrumentation board 100 is mounted on the chuck 202. For example, a line sensor 108 may receive illumination 107 generated by an illumination source 106 after the illumination has been reflected from the chuck 202 and / or the focus ring 204. The line sensor 108 may receive illumination 107 reflected from the chuck 202 and / or the focus ring 204 at the chuck edge 207 and / or the focus ring edge 209 (e.g., by specular and diffuse reflection). The chuck 202 may include an optically rough top surface. For example, the chuck 202 may include a root mean square roughness value in the micron range. The illumination 107 may be diffusely reflected from the chuck 202 (e.g., in many angular directions). For example, the focus ring 204 may include an optically smooth top surface. For example, the focus ring 204 may include root mean square roughness values ​​in the nanometer range. The focus ring 204 may reflect illumination 107 specularly (e.g., in only approximately a single angular direction). The top surface of the chuck 202 may be aligned with or near the top surface of the focus ring 204. Both the chuck 202 and the focus ring 204 may be imaged by the line sensor 108. Therefore, the line image 109 of the chuck 202 and the focus ring 204 may include the chuck edge 207 and / or the focus ring edge 209. For example, the image plane of the line image 109 may include the chuck edge 207 and / or the focus ring edge 209.

[0081] The instrumentation board 100 may determine the positions of the chuck edge 207 and / or focus ring edge 209 within the line image 109 based on the intensity of the line image 109. For example, the chuck edge 207 and / or focus ring edge 209 within the line image 109 may be defined as a certain percentage of intensity reduction and may be associated with a certain pixel number on the line sensor 108, and thus can be detected much more accurately than a single pixel size. The illumination 107 may decrease or roll off within the gap between the chuck edge 207 and the focus ring edge 209. The surface roughness and / or reflectivity (e.g., stray light characteristics) of the chuck 202 and / or focus ring 204 may determine the ratio of the signal levels of the illumination 107 reflected from the chuck 202 and / or focus ring 204 on the line sensor 108. The line image 109 is used by the instrumentation board 100 to determine whether the chuck edge 207 of the chuck 202 is positioned in contact with the instrumentation board 100. The instrumentation board 100 can capture the chuck edge 207 from each of the position units 104.

[0082] By generating a line image 109 while the instrumentation board 100 is positioned on the chuck 202, a reliable and accurate method for measuring the position of the instrumentation board 100 can be provided. For example, by generating a line image 109 while the instrumentation board 100 is positioned on the chuck 202, errors associated with lift pins and the like can be eliminated.

[0083] In the embodiment, the position unit 104 can directly measure the amount of wafer positioning error. Direct measurement can avoid one or more problems associated with setting the scale of the line image 109, including the need to know the distance between the line sensor 108 and the chuck 202. In the embodiment, the position unit 104 does not need to introduce errors associated with spatial distortion and parallax, which are related to the implementation of the spatial image sensor.

[0084] The offset 113 between the substrate and the chuck may indicate the level of concentricity between the substrate center 103 and the chuck center 203. The offset 113 between the substrate and the chuck may be a compensatory offset required to center the substrate center 103 with the chuck center 203. The offset 115 between the substrate and the ring may indicate the level of concentricity between the substrate center 103 and the focus ring center 205. The offset 115 between the substrate and the ring may be a compensatory offset required to center the substrate center 103 with the focus ring center 205. One or more functions of the instrumentation board 100 may be to measure the offset 113 between the substrate and the chuck and / or the offset 115 between the substrate and the ring.

[0085] The controller 110 may perform one or more data processing methods to perform autocorrelation between different locations. In embodiments, autocorrelation may include determining the edges of the chucks 202 relative to each other. The instrumentation board 100 may be configured to measure the chuck edges 207. The instrumentation board 100 may measure the chuck edges 207 relative to the board center 103. The asymmetry of the chuck edges 207 relative to the board center 103 may be used to determine the offset 113 between the board and the chuck. Autocorrelation may include performing trigonometry to find the offset 113 between the board and the chuck, where the board center 103 is relative to the chuck center 203.

[0086] In an embodiment, autocorrelation may include determining the edges of the focus ring 204 relative to each other. In an embodiment, the instrumentation board 100 may be configured to measure the focus ring edge 209. The instrumentation board 100 may measure the focus ring edge 209 with respect to the board center 103. The asymmetry of the focus ring edge 209 with respect to the board center 103 may be used to determine the offset 115 between the board and the ring. Autocorrelation may include performing trigonometry to find the offset 115 between the board and the ring, with respect to the focus ring center 205 and the board center 103.

[0087] In this embodiment, the substrate handler 206 may be a wafer handler robot. The substrate handler 206 can position the instrumentation substrate 100 on the chuck 202. For example, the substrate handler 206 may include one or more robotic mechanisms or end effectors to position the instrumentation substrate 100 on the chuck 202. The substrate handler 206 may position the instrumentation substrate 100 in an undesirable position on the chuck 202 using an offset 113 between the substrate and the chuck. The offset 113 between the substrate and the chuck may be due to one or more errors in the substrate handler 206.

[0088] The board handler 206 may include a computing system operably coupled to the end effector. The computing system may or may not be physically housed within the same device having the end effector and a mechanical linkage mechanism for physically positioning the instrumentation board 100.

[0089] The instrumentation board 100 can transmit and / or receive various data via the communication interface 116. For example, the instrumentation board 100 can transmit the offset 113 between the board and the chuck via the communication interface 116. The instrumentation board 100 may be configured to communicate with the board handler 206 via the communication interface 116. In some embodiments, the instrumentation board 100 may communicate with the board handler 206 in real time.

[0090] The controller 110 may transmit the offset 113 between the substrate and the chuck and / or the offset 115 between the substrate and the ring to the substrate handler 206. Transmitting the offset 113 between the substrate and the chuck and / or the offset 115 between the substrate and the ring to the substrate handler 206 may involve any operable communication to the substrate handler 206. The instrumentation board 100 may be operablely coupled to the substrate handler 206 via the communication interface 116. Various data may be transmitted from the instrumentation board 100 to the substrate handler 206 as feedback for further positioning. The substrate handler 206 may receive any of various measurements from the instrumentation board 100.

[0091] The substrate handler 206 may use an offset 113 between the substrate and the chuck and / or an offset 115 between the substrate and the ring for optimal semiconductor process performance. For example, the substrate handler 206 may reposition the instrumentation substrate 100 on the chuck 202 based on the offset 113 between the substrate and the chuck and / or the offset 115 between the substrate and the ring. The substrate handler 206 may reposition the instrumentation substrate 100 to reduce the offset 113 between the substrate and the chuck between the substrate center 103 and the chuck center 203, and / or reduce the offset 115 between the substrate and the ring between the substrate center 103 and the focus ring center 205. For example, the substrate handler 206 may align the substrate center 103 with the chuck center 203 based on the offset 113 between the substrate and the chuck. The substrate handler 206 may reposition the instrumentation substrate 100 so that it is centered on the chuck 202 and / or the focus ring 204.

[0092] In the embodiment, the substrate handler 206 may position the instrumentation substrate 100 between different tools within the substrate carrier. For example, the substrate carrier may include a front-opening integrated pod (FOUP). The instrumentation substrate 100 may be housed within the FOUP. The FOUP may include a standard substrate carrier that can be integrated with the substrate processing system 200. The FOUP may provide an environment for storing and transporting the instrumentation substrate 100. For example, the substrate handler 206 may be removed from the substrate carrier and positioned on the chuck 202 for processing or post-processing inspection.

[0093] In the embodiment, any of the various components of the instrumentation substrate 100 may be disposed on and / or embedded within the substrate 102. Components of the instrumentation substrate 100 may be disposed on the upper surface. The substrate 102 may define one or more cavities. The substrate 102 may define one or more cavities within its upper surface. Cavities may be defined by etching or precision grinding, etc. Any of the various components of the instrumentation substrate 100 may be embedded within a cavity and thereby embedded within the substrate 102.

[0094] The controller 110 may detect the presence of the chuck 202 using sensor readings. The presence of the chuck 202 may indicate that the chuck 202 is located under the substrate 102 and / or in contact with the substrate. In the embodiment, capacitance data 119f may confirm the position of the instrumentation board 100 on the chuck 202.

[0095] In embodiments, the instrumentation substrate 100 may include optical cement 210. In embodiments, the optical cement 210 may be an optical adhesive. The optical cement 210 may have a selected refractive index. One or more components of the positioning unit 104 may be fixed to the substrate 102 by the optical cement 210. For example, components of the positioning unit 104 may be fixed to the substrate 102 within a cavity by the optical cement 210. In embodiments, the optical cement 210 and the substrate 102 may have similar or the same refractive index, which may prevent the illumination 107 from being refracted as it passes between the optical cement 210 and the substrate 102.

[0096] In the embodiment, the position unit 104 may include a collimator 212. The collimator 212 may be a microcollimator plate or the like. The line sensor 108 may be in contact with the collimator 212. The collimator 212 may collimate the illumination 107 received by the line sensor 108. The line sensor 108 may be imaged by the collimator 212. In the embodiment, the collimator 212 may be in the near field of the line sensor 108. In this regard, the collimator 212 may include a Fresnel number much larger than 1.

[0097] The collimator 212 can collimate the illumination 107 in one or more directions. For example, the collimator 212 can collimate the illumination 107 at least in the longitudinal direction (i.e., along the photodiode of the line sensor 108). The collimator 212 can collimate the illumination 107 at least in the longitudinal direction to enable the line sensor 108 to generate a line image 109 that accurately depicts the chuck edge 207 and the focus ring edge 209. Thus, the collimator 212 can prevent the illumination 107 from reflecting at an oblique angle from the chuck 202 and / or the focus ring 204 and appearing in the line image 109 within the gap defined between the chuck edge 207 and the focus ring edge 209.

[0098] In embodiments, the collimator 212 may collimate the illumination 107 so that only normal rays pass through the line sensor 108. The collimator may eliminate all modes of illumination 107 except the normal mode. The collimator may cause the line sensor 108 to generate a line image 109 as a front image. The collimator 212 may be an irreversible mechanism. The collimator may include any preferred design that allows only normal rays to pass through to the line sensor 108. In embodiments, the collimator 212 may include a collimated hole array. For example, the collimator may include an N array of holes etched through a slab on black glass, where N is an integer equal to the number of photodiodes in the line sensor 108. As another example, the collimator 212 may include a transparent glass rod within a black glass matrix. The collimated hole array may act as a short-range pinhole optical system. The collimated hole array can transmit illumination 107 from the chuck 202 and / or focus ring 204 onto the line sensor 108 without magnification or distortion.

[0099] In the embodiment, the collimator 212 may collimate the illumination 107 in the longitudinal dimension but not in the transverse dimension. By collimating the illumination in the longitudinal dimension but not in the transverse dimension, photon collection can be significantly increased. The collimator 212 may include any preferred design for collimating the illumination 107 in the longitudinal dimension rather than the transverse dimension. In the embodiment, the collimator 212 may include a layered collimator. For example, the collimator 212 may include alternating sheets of clear glass and sheets of black glass. The black glass may be opaque to the illumination 107. By alternating the sheets of clear glass and sheets of black glass, the same optical index can be achieved, and therefore all internal reflections can be eliminated. Thus, the illumination 107 is collimated after passing through the collimator 212. The alternating sheets of clear glass and sheets of black glass can be aligned with the line sensor 108. For example, each sheet of transparent glass can be aligned with each photodiode of the line sensor 108. In this regard, each photodiode of the line sensor 108 can be associated with one of the sheets of transparent glass.

[0100] In this embodiment, the illumination source 106 may be positioned adjacent to the line sensor 108. The illumination source 106 can emit illumination 107 from the side of the line sensor 108 through the substrate 102 onto the base of the substrate 102. The illumination source 106 can generate illumination 107 that illuminates the chuck 202 at an oblique angle. Due to the diffusive nature of the surface of the chuck 202 and / or the focus ring 204, the illumination 107 may be reflected back to the line sensor 108. In this embodiment, the substrate 102 may include a diffusion region 214. The diffusion region 214 may be located below the illumination source 106. The diffusion region may be patterned within the bottom surface of the substrate 102. The diffusion region 214 may receive and diffuse the illumination 107. The diffusion region 214 may be located adjacent to an opening for a line sensor 108. The opening may be located below the line sensor 108. In this regard, the diffusion region 214 may diffuse at least a portion of the illumination 107 toward the line sensor 108. The diffusion region 214 may include any preferred diffusion region. For example, the diffusion region may include frosted glass and / or a phosphor. The frosted glass may be formed by sandblasting or the like.

[0101] Next, a line image 109 according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure will be described with reference to Figures 3A to 3C. The horizontal axis of the line image 109 corresponds to the pixel number (e.g., the photodiode number). The vertical axis of the line image 109 corresponds to the signal value at the pixel.

[0102] The signal value of the line image 109 may increase when the illumination 107 is reflected by the line sensor 108 and decrease when the illumination 107 is not reflected by the line sensor 108. For example, the signal value may be highest where the line sensor 108 is positioned above the chuck 202 and the focus ring 204, and lowest in the gap between the chuck edge 207 and the focus ring edge 209. The line image 109 may appear darker in the location of the gap. For example, the illumination 107 may be reflected by the chuck 202 and the focus ring 204, but may not be reflected by the gap defined between the chuck 202 and the focus ring 204.

[0103] The controller 110 can detect the chuck edges 207 and focus ring edges 209 in the line image 109. The controller 110 can detect the chuck edges 207 and focus ring edges 209 in the line image 109 based on changes in signal values. The number of chuck edges 207 and focus ring edges 209 to be detected may be based on the number of position units 104. For example, the instrumentation board 100 may include three position units 104, each containing one of the line sensors 108, for a total of three chuck edges 207 and focus ring edges 209.

[0104] The positions of the chuck edge 207 and / or the focus ring edge 209 may be asymmetrical in the line image 109. The chuck edge 207 and / or the focus ring edge 209 may be detected at different pixel numbers in the line image 109. For example, Figure 3B shows the chuck edge 207 detected at different pixel numbers. If there were no offset 113 between the substrate and the chuck, each of the chuck edges 207 could be at the same pixel number. As another example, Figure 3C shows the focus ring edge 209 detected at different pixel numbers. If there were no offset 115 between the substrate and the ring, each of the focus ring edges 209 could be at the same pixel number. The asymmetry of the positions of the chuck edge 207 and the focus ring edge 209 may correspond to the offset 113 between the substrate and the chuck and the offset 115 between the substrate and the ring, respectively.

[0105] In the embodiment, the controller 110 may determine the chuck non-concentric offset 302. In the embodiment, the chuck non-concentric offset 302 may be an offset between chuck edges. The chuck non-concentric offset 302 may be determined based on the chuck edges 207. For example, the chuck non-concentric offset 302 may be determined by subtracting the position of one of the chuck edges 207 in the line image 109 from another position of the chuck edges 207 in the line image 109.

[0106] In one embodiment, the controller 110 may determine the offset 113 between the substrate and the chuck based on the chuck non-concentric offset 302. For example, the controller 110 may determine the offset 113 between the substrate and the chuck by performing triangulation using the chuck non-concentric offset 302 and the known position of the line sensor 108 on the substrate 102.

[0107] In the embodiment, the controller 110 may determine one or more focus ring aconcentric offsets 304. In the embodiment, the focus ring aconcentric offset 304 may be an offset between focus ring edges. The focus ring aconcentric offset 304 may be determined based on the focus ring edges 209. For example, the focus ring aconcentric offset 304 may be determined by subtracting the position of one of the focus ring edges 209 in the line image 109 from another position of the focus ring edges 209 in the line image 109.

[0108] In the embodiment, the controller 110 may determine the offset 115 between the substrate and the ring based on the focus ring non-concentric offset 304. For example, the controller 110 may determine the focus ring non-concentric offset 304 by performing triangulation using the focus ring non-concentric offset 304 and the known position of the line sensor 108 on the substrate 102.

[0109] The determined number of chuck non-concentric offsets 302 and / or focus ring non-concentric offsets 304 may be based on the number of position units 104. For example, the instrumentation board 100 may include three position units 104, with two chuck non-concentric offsets 302 and two focus ring non-concentric offsets 304.

[0110] Although line image 109 is shown as a continuous function, this is not intended to limit the disclosure. In embodiments, line image 109 may be shown as a Dirac delta function.

[0111] Next, a substrate processing system 200 according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure will be described with reference to Figures 4A to 4B. In the embodiments, the instrumentation substrate 100 may include one or more reflectors 402 and / or cylindrical lenses 404.

[0112] In this embodiment, the illumination source 106 may be inclined with respect to the substrate 102. For example, the illumination source 106 may be off-axis with respect to the plane of the substrate 102.

[0113] In embodiments, the substrate 102 may define one or more reflectors 402. In embodiments, reflectors 402 may be microfabricated reflectors, lens elements, microlenses, etched reflectors, microfabricated lens elements, and / or Fresnel lens arrays. Reflectors 402 may be defined within the bottom surface of the substrate 102. Reflectors 402 may receive illumination 107 from the illumination source 106 and guide the illumination 107. For example, reflectors 402 may guide illumination to an area located below the line sensor 108. Reflectors 402 may minimize crosstalk between the illumination source 106 and the line sensor 108. Reflectors 402 may be useful in guiding illumination 107 to the line sensor 108 when the illumination source 106 is off-axis with respect to the plane of the substrate 102.

[0114] The cylindrical lens 404 may have a short focal length. For example, the cylindrical lens 404 may have a focal line width of approximately 25 μm. The cylindrical lens 404 may be bonded to the substrate 102 by optical cement 210. By including the cylindrical lens 404 within the optical cement 210, the function of the cylindrical lens 404 can be maintained if there is a sufficient optical index difference between the cylindrical lens 404 and the optical cement 210. The cylindrical lens 404 and the optical cement 210 may have a sufficient optical index difference to prevent the cylindrical lens 404 from optically disappearing within the optical cement 210. For example, the illumination 107 may be refracted as it passes between the optical cement 210 and the cylindrical lens 404, thereby giving the cylindrical lens 404 a selected optical power and / or focal length. The cylindrical lens 404 can focus illumination 107 at a large angle. The line sensor 108 can be imaged by a cylindrical lens 404. The sensitivity of the line sensor 108 can be increased by the cylindrical lens 404 focusing a large-angle illumination 107. Focusing a large-angle illumination 107 may cause the illumination 107 to bleed into the photodiodes next to the line sensor 108, thus reducing the contrast of the line image 109.

[0115] In this embodiment, the cylindrical lens 404 may be a layered cylindrical lens. For example, the cylindrical lens 404 may be fabricated by alternating sheets of clear glass 406 and black glass 408. The black glass 408 may be opaque to the illumination 107. By alternating sheets of clear glass 406 and black glass 408, a "zebra" lens can be created that longitudinally collimates the illumination 107 while collecting photons from the focal point to the photodiode of the line sensor 108. The sheets of black glass 408 may block higher-mode light arrays that are out of the plane of the sheets of clear glass 406. Light arrays moving within the plane of the clear glass 406 can pass through the line sensor 108. Thus, the layered cylindrical lens can function as a directional collimator. Each of the glass sheets (e.g., clear glass 406, black glass 408) may have a selected thickness. For example, the thickness of the glass sheets may be 5 to 10 μm.

[0116] Next, a substrate processing system 200 according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure will be described, particularly with reference to Figure 5. In the embodiments, the instrumentation substrate 100 may include a bright-field mode optical path configuration. The positioning unit 104 includes one or more components that make the optical path configuration bright-field mode. For example, the positioning unit 104 may include a beam splitter 504, a suction element 506, an objective lens 508, and / or a focusing lens 510.

[0117] The focusing lens 510 can receive illumination 107 from the illumination source 106. The received illumination 107 can diverge. The focusing lens 510 can convert the diverging illumination 107 into a parallel beam.

[0118] In the embodiment, the beam splitter 504 may be a prism, a beam combiner, and / or a splitter / combiner. The beam splitter 504 may receive illumination 107 from the illumination source 106. The beam splitter 504 may be coupled to a focusing lens 510. The beam splitter 504 may receive illumination 107 from the illumination source 106 via the focusing lens 510. The illumination 107 may pass through the beam splitter 504. The beam splitter 504 may be oriented so that the illumination source 106 can simultaneously guide the illumination 107 to the chuck 202 and / or focus ring 204, and so that the line sensor 108 can focus the illumination 107 reflected from the chuck 202 and / or focus ring 204. The beam splitter 504 may bend the optical path of illumination 107 from vertical to horizontal. Vertical means a direction perpendicular to the normal of the substrate 102. Horizontal refers to the plane of the substrate 102 (for example, parallel to the substrate 102). The illumination 107 can be on-axis and / or off-axis. For example, the beam splitter 504 may combine illumination 107 such that it is on-axis with the illumination source 106, chuck 202, and / or focus ring 204. As another example, the beam splitter 504 may combine illumination 107 such that it is off-axis and is received by the line sensor 108.

[0119] The adsorbent 506 can be coupled to the beam splitter 504. The adsorbent 506 can receive a portion of the illumination 107 from the beam splitter 504. The adsorbent 506 can adsorb a portion of the illumination 107 received from the beam splitter 504, and a portion of the illumination 107 is reflected from the adsorbent 506 back to the beam splitter 504.

[0120] The objective lens 508 can focus the illumination 107 from the chuck 202 and / or the focus ring 204. The objective lens 508 can be coupled to the beam splitter 504.

[0121] In this embodiment, the beam splitter 504, the adsorbent 506, the objective lens 508, and / or the focusing lens 510 can be co-3D printed. The beam splitter 504, the objective lens 508, and / or the focusing lens 510 can be printed as a single component from optical plastics of various optical indices. The absorber can also be printed on the position unit 104. A small and compact optical system can be miniaturized using co-3D printing. The beam splitter 504, the adsorbent 506, the objective lens 508, and / or the focusing lens 510 can function as a "beam dump" to prevent surface reflections from entering the line sensor 108. By preventing surface reflections from entering the line sensor 108, the contrast of the line image 109 can be increased.

[0122] In the embodiment, the bottom surface of the substrate 102 may define one or more notches 502. In the embodiment, the notches 502 may be cavities. The notches 502 may be defined penetrating the substrate 102 from the top surface to the bottom surface. One or more components of the position unit 104 may be disposed within the notches 502. For example, at least a portion of the line sensor 108, beam splitter 504, and / or objective lens 508 may be disposed within the notches 502.

[0123] Next, an example of the optical power of illumination 107 is provided. The beam splitter 504 may receive 100% of the optical power from the focusing lens 510. The beam splitter 504 may split approximately 50% of the optical power to the adsorbent 506 and approximately 50% to the objective lens 508. The adsorbent 506 may receive approximately 50% from the beam splitter 504 and reflect less than 1% back to the beam splitter 504. The chuck 202 may receive approximately 50% from the objective lens 508. The chuck 202 may include approximately 20% modulation and approximately 50% reflection. The beam splitter 504 may receive approximately 20-26% of the optical power from the chuck 202 via the objective lens 508. The beam splitter 504 can divide 20–26% of the optical power so that the line sensor 108 and the focusing lens 510 each receive approximately 10–13% of the optical power. In this example, the line sensor 108 may include 21% (e.g., 3% / 14%) of contrast. The position unit 104 may include 12% of throughput.

[0124] Next, a substrate processing system 200 according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure will be described, particularly with reference to Figure 6. In the embodiments, the instrumentation substrate 100 may include an optical configuration having a window 602, a metalensor 604, and an adsorbent 606.

[0125] The window 602 may be located within the notch 502. The window 602 may allow illumination 107 from the illumination source 106 to be reflected from the chuck 202 and / or the focus ring 204. In embodiments, the substrate 102 may be a silicon-based substrate if it has a notch with the window 602 to minimize electrostatic chuck (ESC) collapse. The window 602 may be made of any suitable material, such as but not limited to quartz. The window 602 may be located below the metalens 604. The window 602 may have the same refractive index as the substrate 102, thereby preventing reflection of illumination 107 at the critical angle.

[0126] Although the instrumentation substrate 100 is described as including a window 602, this is not intended to limit the disclosure. In embodiments, the notch 502 may be filled with optical resin. The notch 502 below the metalens 604 may be filled with optical resin. The optical resin can make the bottom surface of the substrate 102 planar.

[0127] In embodiments, the metalens 604 may be a meta-optical system. The metalens 604 may be a planar optical system that depends on an optical structure of a size comparable to the wavelength used by illumination 107. The metalens 604 may be fabricated from any suitable material, including, but not limited to, metal oxide elements. On a larger scale, the metalens 604 may include a structure that appears as small pillars of metal and oxide on a transparent substrate with varying heights, diameters, and spacings. The metalens 604 may approximate lenses, mirrors, filters, diffractometers, and / or modulators.

[0128] In this embodiment, the line sensor 108 can be imaged and / or illuminated by a metalensor 604. The metalensor 604 can offset the focus of the illumination source 106. The metalensor 604 can focus and collimate the illumination 107 returning to the line sensor 108 at the offset position. The metalensor 604 can perform one or more functions of a complex optical system.

[0129] The adsorbent 606 can receive a portion of the illumination 107 from the metalens 604. The adsorbent 606 can adsorb a considerable portion of the illumination 107 received from the metalens 604. Only a very small portion of the illumination 107 can be reflected from the adsorbent 606 to the metalens 604.

[0130] Any of the above optical configurations can be combined by those skilled in the art and are intended as examples rather than limitations. In some embodiments, the position unit 104 may include a collimator 212. The collimator 212 may be located between the metalens 604 and the line sensor 108. The collimator 212 may be used to reduce the incident angle of the illumination 107.

[0131] Next, with reference to Figure 7, a method 700 according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure will be described. This method may be for substrate position monitoring. The embodiments and techniques described herein that enable them should be interpreted as being extended to this method in the context of the instrumentation board 100 and the substrate processing system 200. However, it should be further noted that this method is not limited to the architecture of the instrumentation board 100 and the substrate processing system 200.

[0132] In step 710, the instrumentation board 100 may be removed and positioned by the board handler 206. The instrumentation board 100 may be removed from a board carrier such as a front-opening integrated pod (FOUP). The instrumentation board 100 may be positioned on the chuck 202. The chuck 202 may require calibration to determine the positioning error of the instrumentation board 100 by the board handler 206.

[0133] In step 720, the instrumentation board 100 may generate line images 109 from the position unit 104. Generating line images 109 includes an illumination source 106 that generates illumination 107 and a line sensor 108 that generates line images 109 based on the illumination 107. Multiple line images 109 may be captured from each of the position units 104.

[0134] In step 730, the controller 110 may calculate the offset 113 between the substrate and the chuck and / or the offset 115 between the substrate and the ring. The controller 110 may calculate the offset 113 between the substrate and the chuck based on the edge 207 detected in the line image 109. The controller 110 may calculate the offset 115 between the substrate and the ring based on the focus ring edge 209 detected in the line image 109.

[0135] In step 740, the substrate handler 206 returns the instrumentation substrate 100 to the substrate carrier and may receive the substrate-to-chuck offset 113 and / or substrate-to-ring offset 115 from the controller 110. The substrate-to-chuck offset 113 and / or substrate-to-ring offset 115 may be sent to the semiconductor process tool via the substrate processing system 200. The substrate-to-chuck offset 113 and / or substrate-to-ring offset 115 may be processed by the semiconductor process tool and used to generate a set of calibration files that will be normalized to a common radius from the substrate center 103. These calibration files may then "zero" the assembly error and normalize the one-dimensional sensor output. The semiconductor process may then apply the calculated centering solution to improve positioning concentricity.

[0136] In the embodiment, each step may be performed automatically by the substrate processing system 200, and as a result, the instrumentation substrate 100 can be efficiently and accurately positioned without requiring human intervention. In the embodiment, the steps may be performed iteratively to improve positional accuracy.

[0137] Next, with reference to Figures 8A to 8D, a substrate processing system 200 according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure will be described. In the embodiments, the positioning unit 104 may include an illumination source 106, a microlens array 802, a lens 804 (e.g., a first lens), a folding mirror 806 (e.g., a first folding mirror), a prism 808, a lens 810 (e.g., a second lens), a folding mirror 812 (e.g., a second folding mirror), an aperture diaphragm 814, a lens 816 (e.g., a third lens), a cylindrical lens 818, and a line sensor 108, etc. The prism 808 may also be implemented as a front mirror positioned at the correct angle.

[0138] The light beam path of illumination 107 can sequentially travel from illumination source 106 through microlens array 802, lens 804, folding mirror 806, prism 808, chuck 202 and / or focus ring 204, lens 810, folding mirror 812, aperture diaphragm 814, lens 816, and cylindrical lens 818 to line sensor 108. Illumination 107 can follow an illumination path. The illumination path can refer to the path of illumination 107 from illumination source 106 to chuck 202 and / or focus ring 204. Illumination 107 can follow an illumination path from illumination source 106 through microlens array 802, lens 804, folding mirror 806, and prism 808 to chuck 202 and / or focus ring 204. Illumination 107 can follow an imaging path. The imaging path may refer to the path of illumination 107 from the chuck 202 and / or focus ring 204 to the line sensor 108. Illumination 107 may follow an imaging path from the chuck 202 and / or focus ring 204 through the prism 808, lens 810, folding mirror 812, aperture diaphragm 814, lens 816, and cylindrical lens 818 to the line sensor 108.

[0139] The microlens array 802 may be positioned between the illumination source 106 and the lens 804. The microlens array 802 may be a cylindrical microlens array (MLA) capable of creating uniformity within the illumination 107 along the long axis of the line sensor 108.

[0140] Lens 804 may be positioned between the microlens array 802 and the folding mirror 806. Lens 804 may be a collimating lens capable of controlling the width of illumination 107.

[0141] The folding mirror 806 may be positioned between the lens 804 and the prism 808. The folding mirror 806 can fold back the light beam path of the illumination 107. For example, the folding mirror 806 can fold back the illumination path. The folding mirror 806 can fold back the illumination at a certain angle from the lens 804 to the prism 808.

[0142] The prism 808 may be positioned between the folding mirror 806 and / or the folding mirror 812. The prism 808 may be positioned above the notch 502. The prism 808 may include a prism with a high-reflection coating, etc. The prism 808 may deflect the illumination 107 between the illumination path and the imaging path. For example, the prism 808 may deflect the illumination 107 from the illumination path to the chuck 202 and / or the focus ring 204, thereby deflecting the illumination 107 away from the illumination path. As another example, the prism 808 may deflect the illumination 107 from the chuck 202 and / or the focus ring 204 to the folding mirror 812, thereby deflecting the illumination 107 into the imaging path.

[0143] The prism 808 may be configured such that illumination 107 can reflect from the chuck edge 207 and the focus ring edge 209. Illumination 107 may or may not reflect from the sides and / or bottom of the chuck 202 and / or focus ring 204. If illumination 107 does not reflect from the sides and / or bottom of the chuck 202 and / or focus ring 204, the contrast of the chuck edge 207 and focus ring edge 209 in the line image 109 may be improved. Illumination 107 may be imaged onto the chuck 202 and / or focus ring 204 off-axis with respect to the vertical. For example, illumination 107 may include one or more angles of incidence (α) onto the chuck 202 and / or focus ring 204 and / or angles of reflection (β) from the chuck 202 and / or focus ring 204. The angles of incidence (α) and / or reflection (β) onto the plane of the substrate 102 may be off-axis with respect to the plane of the substrate 102. By imaging the chuck 202 and / or focus ring 204 with illumination 107 off-axis relative to the vertical, the illumination 107 can be reflected from the chuck edge 207 and the focus ring edge 209, but it is not necessary to reflect it back to the line sensor 108 from the sides and / or bottom of the chuck 202 and / or focus ring 204.

[0144] In this embodiment, the angle of incidence (α) may differ from the angle of reflection (β). The prism 808 may define the angle of incidence (α) and the angle of reflection (β) at different angles. For example, the first surface of the prism 808 may reflect the illumination 107 from the reflection mirror 806 to the chuck 202 and / or the focus ring 204. As another example, the second surface of the prism 808 may reflect the illumination 107 from the chuck 202 and / or the focus ring 204 to the lens 810. The first and second surfaces of the prism 808 may define the angle of incidence (α) and the angle of reflection (β), respectively. By defining the angle of incidence (α) and the angle of reflection (β) at different angles, it may be possible to prevent the specular reflection of the illumination 107 from the focus ring 204 from passing through the aperture diaphragm 814. Because the reflectivity of chuck 202 can be much more diffuse, illumination 107 can pass from chuck 202 to aperture diaphragm 814 even if the angle of incidence (α) is different from the angle of reflection (β). Therefore, by defining the angle of incidence (α) and the angle of reflection (β) to be different angles, the signal level of chuck 202 in the line image 109 can be maintained while the signal level of the focus ring 204 can be reduced.

[0145] The lens 810 may be positioned between the prism 808 and the folding mirror 812.

[0146] The folding mirror 812 may be positioned between the lens 810 and the aperture diaphragm 814. The folding mirror 812 can fold back the light beam path of the illumination 107. For example, the folding mirror 812 can fold back the imaging path. The folding mirror 812 can fold back the illumination at a certain angle from the lens 810 to the aperture diaphragm 814.

[0147] The folding mirrors 806 and / or 812 can fold the illumination 107 at a selected angle, such as 45 degrees, but are not limited to this. The instrumentation board 100 may have a selected height, which may be less than a value such as 3.5 mm, but are not limited to this. The light beam path of the illumination 107 can be folded so that the height of the instrumentation board 100 is below the selected height.

[0148] The aperture diaphragm 814 may be positioned between the folding mirror 812 and the lens 816. The aperture diaphragm 814 can determine the numerical aperture of the position unit 104. For example, the aperture diaphragm 814 can determine the numerical aperture of the illumination 107 on the imaging path.

[0149] Lens 816 may be positioned between the folding mirror 812 and the aperture diaphragm 814. Lens 810 and / or lens 816 may form images of the chuck edge 207 and / or the focus ring edge 209 on the line sensor 108.

[0150] A cylindrical lens 818 may be positioned between lens 816 and line sensor 108. The cylindrical lens 818 can broaden the image of the chuck 202 in the y-direction of the line sensor 108. By broadening the image of the chuck 202, the tolerance sensitivity of the line sensor 108 extending perpendicularly from the surface of the substrate 102 can be reduced. Since the line sensor 108 consists of lines, its performance may be sensitive to any lateral displacement in the y-direction. Optical resolution is not required in the vertical direction. Therefore, the cylindrical lens 818 may broaden the image of the chuck 202 in the vertical direction to reduce tolerance sensitivity.

[0151] In the embodiment, one or more collimators, metalenses, and illumination sources may be combined to form various functions of the microlens array 802, lens 804, folding mirror 806, prism 808, lens 810, folding mirror 812, aperture diaphragm 814, lens 816, and / or cylindrical lens 818. For example, lens 804 and / or lens 810 may be collimators. Lens 804 and / or lens 810 may collimate illumination 107 so that only normal rays pass through lens 804. Lens 804 and / or lens 810 may exclude all modes of illumination 107 except the normal mode. For example, lens 804 may collimate illumination 107 from the microlens array 802. As another example, lens 810 may collimate illumination 107 from the prism 808. As another example, any of the microlens array 802, lens 804, lens 810, lens 816, and / or cylindrical lens 818 may be a metalens.

[0152] In the embodiment, the position unit 104 may include an optical assembly 820 (see Figures 8C to 8D). The microlens array 802, lens 804, folding mirror 806, prism 808, lens 810, folding mirror 812, aperture diaphragm 814, lens 816, and / or cylindrical lens 818 may be disposed below the optical assembly 820. The optical assembly 820 may mechanically support the microlens array 802, lens 804, folding mirror 806, prism 808, lens 810, folding mirror 812, aperture diaphragm 814, lens 816, and / or cylindrical lens 818. For example, at least two of the microlens array 802, lens 804, folding mirror 806, prism 808, lens 810, folding mirror 812, aperture diaphragm 814, lens 816, or cylindrical lens 818 may be part of a monolithic molded assembly (for example, part of a monolithic molded assembly having an optical assembly 820).

[0153] In the embodiment, the folding mirror 806, prism 808, and / or folding mirror 812 may be formed by coating the optical assembly 820 with a metal film. The metal film may reflect the illumination 107 from the folding mirror 806, prism 808, and / or folding mirror 812. In the embodiment, the folding mirror 806 and / or folding mirror 812 are external folding mirrors supported by the optical assembly 820 so that the optical assembly 820 may be in the light beam path of the illumination 107.

[0154] The optical assembly 820 may have a different refractive index than lens 804, lens 810, lens 816, and / or cylindrical lens 818. For example, the optical assembly 820 may have a refractive index that may be lower than that of lens 804, lens 810, lens 816, and / or cylindrical lens 818. Illumination 107 may be coupled between free space (e.g., not the optical assembly 820) and lens 804, lens 810, lens 816, and / or cylindrical lens 818 to maintain the optical power of lens 804, lens 810, lens 816, and / or cylindrical lens 818.

[0155] In this embodiment, illumination 107 may couple from the microlens array 802 to free space, from free space to lens 804, from lens 804 to free space, from free space to optical assembly 820, reflect from folding mirror 806, couple from optical assembly 820 to free space, and reflect from prism 808 to chuck 202 and / or focus ring 204 at an incident angle (α).

[0156] In this embodiment, the illumination 107 may be reflected from the chuck 202 and / or focus ring 204 at a reflection angle (β), reflected from the prism 808, coupled from free space to the optical assembly 820, coupled from the optical assembly 820 to the lens 810, coupled from the lens 810 to the optical assembly 820, reflected from the folding mirror 812, coupled from the optical assembly 820 to free space, passed through the aperture diaphragm 814, coupled from free space to the lens 816, coupled from the lens 816 to free space, coupled from free space to the cylindrical lens 818, coupled from the cylindrical lens 818 to free space, and up to the line sensor 108.

[0157] Next, with reference to Figures 9A to 9C, a substrate processing system 200 according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure will be described. In the embodiments, the position unit 104 may include an illumination source 106, a microlens array 802, a lens 804 (e.g., a first lens), an aperture diaphragm 902 (e.g., a first aperture diaphragm), a lens 810 (e.g., a second lens), an aperture diaphragm 814 (e.g., a second aperture diaphragm), a lens 816 (e.g., a third lens), and a line sensor 108, etc.

[0158] The light beam path of illumination 107 can sequentially travel from illumination source 106 through microlens array 802, lens 804, aperture diaphragm 902, prism 808, chuck 202 and / or focus ring 204, lens 810, aperture diaphragm 814, and lens 816 to line sensor 108. Illumination 107 can follow an illumination path from illumination source 106 through microlens array 802, lens 804, aperture diaphragm 902, and prism 808 to chuck 202 and / or focus ring 204. Illumination 107 can follow an imaging path from chuck 202 and / or focus ring 204 through prism 808, lens 810, aperture diaphragm 814, and lens 816 to line sensor 108.

[0159] The microlens array 802 may be positioned between the illumination source 106 and the lens 804. The microlens array 802 may be a cylindrical microlens array (MLA) capable of creating uniformity within the illumination 107 along the long axis of the line sensor 108.

[0160] Lens 804 may be positioned between the microlens array 802 and the aperture diaphragm 902. Lens 804 may be a collimating lens capable of controlling the width of illumination 107.

[0161] The aperture diaphragm 902 may be positioned between the lens 804 and the prism 808. The aperture diaphragm 902 can control the numerical aperture of the illumination 107 on the illumination path. In this example, the illumination 107 may be directed to the chuck 202 and / or focus ring 204 on the illumination path without using the folding mirror 806.

[0162] The prism 808 may be positioned between the aperture diaphragm 902 and the chuck 202 and / or the focus ring 204. The prism 808 may include a prism with a high-reflection coating, for example. The prism 808 can deflect the illumination 107 between the illumination path and the imaging path. For example, the prism 808 can deflect the illumination 107 from the illumination path to the chuck 202 and / or the focus ring 204, thereby deflecting the illumination 107 away from the illumination path. As another example, the prism 808 can deflect the illumination 107 from the chuck 202 and / or the focus ring 204 to the folding mirror 812, thereby deflecting the illumination 107 into the imaging path.

[0163] In this embodiment, the angle of incidence (α) may differ from the angle of reflection (β). The prism 808 can define the angle of incidence (α) and the angle of reflection (β) at different angles.

[0164] The lens 810 may be positioned between the prism 808 and the aperture diaphragm 814.

[0165] The aperture diaphragm 814 may be positioned between lens 810 and lens 816. The aperture diaphragm 814 can determine the numerical aperture of the position unit 104. For example, the aperture diaphragm 814 can determine the numerical aperture of the illumination 107 on the imaging path.

[0166] Lens 816 may be positioned between the aperture diaphragm 814 and the line sensor 108. Lens 810 and / or lens 816 may form images of the chuck edge 207 and / or the focus ring edge 209 on the line sensor 108.

[0167] In the embodiment, the position unit 104 may include an optical assembly 820 that can form a monolithic block together with a microlens array 802, a lens 804, an aperture diaphragm 904, a prism 808, a lens 810, an aperture diaphragm 814, a lens 816, and / or a cylindrical lens 818. For example, the optical assembly 820 may be co-molded together with the microlens array 802, a lens 804, an aperture diaphragm 904, a prism 808, a lens 810, an aperture diaphragm 814, a lens 816, and / or a cylindrical lens 818. However, co-molding the optical assembly 820 together with the microlens array 802, a lens 804, an aperture diaphragm 904, a prism 808, a lens 810, an aperture diaphragm 814, a lens 816, and / or a cylindrical lens 818 may reduce the optical power of the position unit 104.

[0168] Next, with reference to Figures 10A to 10B, a substrate processing system 200 according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure will be described. In the embodiments, the position unit 104 may include an illumination source 106, a microlens array 802, a lens 804 (e.g., a first lens), an aperture diaphragm 902 (e.g., a first aperture diaphragm), a lens 810 (e.g., a second lens), an aperture diaphragm 814 (e.g., a second aperture diaphragm), a lens 816 (e.g., a third lens), and a line sensor 108, etc.

[0169] The light beam path of illumination 107 can sequentially travel from illumination source 106 through microlens array 802, lens 804, aperture diaphragm 902, chuck 202 and / or focus ring 204, lens 810, aperture diaphragm 814, and lens 816 to line sensor 108. Illumination 107 can follow an illumination path from illumination source 106 through microlens array 802, lens 804, and aperture diaphragm 902 to chuck 202 and / or focus ring 204. Illumination 107 can follow an imaging path from chuck 202 and / or focus ring 204 through lens 810, aperture diaphragm 814, and lens 816 to line sensor 108.

[0170] The microlens array 802 may be positioned between the illumination source 106 and the lens 804. The microlens array 802 may be a cylindrical microlens array (MLA) capable of creating uniformity within the illumination 107 along the long axis of the line sensor 108.

[0171] Lens 804 may be positioned between the microlens array 802 and the aperture diaphragm 902. Lens 804 may be a collimating lens capable of controlling the width of illumination 107.

[0172] The aperture diaphragm 902 may be positioned between the lens 804 and the chuck 202 and / or the focus ring 204. The aperture diaphragm 902 can control the numerical aperture of the illumination 107 on the illumination path. In this example, the illumination 107 may be directed to the chuck 202 and / or the focus ring 204 on the illumination path without using the folding mirror 806 and / or the prism 808.

[0173] The illumination 107 may include one or more angles of incidence (α) onto the chuck 202 and / or focus ring 204, and / or angles of reflection (β) from the chuck 202 and / or focus ring 204. The angles of incidence (α) and / or reflection (β) onto the plane of the substrate 102 may be off-axis with respect to the plane of the substrate 102. By imaging the illumination 107 onto the chuck 202 and / or focus ring 204 off-axis with respect to the perpendicular, the illumination 107 may be reflected from the chuck edge 207 and the focus ring edge 209, but it is not necessary to reflect it back to the line sensor 108 from the sides and / or bottom of the chuck 202 and / or focus ring 204. In the embodiment, the angles of incidence (α) and reflection (β) may be the same, so that the specularly reflected light from the focus ring 204 passes through the aperture diaphragm 814 and strikes the line sensor 108, so that the signal level from the focus ring 204 can be much higher than the signal level from the chuck 202. In this situation, additional signals from the focus ring edge 209 may interfere with the detection of the chuck edge 207.

[0174] The lens 810 may be positioned between the chuck 202 and / or the focus ring 204 and the aperture diaphragm 814.

[0175] The aperture diaphragm 814 may be positioned between lens 810 and lens 816. The aperture diaphragm 814 can determine the numerical aperture of the position unit 104. For example, the aperture diaphragm 814 can determine the numerical aperture of the illumination 107 on the imaging path.

[0176] Lens 816 may be positioned between the aperture diaphragm 814 and the line sensor 108. Lens 810 and / or lens 816 may form images of the chuck edge 207 and / or the focus ring edge 209 on the line sensor 108.

[0177] Refer again to Figures 1A to 10B in their entirety. Note that the arrangement and number of position units 104 shown are not limited and are provided for illustrative purposes only. Position units 104 may consist of several patterns, shapes, and quantities.

[0178] The position unit 104 may include many optical components. For example, the position unit 104 may include an optical cement 210, a collimator 212, a diffusion region 214, one or more reflectors 402, a cylindrical lens 404, a beam splitter 504, a magnet 506, an objective lens 508, a focusing lens 510, a window 602, a metalens 604, and / or a magnet 606. Any of the various optical elements can be manufactured using any preferred process. For example, various optical elements may be manufactured using 3D printing or the like. The line sensor 108 can be imaged by any of the various components of the position unit 104. Imaged means that the line sensor 108 receives illumination 107 through its components.

[0179] In the embodiment, the controller 110 may determine the need for a preventive maintenance (PM) cycle based on the offset 113 between the substrate and the chuck and / or the offset 115 between the substrate and the ring. For example, the focus ring 204 may be determined to be asymmetric with respect to the chuck 202 based on the offset 113 between the substrate and the chuck and the offset 115 between the substrate and the ring. The asymmetry may be used to diagnose the need for a preventive maintenance cycle.

[0180] Much of this disclosure is described in the context of a circular wafer substrate 102, but this is not intended to limit the disclosure. The substrate 102 may be any symmetrical polygon in which a valid center can be established using a sensor. For example, the substrate 102 may include a square, a triangle, or any symmetrical polygon in which a valid center can be established.

[0181] The chuck 202 may or may not include a circular feature at its center. The instrumentation board 100 can determine the offset 113 between the board and the chuck without requiring the chuck 202 to include a circular feature at its center. Therefore, the instrumentation board 100 provides a universal solution for a wide range of chucks 202 having different design configurations.

[0182] The position unit 104 may include, but is not limited to, any of the various optical components, such as a collimator 212, a diffusion region 214, a reflector 402, a cylindrical lens 404, a beam splitter 504, a suction element 606, a microlens array 802, a lens 804, a folding mirror 806, a prism 808, a lens 810, a folding mirror 812, an aperture diaphragm 814, a lens 816, a cylindrical lens 818, an optical assembly 820, and / or an aperture diaphragm 902. The optical components may be manufactured using manufacturing processes. For example, the optical components may be manufactured by molding (e.g., injection molding, glass molding, blank molding), casting, and embossing. For example, one or more of the microlens array 802, lens 810, lens 816, and / or cylindrical lens 818 may be molded lenses. The optical components may be manufactured from materials. For example, the optical components may be manufactured from plastic or glass, etc.

[0183] In some embodiments, the substrate processing system 200 may include a user interface. The user interface may be communicatively coupled to a controller 110. In one embodiment, the user interface may include, but is not limited to, one or more desktops, laptops, and tablets. In another embodiment, the user interface may include a display used to display system data to the user. The display of the user interface may include any display known in the art. For example, the display may include, but is not limited to, a liquid crystal display (LCD), an organic light-emitting diode (OLED) based display, or a CRT display. Those skilled in the art should recognize that any display device that can be integrated with the user interface is suitable for implementation in this disclosure. In another embodiment, the user may input selections and / or commands in response to data displayed to the user via a user input device of the user interface.

[0184] One or more processors may include any processor or processing element known in the art. For the purposes of this disclosure, the terms “processor” or “processing element” may be broadly defined to include any device having one or more processing or logic elements (e.g., one or more microprocessor devices, one or more application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) devices, one or more field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), or one or more digital signal processors (DSPs)). In this sense, one or more processors may include any device configured to execute algorithms and / or instructions (e.g., program instructions stored in memory). In one embodiment, one or more processors may be embodied as a desktop computer, a mainframe computer system, a workstation, an image computer, a parallel processor, a network computer, or any other computer system configured to execute a program. Furthermore, different subsystems of a system may include processors or logic elements suitable for performing at least one part of the steps described in this disclosure. Thus, the above description should not be construed as a limitation to embodiments of this disclosure, but merely as an example. Furthermore, the steps described throughout this disclosure may be performed by a single controller or alternatively by multiple controllers.

[0185] In the embodiment, the controller may include one or more controllers housed in a common housing or multiple housings. In this way, any controller or combination of controllers can be individually packaged as a module suitable for integration into a system. Furthermore, the controller may analyze data received from detectors and supply the data to additional components within or outside the system.

[0186] The memory medium may include any storage medium known in the art that is suitable for storing program instructions that can be executed by one or more associated processors. For example, the memory medium may include non-temporary memory media. As another example, the memory medium may include, but is not limited to, read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), magnetic or optical memory devices (e.g., disks), magnetic tapes, and solid-state drives. It should be further noted that the memory medium may be housed within a controller housing common to one or more processors. In one embodiment, the memory medium may be located remotely from the physical locations of one or more processors and controllers. For example, one or more processors in a controller may have access to remote memory (e.g., a server) accessible via a network (e.g., the Internet and an intranet).

[0187] Where used throughout this disclosure, the term “substrate” generally refers to a substrate formed of a semiconductor or non-semiconductor material (e.g., a thin film of glass). For example, semiconductor or non-semiconductor materials may include, but are not limited to, single-crystal silicon, gallium arsenide, indium phosphide, or glass materials. A substrate may include one or more layers. For example, such layers may include, but are not limited to, resists (including photoresists), dielectric materials, conductive materials, and semiconductor materials. Many different types of such layers are known in the art, and the term “sample” as used herein is intended to encompass a substrate on which all types of such layers may be formed. One or more layers formed on a substrate may or may not be patterned. For example, a substrate may include multiple dies, each having repeatable patterned features. The formation and processing of layers of such material may result in a finished device. Many different types of devices may be formed on a substrate, and the term “substrate” as used herein is intended to encompass a substrate on which any type of device known in the art is fabricated. Furthermore, for the purposes of this disclosure, the terms “substrate” and “wafer” should be construed as interchangeable. In addition, for the purposes of this disclosure, the terms patterning device, mask, and reticle should be interpreted as interchangeable.

[0188] Each of the embodiments of the methods described above is further intended to include any other step(s) of any other method(s) described herein. In addition, each of the embodiments of the methods described above may be performed by any of the systems described herein.

[0189] Those skilled in the art will recognize that the functions, devices, objects, and accompanying descriptions of the components described herein are used as examples to clarify concepts, and various configuration modifications are intended. Therefore, when used herein, the specific examples and accompanying descriptions described are intended to represent a more general class. In general, the use of any particular example is intended to represent that class and should not be considered to limit it to excluding specific components, functions, devices, and objects.

[0190] As used herein, directional terms such as “top,” “bottom,” “up,” “down,” “above,” “downward,” “below,” “below,” and “downwards” are intended to provide relative positions for illustrative purposes and not to specify an absolute coordinate system. Various modifications to the embodiments described herein will be apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein may apply to other embodiments.

[0191] With regard to the use of substantially any plural and / or singular terms herein, those skilled in the art can convert from plural to singular and / or singular to plural as appropriate to the context and / or use. Various singular / plural substitutions are not expressly described herein for clarity.

[0192] The subject matter described herein may include different components that are contained within or connected to other components. It should be understood that the architectures shown in this manner are merely illustrative, and in practice, many other architectures can be implemented to achieve the same function. Conceptually, any arrangement of components to achieve the same function is effectively “associated” in such a way that the desired function is achieved. Thus, any two components described herein combined to achieve a particular function, regardless of architecture or intermediate components, can be considered “associated” with each other in such a way that the desired function is achieved. Similarly, any two components thus associated can also be considered “connected” or “joined” with each other to achieve the desired function, and any two components that can be associated in this way can also be considered “joinable” with each other to achieve the desired function. Specific examples of joinable components include, but are not limited to, physically mixable and / or physically interacting components, and / or wirelessly interactable and / or wirelessly interacting components, and / or logically interactable and / or logically interacting components.

[0193] Furthermore, it should be understood that the present invention is defined by the appended claims. Generally, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the terms used herein, and in particular in the appended claims (e.g., in the text of the appended claims), are generally intended to be “open” terms (for example, the term “including” should be interpreted as “including but not limited to,” the term “having” should be interpreted as “having at least,” and the term “including” should be interpreted as “including but not limited to,” etc.). If a certain number of introduced claim descriptions are intended, such intent is explicitly stated in the claims, and if such statement is not present, such intent is not present, it will be understood by those skilled in the art. For example, to aid understanding, the following appended claims may include introducing claim descriptions using the introductory phrases “at least one” and “one or more.” However, the use of such phrases should not be interpreted as implying that any particular claim containing such introduced claim description is limited to an invention containing only one such description, even if the same claim contains an introductory phrase such as "one or more" or "at least one" and an indefinite article such as "a" or "an" (for example, "a" or "an" should typically be interpreted as meaning "at least one" or "one or more"), and the same applies to the use of definite articles used to introduce claim descriptions. In addition, even if a certain number of introduced claim descriptions are explicitly stated, a person skilled in the art will understand that such descriptions should typically be interpreted as meaning at least the number described (for example, a simple description of "two descriptions" without other modifiers typically means at least two descriptions, or two or more descriptions).Furthermore, in these examples where a convention similar to "at least one of A, B, and C" is used, such configurations are generally intended in a way that a person skilled in the art will understand the convention (for example, "a system having at least one of A, B, and C" may include, but is not limited to, a system having only A, only B, only C, A and B together, A and C together, B and C together, and / or A, B and C together). It will be further understood by those skilled in the art that substantially any disjunctive word and / or phrase presenting two or more alternative terms should be understood to include the possibility of containing one of the terms, either of the terms, or both of the terms, whether in the specification, claims, or drawings. For example, the phrase “A or B” will be understood to include the possibilities of “A” or “B” or “A and B.”

[0194] Many of the present disclosure and its associated advantages are to be understood from the foregoing description, and it will be clear that various modifications can be made to the form, configuration, and arrangement of the components without departing from the disclosed subject matter or sacrificing all of the advantages of the material. The described forms are for illustrative purposes only, and the following claims are intended to encompass and include such modifications. Furthermore, it should be understood that the present invention is defined by the appended claims.

Claims

1. A substrate having a substrate center, Power supply and Communication interface, At least three position units, each of the at least three position units is A light source configured to generate illumination, and A line sensor configured to generate multiple line images based on the illumination, comprising at least three position units each containing a line sensor aligned to the center of the substrate, It is a controller, Memory that holds program instructions, and One or more processors configured to execute the program instructions, wherein the program instructions are configured to be executed by the one or more processors The plurality of line images are received, and A controller comprising one or more processors that determine the offset between the substrate and the chuck between the substrate center and the chuck center based on the plurality of line images, An instrumentation board equipped with [a specific feature].

2. The one or more processors described above Multiple chuck edges within the multiple line images are detected, Determine the multiple chuck non-concentric offsets between the multiple chuck edges, and The offset between the substrate and the chuck is determined based on the aforementioned plurality of chuck non-concentric offsets. The instrumentation board according to claim 1, wherein the offset between the substrate and the chuck is determined by this method.

3. The instrumentation board according to claim 1, wherein the program instruction causes one or more processors to determine the offset between the substrate and the ring based on the plurality of line images.

4. The instrumentation board according to claim 1, wherein the substrate is a circular substrate.

5. The instrumentation substrate according to claim 1, wherein the substrate comprises at least one of quartz, glass, silicon, silicon nitride, carbon fiber stabilized epoxy matrix, or a combination thereof.

6. The instrumentation board according to claim 1, comprising one or more additional sensors, wherein the one or more additional sensors are configured to generate one or more sensor readings, and the controller is configured to detect the presence of a chuck based on the one or more sensor readings.

7. The instrumentation board according to claim 6, wherein the one or more additional sensors include at least one of a pressure sensor, a multi-axis accelerometer, a multi-axis angular velocity sensor, a temperature sensor, a light sensor, or a capacitance sensor.

8. The instrumentation board according to claim 6, wherein, in response to one or more sensor readings satisfying a trigger threshold, one or more processors cause the illumination source to generate the illumination and the line sensor to generate the plurality of line images.

9. The instrumentation board according to claim 1, wherein the substrate comprises a diffusion region, and the diffusion region is disposed below the illumination source.

10. The instrumentation board according to claim 1, wherein each of the at least three position units is equipped with a collimator, and the line sensor is imaged by the collimator.

11. The instrumentation board according to claim 10, wherein the collimator comprises a collimated hole array.

12. The instrumentation board according to claim 10, wherein the collimator includes a layered collimator.

13. The instrumentation board according to claim 10, wherein the collimator is located in the near field of the line sensor.

14. The instrumentation board according to claim 1, wherein one or more reflectors are defined within the bottom surface of the substrate.

15. The instrumentation board according to claim 1, wherein each of the at least three position units is equipped with a cylindrical lens, and the line sensor is imaged by the cylindrical lens.

16. The instrumentation substrate according to claim 15, wherein the cylindrical lens is a layered cylindrical lens that functions as a directional collimator.

17. The instrumentation board according to claim 1, wherein each of the at least three position units comprises an optical element, the optical element comprising a beam splitter, an adsorbent, an objective lens, and a focusing lens, and the line sensor is imaged by the optical element.

18. The instrumentation board according to claim 1, wherein each of the at least three position units is equipped with a metal lens, and the line sensor is imaged by the metal lens.

19. The instrumentation board according to claim 1, wherein each of the at least three position units comprises a microlens array, a first lens, a first folding mirror, a prism, a second lens, a second folding mirror, an aperture diaphragm, a third lens, and a cylindrical lens, and the illumination follows an illumination path from the illumination source through the microlens array, the first lens, the first folding mirror, and the prism to the chuck, and the illumination follows an imaging path from the chuck through the prism, the second lens, the second folding mirror, the aperture diaphragm, the third lens, and the cylindrical lens to the line sensor.

20. The instrumentation board according to claim 19, wherein the illumination includes one or more angles of incidence onto the chuck and one or more angles of reflection from the chuck, and the one or more angles of incidence is different from the one or more angles of reflection.

21. The instrumentation substrate according to claim 19, wherein at least two of the microlens array, the first lens, the first folding mirror, the prism, the second lens, the second folding mirror, the aperture diaphragm, the third lens, or the cylindrical lens are part of a monolithic molded assembly.

22. The instrumentation board according to claim 1, wherein each of the at least three position units comprises a microlens array, a first lens, a first aperture diaphragm, a prism, a second lens, a second aperture diaphragm, and a third lens, and the illumination follows an illumination path from the illumination source through the microlens array, the first lens, the first aperture diaphragm, and the prism to the chuck, and the illumination follows an imaging path from the chuck through the prism, the second lens, the second aperture diaphragm, and the third lens to the line sensor.

23. The instrumentation board according to claim 22, wherein the illumination includes one or more angles of incidence onto the chuck and one or more angles of reflection from the chuck, and the one or more angles of incidence is different from the one or more angles of reflection.

24. The instrumentation board according to claim 1, wherein each of the at least three position units comprises a microlens array, a first lens, a first aperture diaphragm, a second lens, a second aperture diaphragm, and a third lens, and the illumination follows an illumination path from the illumination source through the microlens array, the first lens, and the first aperture diaphragm to the chuck, and the illumination follows an imaging path from the chuck through the second lens, the second aperture diaphragm, and the third lens to the line sensor.

25. The instrumentation board according to claim 24, wherein the illumination includes one or more angles of incidence onto the chuck and one or more angles of reflection from the chuck, and the one or more angles of incidence are at the same angle as the one or more angles of reflection.

26. A zipper with a central zipper, The focus ring and PCB handler and Instrumentation board and The instrumentation board is equipped with, A substrate having a substrate center, Power supply and Communication interface, At least three position units, each of the at least three position units is A light source configured to generate illumination, and A line sensor configured to generate multiple line images based on the illumination, comprising at least three position units each containing a line sensor aligned to the center of the substrate, It is a controller, Memory that holds program instructions, and One or more processors configured to execute the program instructions, wherein the program instructions are configured to be executed by the one or more processors The plurality of line images are received, and A controller comprising one or more processors that determine the offset between the substrate and the chuck between the substrate center and the chuck center based on the plurality of line images, PCB processing system.

27. The substrate processing system according to claim 26, wherein the substrate handler is configured to receive an offset between the substrate and the chuck from the instrumentation substrate, and the substrate handler is configured to reposition the instrumentation substrate on the chuck based on the offset between the substrate and the chuck.

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