Gas reservoir based shared gas delivery system

Abstract

Embodiments disclosed herein include a gas delivery system that includes a plurality of gas pallets. In an embodiment, each gas pallet includes an outlet, and one or more gas sticks fluidically coupled to the outlet. In an embodiment, the gas delivery system further includes a plurality of gas reservoirs, where each of the plurality of gas reservoirs is fluidically coupled to the outlet of a different one of the plurality of gas pallets. In an embodiment, the gas delivery system further includes a plurality of gas feed lines fluidically coupled to each of the plurality of gas reservoirs.

Description

[0001] GAS RESERVOIR BASED SHARED GAS DELIVERY SYSTEM

[0002] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0003] This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 63 / 562,999, filed on

[0004] March 8, 2024, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference herein.

[0005] FIELD

[0006] Embodiments relate to the field of semiconductor manufacturing and, in particular, systems and methods to enable efficient and reliable gas flow from a single gas box to a plurality of processing chambers.

[0007] DESCRIPTION OF RELATED ART

[0008] Semiconductor manufacturing is made more efficient through the use of cluster tools. A cluster tool includes a plurality of processing chambers (e.g., four chambers, eight chambers, sixteen chambers, etc.) that are all coupled to a central interface. For example, a single equipment front end module, load lock, and transfer chamber may accommodate the plurality of chambers in the cluster tool.

[0009] Currently, each of the chambers are supplied gasses from a dedicated gas box. That is, there is a one-to-one relationship between gas boxes and chambers. Each gas box includes multiple gas sticks, each with any necessary tubing and / or flow control components (e.g., valves, mass flow controllers (MFCs), etc.). The number of gas sticks for each gas box can be large, since all potential processing gasses used by the chamber need to be mixed within the gas box. For example, existing gas boxes may include fifteen or more MFCs. In a sixteen chamber system, this may result in the need for 240 or more MFCs. As can be appreciated, the total bill of materials (BOM) dedicated to gas distribution can grow rapidly.

[0010] Further, for safety considerations related to gas leaks, each gas box requires a dedicated exhaust. This has multiple drawbacks. A first issue is cost related due to the need for multiple exhausts systems with the cluster tool. Another issue is that operating multiple exhaust systems is energy intensive. This may result in a higher cost of ownership for the cluster tool, as well as increasing a carbon footprint of the cluster tool.

[0011] SUMMARY

[0012] Embodiments disclosed herein include a gas delivery system that includes a plurality of gas pallets. In an embodiment, each gas pallet includes an outlet, and one or more gas sticks fluidically coupled to the outlet. In an embodiment, the gas delivery system further includes a plurality of gas reservoirs, where each of the plurality of gas reservoirs is fluidically coupled to the outlet of a different one of the plurality of gas pallets. In an embodiment, the gas delivery system further includes a plurality of gas feed lines fluidically coupled to each of the plurality of gas reservoirs.

[0013] Embodiments may also include a method of controlling gas flows in a cluster tool. In an embodiment, the method may include pressurizing a plurality of gas reservoirs, where each of the plurality of gas reservoirs comprises a different gas composition, and where each of the plurality of gas reservoirs are coupled to two or more of a plurality of chambers. In an embodiment, the method may further comprise running a process in each of the plurality of chambers, where each process uses an input gas, and where the input gas is switched between different gas compositions from different gas reservoirs.

[0014] Embodiments may also comprise a tool that includes an equipment front end module (EFEM), and a transfer chamber coupled to the EFEM. In an embodiment, the tool may further include a plurality of chambers coupled to the transfer chamber, where each of the chambers comprises a flow controller to regulate the flow of gas into the chamber. In an embodiment, the tool may further include a gas delivery system fluidically coupled to each of the plurality of chambers. In an embodiment, the gas delivery system includes a gas box with a plurality of gas pallets, and a plurality of reservoirs fluidically coupled to the gas box, where a number of gas pallets is equal to a number of reservoirs, and where each of the plurality of reservoirs is fluidically coupled to at least one of the plurality of chambers by a respective flow controller.

[0015] BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0016] Figure 1 is a schematic illustration of a portion of a gas distribution system that is coupled to a plurality of chambers, in accordance with an embodiment.

[0017] Figure 2A is a schematic illustration of a portion of a gas distribution system that is coupled to a chamber, in accordance with an embodiment.

[0018] Figure 2B is a schematic illustration of a portion of a gas distribution system that is coupled to a chamber through a multi-branch path flow controller, in accordance with an embodiment.

[0019] Figure 2C is a schematic illustration of a portion of a gas distribution system that is coupled to a chamber with one or more additional gas injection points in the gas distribution system, in accordance with an embodiment.

[0020] Figure 3A is a schematic illustration of a portion of a gas distribution system that illustrates a plurality of gas reservoirs that are each coupled to a plurality of chambers, in accordance with an embodiment.

[0021] Figure 3B is a schematic illustration of a portion of a gas distribution system that illustrates a plurality of gas reservoirs that are filled with a multiplexed gas stick solution, in accordance with an embodiment.

[0022] Figure 4A is a plan view illustration of a cluster tool that comprises a gas distribution system with a gas box above the equipment front end module and reservoirs that extend over the chambers, in accordance with an embodiment.

[0023] Figure 4B is a plan view illustration of a plurality of cluster tools that are serviced by a shared gas distribution system, in accordance with an embodiment.

[0024] Figure 5 is a process flow diagram of a process for switching a gas input to a chamber between a first reservoir and a second reservoir, in accordance with an embodiment.

[0025] Figure 6 is a process flow diagram of a process for operating a cluster tool with a gas distribution system similar to those described herein, in accordance with an embodiment.

[0026] Figure 7 is a schematic illustration of a shared gas distribution system with a main reservoir and an auxiliary reservoir, in accordance with an embodiment.

[0027] Figure 8A is a graph of gas flow rates from mass flow controllers that illustrates non-steady state and steady state regimes, in accordance with an embodiment.

[0028] Figure 8B is a process flow diagram of a process for controlling gas flow to provide accurate gas mixtures to the reservoir, in accordance with an embodiment.

[0029] Figure 9 is a schematic illustration of a gas box with mass flow controllers that are coupled together for uniform control, in accordance with an embodiment.

[0030] Figure 10A is a control diagram for flow control of shared gas distribution system, in accordance with an embodiment.

[0031] Figure 10B is a control diagram for pressure control of a shared gas distribution system, in accordance with an embodiment.

[0032] Figure 11 is a schematic illustration of an artificial intelligence or machine learning system for controlling a shared gas distribution system, in accordance with an embodiment.

[0033] Figure 12 illustrates a block diagram of an exemplary computer system that may be used in conjunction with a processing tool, in accordance with an embodiment.

[0034] DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0035] Systems described herein include systems and methods to enable efficient and reliable gas flow from a single gas box to a plurality of processing chambers. In the following description, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of embodiments. It will be apparent to one skilled in the art that embodiments may be practiced without these specific details. In other instances, well-known aspects are not described in detail in order to not unnecessarily obscure embodiments. Furthermore, it is to be understood that the various embodiments shown in the accompanying drawings are illustrative representations and are not necessarily drawn to scale.

[0036] Various embodiments or aspects of the disclosure are described herein. In some implementations, the different embodiments are practiced separately. However, embodiments are not limited to embodiments being practiced in isolation. For example, two or more different embodiments can be combined together in order to be practiced as a single device, process, structure, or the like. The entirety of various embodiments can be combined together in some instances. In other instances, portions of a first embodiment can be combined with portions of one or more different embodiments. For example, a portion of a first embodiment can be combined with a portion of a second embodiment, or a portion of a first embodiment can be combined with a portion of a second embodiment and a portion of a third embodiment.

[0037] The embodiments illustrated and discussed in relation to the figures included herein are provided for the purpose of explaining some of the basic principles of the disclosure. However, the scope of this disclosure covers all related, potential, and / or possible, embodiments, even those differing from the idealized and / or illustrative examples presented. This disclosure covers even those embodiments which incorporate and / or utilize modern, future, and / or as of the time of this writing unknown, components, devices, systems, etc., as replacements for the functionally equivalent, analogous, and / or similar, components, devices, systems, etc., used in the embodiments illustrated and / or discussed herein for the purpose of explanation, illustration, and example.

[0038] As noted above, the existing gas distribution system for cluster tool architectures is expensive and inefficient. Particularly, each processing chamber requires a dedicated gas box. The number of gas sticks and associated components within each gas box is significant, and providing redundant instances of these systems for each processing chamber leads to an extensive bill of materials (BOM). For example, the BOM may include 240 or more mass flow controllers (MFCs) in a sixteen chamber cluster tool. Additionally, each gas box requires an independent exhaust system. This grows the BOM and increases cost of ownership due to higher energy costs to run the many different exhausts.

[0039] Accordingly, embodiments disclosed herein include an improved gas distribution system that reduces costs associated with the BOM. Embodiments may also improve energy efficiency by reducing multiple instances of the exhaust system. Generally, the one-to-one relationship between gas boxes and processing chambers is changed to a one-to-many relationship between a single gas box and a plurality of chambers. This allows for redundant components to be eliminated. As will be shown in greater detail below, cost savings may approach 80% compared to existing gas distribution systems. In an embodiment, the gas distribution system may include a single gas box. The gas box may comprise a plurality of gas pallets. A gas pallet may include one or more gas sticks that can be used in order to provide a desired gas mixture. The gas mixture from the gas pallet is used in a process recipe implemented by one or more of the processing chambers. In an embodiment, each gas pallet may be fluidically coupled to a different gas reservoir. In an embodiment, each gas reservoir may be fluidically coupled to one or more (or all) of the processing chambers. As such, each of the processing chambers is capable of obtaining any necessary processing gas from the plurality of reservoirs.

[0040] Such a gas distribution system has multiple benefits. One such benefit is cost reduction. For example, a typical number of gas reservoirs may include up to ten reservoirs (though, embodiments may include any number of gas reservoirs). For example twenty of more reservoirs may be used in a multi-tool configuration, as will be described in greater detail herein. The gas pallets coupled to each of these gas reservoirs may include up to four gas sticks (though, embodiments may include any number of gas sticks per gas pallet). In this example, a total number of gas sticks for the system may be around 40. That is, there may only need to be around 40 MFCs for the gas distribution system. In contrast, existing systems with dedicated gas boxes for each chamber may include around 240 gas sticks and MFCs (for a sixteen chamber system). As can be appreciated, this reduction in components can lead to significant costs savings and / or maintenance savings. Reducing the number of gas sticks also reduces the number of facility connections. This is another source of cost savings.

[0041] Another benefit is that the single gas box system allows for the use of a single exhaust system for leak mitigation. This reduces the need for redundant components. Further, the cost of ownership is reduced since energy consumption of the tool will be decreased with only a single exhaust being operated. Lower energy usage can also reduce the carbon footprint of the tool, depending on the source of energy for the facility.

[0042] In an embodiment, each of the chambers may comprise a flow controller (FR) to control a flowrate of a particular gas into the chamber. The FC may comprise a flowmeter and a variable conductance valve. In combination, the flowmeter and the variable conductance valve can accurately set the flowrate of the gas into the chamber. That is, the FC measures flow and controls the flow through the variable conductance valve. In some instances, the FC may be similar to a mass flow controller (MFC) in construction and / or functionality. In some embodiments, the FC may include multiple branches (i.e., multiple pairs of a flowmeter and a variable conductance valve) in order to provide multiple gas inlets into the chamber (e.g., a center gas inlet and an edge gas inlet).

[0043] In an embodiment, the selection of gas from a particular gas reservoir may be made by controlling a series of valves at each chamber (i.e., one valve for each gas reservoir). Since the gas reservoirs are pressurized with the desired mixture of gasses, opening the valve may result in near instant flow of the desired gas. This can lead to improved performance of the chamber to implement different gas switching patterns dictated by a process recipe. For example, alternating pulses of different gasses (e.g., in an atomic layer deposition (ALD) process) can be done effectively with minimal (if any) delay in gas flow into the chamber.

[0044] Embodiments may also include functionality to calibrate and / or monitor performance of MFCs and / or flowmeters. Such calibrations are able to be made through the use of physics based relationships between different properties of the gasses (e.g., PV = nRT). In one embodiment, measuring changes to gas properties (e.g., pressure, temperature, etc.) within the gas reservoirs can be used for calibration purposes. For example, the rate of rise of pressure in a gas reservoir can be compared to the amount of gas the MFC detects flowing into the gas reservoir. Since the volume of the reservoir remains substantially constant, the increase in pressure within the reservoir can be directly correlated to the flowrate of gas into the reservoir through the MFC. If the MFC reading does not match the amount of gas calculated based on the pressure reading, then a calibration adjustment may be made to the MFC.

[0045] Similarly, the rate of decay of pressure in a gas reservoir can be compared to the amount of gas the FC detects flowing into the chamber. Such a rate of decay analysis may be beneficial because the gas mixtures within the reservoir are unique, and the FC of the chamber will not know the heat transfer characteristics of the gas mixtures. As such, the FC by itself may not be able to accurately determine the amount of gas flown into the chamber. The combination of the two values can be used to derive a calibration factor for the FC in order to more precisely control the flow of gas into the chamber.

[0046] Referring now to Figure 1, a schematic illustration of a portion of a gas distribution system 100 is shown, in accordance with an embodiment. The gas distribution system 100 in Figure 1 includes a single gas pallet 110 and a single reservoir 120 for simplicity. As will be described in greater detail below, the gas distribution system 100 may comprise a plurality of gas pallets 110 and a plurality of gas reservoirs 120. In accordance with various embodiments described herein, the number of gas pallets 110 is equal to the number of gas reservoirs 120. That is, there is a one- to-one relationship between gas pallets 110 and gas reservoirs 120. In an embodiment, each gas pallet 110 is fluidically coupled to a different one of the gas reservoirs 120.

[0047] In an embodiment, the gas pallet 110 may comprise one or more gas sticks (not shown in Figure 1). The gas sticks may be fluidically coupled to a facility connections for various types of gas. The gas sticks within a single gas pallet 110 may be the individual gas constituents of a processing gas that is to be used in a process recipe executed by one or more of the chambers 130. MFCs within each gas stick can control the flow of a particular gas in order to develop a processing gas with a desired composition. The gas sticks within a gas pallet may all be fluidically coupled to an outlet.

[0048] In an embodiment, the gas reservoir 120 may be fluidically coupled to the output of the gas pallet 110. As such, the gas pallet 110 can provide the proper mix of gasses in order to pressurize the gas reservoir 120 with a processing gas with a desired composition. The gas reservoir 120 may be pressured to any desired pressure. As will be descried in greater detail below, high pressures may be used in order to improve switching speed between gasses at the chamber 130. Higher pressures may also allow for more of the desired gas to be stored in the gas reservoir 120. This can enable smaller pressure decay during use by one or more chambers 130. It also reduces a pressure differential along a length of the gas reservoir 120.

[0049] In an embodiment, the gas reservoir 120 may be any suitable volume for storing a processing gas. In an embodiment, a volume of the gas reservoir may be approximately 1.0L or greater, approximately 5.0L or greater, or approximately 10L or greater. In some embodiments, a volume of the gas reservoir 120 is set so that the gas reservoir 120 is capable of holding at least ten seconds worth of gas at a desired pressure (in terms of the expected gas flow rates into the plurality of chambers 130. This allows for the gas reservoir 120 to be large enough so that a pressure ripple (caused by releasing gas from the reservoir 120 into a chamber 130) is minimized and / or is otherwise negligible. As such, sophisticated gas flow control schemes may not be necessary in some embodiments. This further reduces the cost of the gas distribution system. In a particular embodiment, the gas reservoir 120 has a length (between a first end and a second end) that is greater than an inner diameter of the gas reservoir 120. In a particular embodiment, the gas reservoir 120 may comprise a tube or pipe. For example, the tube may have an inner diameter that is approximately 2 inches or greater. Though, smaller inner diameters may be used in some embodiments. In some instances, the gas reservoir 120 may have a U-shaped layout. The gas reservoir 120 may also be part of the distribution scheme. For example, the gas reservoir 120 may be a tube that is above a gas box that houses the gas pallets 110 and extends over the plurality of chambers 130, as will be described in greater detail below.

[0050] In an embodiment, the gas reservoir 120 may be coupled to a plurality of chambers 130. For example, in Figure 1, chambers 130A - 130N are shown, and the gas reservoir 120 is fluidically coupled to all of the chambers 130A - DON. The number of chambers 130 may be two or more chambers 130. For example, systems with up to 16 chambers 130 may be used in some embodiments. In other embodiments, there may be fifty or more chambers 130. Since a single reservoir 120 is used to feed a particular processing gas to all of the chambers 130 A - 130N, less infrastructure is needed for the gas delivery system. Referring now to Figures 2A - 2C, schematic illustrations that more clearly depict the infrastructure of gas distribution systems are shown, in accordance with various embodiments. Referring now to Figure 2A, a schematic illustration of a gas distribution system 200 is shown, in accordance with an embodiment. In an embodiment, the gas distribution system 200 may comprise a plurality of gas pallets 210A - 210N. The gas distribution pallets 210 may be housed within a gas box (not shown). In an embodiment, each gas pallet 210 may comprise one or more gas sticks 211. Gas sticks 211 may take any form common in gas delivery and / or distribution systems. For example, the gas sticks 211 may comprise a facility connection 212 to a gas (e.g., gas A to gas N). A first valve 213 may control flow into the gas stick 211. The first valve 213 may be followed by a regulator 214 and a filter 215 in some embodiments. Though, the regulator 214 and / or the filter 215 may also be omitted in some embodiments. Embodiments may also include an MFC 216 within the gas stick 211. A second valve 217 may be provided at the end of the gas stick 211. Control of the second valves 217 in each of the gas sticks 211 may be used to feed a desired mixture of gasses to an output 218 of the gas pallet 210.

[0051] In an embodiment, each gas pallet 210 may be fluidically coupled to one of a plurality of gas reservoirs 220 A - 220N. For example, gas pallet 210A is fluidically coupled to gas reservoir 220A, and gas pallet 210N is fluidically coupled to gas reservoir 220N. In some embodiments, the number of gas pallets 210 and the number of gas reservoirs 220 may be up to ten. Though, gas distribution systems 200 with larger numbers of gas pallets 210 and gas reservoirs 220 may also be used in some embodiments.

[0052] In an embodiment, the gas reservoirs 220 may be similar to the gas reservoirs 120 described in greater detail above. That is, the gas reservoirs 220 may be pressurized vessels for storing different processing gasses. In some embodiments, gas feed lines 224 may extend from the gas reservoirs 220. The gas feed lines 224 may fluidically couple the gas reservoirs 220 to a series of valves 222 that are configured to control flow of gasses into each chamber 230. The gas reservoirs 220 may be pressurized by the gas pallets 210. For example, the gas reservoirs 220 may have pressures that are approximately lOOTorr or greater, approximately 250Torr or greater, or approximately 600Torr or greater. In a particular embodiment, pressures within the gas reservoirs 220 may be between 150Torr and 600Torr.

[0053] In the embodiment shown in Figure 2A, the plurality of reservoirs 220A - 220N are fluidically coupled to a single chamber 230. Though, it is to be appreciated that each of the reservoirs 220 may be coupled to a plurality of chambers 230 in the system. In an embodiment, each chamber 230 may include a gas selection module. The gas selection module may comprise the bank of valves 222 that can start and stop the flow of gas from each of the plurality of reservoirs. After the bank of valves 222, an FC 235 is provided in order to set the flowrate of gas into the chamber 230. The FC 235 may comprise a flowmeter 236 and a variable conductance valve 237. The controlled flow of gas is then provided to the chamber 230.

[0054] In an embodiment, the chamber 230 may be any type of chamber. For example, chamber 230 may comprise a chemical vapor deposition (CVD) chamber, an atomic layer deposition (ALD) chamber, an epitaxial chamber, an etching chamber, an annealing chamber, a plasma chamber, and / or the like. As a simple diagram, Figure 2A shows the chamber 230 as having a chamber body 231 with a pedestal 232 in the chamber body 231. A substrate 205 (e.g., a wafer) may be provided on the pedestal 232. A showerhead 223 may be provided opposite from the pedestal 232 in order to flow gas from the gas distribution system 200 into the chamber 230.

[0055] It is to be appreciated that the gas distribution system 200 allows for rapid switching of gasses that are sent to the chamber 230. One contributing factor to the fast switching speed is that the gas reservoirs 220 are pressurized. As such, when the valve 222 is opened, the gas from the associated gas reservoir 220 begins to flow near instantaneously. Additionally, a system controller (not shown) will know where to set the variable conductance valve 237 based on historic values. Some embodiments may also include the use of feed forward process control and / or machine learning in order to quickly set a desired flowrate of gas into the chamber 230. In some embodiments, the gas distribution system 200 may be used in order to regulate and / or monitor the flow of gasses into the chamber 230. For example, the flow rates through the MFCs 216 on a gas pallet 210 can be compared to the requested gas usage of the chamber 230 during a given time period. This allows for a determination of whether the chamber is consuming the amount of gas that the chamber is directed to consume (e.g., in accordance with a processing recipe or the like). This comparison may be made by checking to see if the MFCs 216 of a gas pallet 210 need to provide more gas than what the chamber 230 is supposed to use. If the MFCs 216 are showing an oversupply, then it can be determined that the chamber 230 is using too much gas. Similarly, underutilized MFCs 216 may indicate that the chamber 230 is not using enough gas. This checking and analysis can be done continuously for each reservoir 220. In other embodiments, an asynchronous approach can be used to monitor gas consumption of a plurality of chambers 230 coupled to the reservoir 220 that may use the gas at different time periods.

[0056] Referring now to Figure 2B, a schematic illustration of a gas distribution system 201 is shown, in accordance with an additional embodiment. The gas distribution system 201 may be similar to the gas distribution system 200 in Figure 2 A, with the exception of the FC 235. Instead of a single flow path, the FC 235 in Figure 2B includes a plurality of flow paths. For example, two flow paths are illustrated in the gas distribution system 201.

[0057] In an embodiment, the first flow path may comprise a first flowmeter 236A and a first variable conductance valve 237A. The second flow path may comprise a second flowmeter 236B and a second variable conductance valve 237B. The use of multiple flow paths allows for different flowrates of a gas to be provided to different inputs to the chamber 230. For example, the first flow path may be coupled to the showerhead 223 at a top and central location of the chamber 230, and the second flow path may be coupled to a sidewall injection port 234 to flow gas into the chamber 230 laterally.

[0058] Referring now to Figure 2C, a schematic illustration of a gas distribution system 202 is shown, in accordance with an additional embodiment. The gas distribution system 202 may be similar to the gas distribution system 200 in Figure 2A, with the addition of gas inputs downstream of the reservoirs 220. In some embodiments, a processing gas may comprise a constituent that either does not mix well, is prone to reacting with other gasses, or must be maintained at a certain temperature. For any of these reasons (or any other desired reason), this constituent may be added to the gas flow after the bank of valves 222. In one embodiment, a gas stick 240A may be fluidically coupled to the flow line between the bank of valves 222 and the FC 235. In another embodiment, a gas stick 240B may be fluidically coupled to the flow line between the FC 235 and the chamber 230. While two locations are shown in Figure 2C, it is to be appreciated that embodiments may include one additional injection point, two additional injection points, or more than two additional injection points.

[0059] Referring now to Figures 3A and 3B, schematic view illustrations of the gas distribution system that shows the connection between each gas reservoir 320 and one or more chambers 330 are shown, in accordance with various embodiments. In Figure 3A, a plurality of gas pallets 310 are used. In Figure 3B, a multiplexed solution is provided in order to further reduce infrastructure demands.

[0060] Referring now to Figure 3A, a schematic illustration of a gas distribution system 300 is shown, in accordance with an embodiment. In an embodiment, a plurality of gas pallets 310A - 310N are provided within a gas box 350. Each gas pallet 310 may comprise one or more gas sticks 311. For example, gas pallet 310A comprises four gas sticks 311, gas pallet 310B comprises two gas sticks 311, and gas pallet 310N comprises three gas sticks 311. That is, the gas pallets 310 may have non-uniform numbers of gas sticks 311. The gas sticks 311 may be similar to any of the gas sticks described in greater detail herein.

[0061] In an embodiment, each of the gas pallets 310 may be fluidically coupled to a single (different) gas reservoir 320. For example, gas pallet 310A is fluidically coupled to gas reservoir 320A, gas pallet 310B is fluidically coupled to gas reservoir 320B, and gas pallet 310N is fluidically coupled to gas reservoir 320N. In an embodiment, the number of gas pallets 310 and the number of gas reservoirs 320 may be two or more. In a particular embodiment, there may be ten gas pallets 310 and ten gas reservoirs 320. In an embodiment, the gas reservoirs 320 may be similar to any of the gas reservoirs described in greater detail herein. In some embodiments, a pressure gauge 326 may be coupled to each of the gas reservoirs 320. The pressure gauge 326 may be used in order to monitor the flow of gas into and / or out of the gas reservoirs 320. While a pressure gauge 326 is shown in Figure 3A, it is to be appreciated that any suitable process monitor sensor may be included in the gas distribution system 300. For example, a temperature sensor or the like may also be used in some embodiments. This information can be used in order to monitor performance and / or accuracy of the MFCs in the gas sticks 311 and / or the flowmeter in the FCs 335, as described in greater detail herein.

[0062] In an embodiment, each of the gas reservoirs 320 may be fluidically coupled to two or more chambers 330. For example, gas reservoir 320A is fluidically coupled to chamber 330A, chamber 33OB, and chamber 330N. While each of the gas reservoirs 320 in Figure 3A are fluidically coupled to all of the illustrated chambers 330, in some embodiments, one or more of the gas reservoirs 320 may be coupled to fewer than all of the chambers 330 in a system.

[0063] In an embodiment, the gas feed lines 324 from the gas reservoirs 320 may be controlled by a valve 322. Control of the valves 322 allows for each chamber 330 to receive a gas from one of the gas reservoirs 320 to which the chamber 330 is coupled. Additionally, an FC 335 may be provided between the valves 322 and the chamber 330 in order to control the flowrate of the gas into the chamber 330. The FCs 335 may be similar to any of the FCs described in greater detail herein. For example, the FCs 335 may include a single flow path or a plurality of flow paths. In Figure 3A, each of the FCs 335 include a first flow path 338 (e.g., for a center gas input) and a second flow path 339 (e.g., for an edge gas input).

[0064] In the illustrated embodiment, the chambers 330A - 330N are shown schematically as a block. Though, the chambers 330 may be similar to any of the chambers described in greater detail herein. The chambers 330 may all be the same type of chamber. In other embodiments, the chambers 330 may include two or more different types of chambers 330.

[0065] Referring now to Figure 3B, a schematic illustration of a gas distribution system 301 is shown, in accordance with an embodiment. The gas distribution system 301 may be similar to the gas distribution system 300 in Figure 3A, with the exception of the gas box 350. Instead of using a plurality of gas pallets 310, a multiplexing module 318 is used to provide the necessary gas constituents to each gas reservoir 320. For example, a set of gas sticks 311 A - 31 IN are provided. All of the gas reservoirs 320 receive their gas from the singular set of gas sticks 311 A - 311N.

[0066] As shown, the multiplexing module 318 includes gas lines from each gas stick 311. The gas lines are branched to two or more of the gas reservoirs 320. For example, gas stick 311 A is fluidically coupled to gas reservoirs 320A, 320B, and 320N. Gas stick 31 IB is fluidically coupled to gas reservoirs 320A and 320N. Gas stick 31 IN is fluidically coupled to gas reservoirs 320A and 320N. Flow of gasses from the gas sticks 311 to the reservoirs 320 are controlled by valves 319. In such an embodiment, fewer gas sticks 311 are needed in order to supply the gas reservoirs 320. However, the complexity may be increased due to the demands of filling all of the reservoirs 320. For example, if multiple chambers 330 are pulling from gas reservoir 320 A, the pressure may be rapidly decreasing. A similar decrease in gas reservoir 320N may happen at the same time. However, gas stick 311A is used to fill both gas reservoirs 320A and 320N. So, a sufficient flow of gas from gas stick 311A and / or an optimized switching solution is necessary in order to maintain reservoirs 320A and 320N at pressures suitable for supporting multiple processing recipes being implemented at the chambers 330.

[0067] Referring now to Figure 4A, a plan view illustration of a cluster tool with a gas distribution system 400 is shown, in accordance with an embodiment. In an embodiment, the cluster tool may comprise an equipment front end module (EFEM) 406. The EFEM 406 may receive front opening unified pods (FOUPs) or other wafer transport devices. A wafer handling robot within the EFEM 406 transfers wafers from the FOUP to a load lock 407. The load lock 407 is coupled to a transfer chamber 408 that is held at a vacuum pressure. That is, the load lock 407 allows for the transition from an atmospheric pressure environment to a vacuum environment. A wafer handling robot within the transfer chamber 408 can distribute wafers from the load lock 407 to any of the chambers 430 that are coupled to the transfer chamber 408. For example, eight chambers 430 are shown in Figure 4A. Though, two or more chambers 430 may be used in some embodiments. The chambers 430 may be similar to any of the chambers described in greater detail herein.

[0068] In an embodiment, the gas distribution system 400 is provided above the cluster tool. For example, a gas box 450 may be provided above the EFEM 406. Though, the gas box 450 may be provided at any suitable location. For example, the gas box 450 may be mounted to the top of the EFEM 406, or the gas box 450 may be mounted to a back or side of the EFEM 406. The gas box 450 may also be mounted over different portions of the cluster tool, or in a dedicated space on the factory floor, in an overhead location, or the like. In an embodiment, the gas box 450 may be similar to any of the gas boxes described in greater detail herein. For example, the gas box 450 may comprise a plurality of gas pallets, with each gas pallet comprising one or more gas sticks. In an embodiment, a plurality of gas reservoirs 420A - 420N are fluidically coupled to the gas box 450. For example, each gas reservoir 420 may be fluidically coupled to a single gas pallet within the gas box 450. Additionally, each gas reservoir 420 may be fluidically coupled to two or more of the chambers 430. In the particular embodiment shown in Figure 4A, the gas reservoirs 420 are each coupled to all eight of the chambers 430. The gas reservoirs 420 may be similar to any of the gas reservoirs described in greater detail herein. For example, the gas reservoirs may be U-shaped. A middle portion of the U-shape may be above the gas box 450, and the middle portion is coupled to one of the gas pallets. The arms of the U-shape may extend over the chambers 430 that are provided along the sides of the transfer chamber 408. That is, the gas reservoirs 420 may be positioned over the gas box 450 and over one or more of the chambers 430.

[0069] While not visible in Figure 4A, it is to be appreciated that each gas reservoir 420 may be fluidically coupled to each chamber 430 by a bank of valves and an FC, similar to other embodiments described in greater detail herein. For example, in the embodiment shown in Figure 4A, each chamber 430 may comprise a bank of four valves (i.e., one for each of the four gas reservoirs 420A - 420N), and an FC between the bank of four valves and the chamber 430. In this way, each chamber 430 is capable of receiving the gas from any of the reservoirs 420. Additionally, multiple chambers 430 can receive gas from the same reservoir 420 at the same time.

[0070] Referring now to Figure 4B, a plan view illustration of a plurality of cluster tools with a shared gas distribution system 400 is shown, in accordance with an embodiment. Each of the plurality of cluster tools may be similar to each other in some embodiments. For example, each cluster tool may comprise a EFEM 406, a load lock 407, a transfer chamber 408, and a plurality of chambers 430. In other embodiments, a shared gas distribution system 400 may be used by different types of cluster tools, single chamber tools, or any type of tool that uses gas supplied by the gas distribution system 400. In the illustrated embodiment, two cluster tools are shown. However, embodiments may include a shared gas distribution system 400 that supplies multiple gas mixtures to any number of tools (e.g., two or more tools, five or more tools, ten or more tools, twenty of more tools, or the like). Sharing the gas distribution system 400 between multiple tools further reduces the cost of the gas distribution system. That is, the cost of the gas box 450 can be spread over the multiple tools, while additional costs to extend the gas distribution to other tools is minimal.

[0071] In an embodiment, the gas distribution system 400 is provided above the cluster tool. For example, a gas box 450 may be provided above the EFEM 406 of one of the tools. Though, the gas box 450 may be provided at any suitable location. In an embodiment, the gas box 450 may be similar to any of the gas boxes described in greater detail herein. For example, the gas box 450 may comprise a plurality of gas pallets, with each gas pallet comprising one or more gas sticks.

[0072] In an embodiment, a plurality of gas reservoirs 420A - 420N are fluidically coupled to the gas box 450. For example, each gas reservoir 420 may be fluidically coupled to a single gas pallet within the gas box 450. Additionally, each gas reservoir 420 may be fluidically coupled to two or more of the chambers 430 within the system. In some embodiments, each gas reservoir is coupled to at least one chamber in each cluster tool of the plurality of tools. In the particular embodiment shown in Figure 4B, the gas reservoirs 420 are each coupled to all eight of the chambers 430 on both of the cluster tools. The gas reservoirs 420 may be similar to any of the gas reservoirs described in greater detail herein. For example, the gas reservoirs 420 may be U- shaped. A middle portion of the U-shape may be above the gas box 450, and the middle portion is coupled to one of the gas pallets. The arms of the U-shape may extend over the chambers 430 that are provided along the sides of the transfer chamber 408 for both cluster tools. That is, the gas reservoirs 420 may be positioned over the gas box 450 of one of the cluster tools and over one or more of the chambers 430 of all of the cluster tools in the system. In the illustrated embodiment, a U-shaped design is used for the gas reservoirs 420. Though, the gas reservoirs 420 may have any number of branches, turns, etc. in order to be routed to the plurality of cluster tools within a system. While four gas reservoirs 420 A - 420N are shown in Figure 4B, it is to be appreciated that any number of gas reservoirs 420 may be used in a multi-tool configuration. For example, ten or more gas reservoirs 420 or thirty or more gas reservoirs 420 may be used in some embodiments.

[0073] While not visible in Figure 4B, it is to be appreciated that each gas reservoir 420 may be fluidically coupled to each chamber 430 by a bank of valves and an FC, similar to other embodiments described in greater detail herein. For example, in the embodiment shown in Figure 4B, each chamber 430 may comprise a bank of four valves (i.e., one for each of the four gas reservoirs 420A - 420N), and an FC between the bank of four valves and the chamber 430. In this way, each chamber 430 is capable of receiving the gas from any of the reservoirs 420. Additionally, multiple chambers 430 can receive gas from the same reservoir 420 at the same time.

[0074] Referring now to Figure 5, a process flow diagram depicting a process 560 for controlling the flow of gasses into a chamber that is connected to a gas distribution system similar to those described herein is shown, in accordance with an embodiment. In an embodiment, the process 560 may begin with operation 561, which comprises initiating a process in a chamber. In an embodiment, the chamber is fluidically coupled to a plurality of pressurized reservoirs. The process that is initiated in the chamber may be a process recipe used in the manufacture of a semiconductor device, or other type of device provided within the chamber. In an embodiment, the pressurized reservoirs may each be fluidically coupled to different gas pallets that are located within a single gas box. In an embodiment, the process 560 may continue with operation 562, which comprises flowing a first gas from a first reservoir through an FC into the chamber. The FC may be similar to any of the FCs described in greater detail herein. The FC may include a single flow path or a plurality of flow paths. The flow of the first gas from the first reservoir may be initiated by opening a valve between the first reservoir and the FC.

[0075] In an embodiment, the process 560 may continue with operation 563, which comprises stopping a flow of the first gas into the chamber. The flow may be stopped by closing the valve between the first reservoir and the FC.

[0076] In an embodiment, the process 560 may continue with operation 564, which comprises flowing a second gas from a second reservoir through the FC into the chamber. The flow of the second gas from the second reservoir may be initiated by opening a valve between the second reservoir and the FC.

[0077] In an embodiment, the process 560 may continue with operation 565, which comprises stopping a flow of the second gas into the chamber. The flow may be stopped by closing the valve between the second reservoir and the FC. In an embodiment, operations 562 - 565 may be repeated any number of times. For example, in an ALD process, a first gas and a second gas may be flown into the chamber in alternating pulses until a desired deposition thickness is obtained. In other embodiments, the process 560 may continue with the flow of any number of addition gas types (each from a different reservoir). The order and / or duration of the flow of each gas may be dictated by a process recipe or the like.

[0078] Referring now to Figure 6, a process flow diagram of a process 670 for running a plurality of chambers that are coupled to a gas distribution system is shown, in accordance with an embodiment. In an embodiment, the process 670 may begin with operation 671, which comprises providing a plurality of gas reservoirs and a plurality of chambers. In an embodiment, the gas reservoirs are similar to any of the gas reservoirs described in greater detail herein, and the chambers are similar to any of the chambers described in greater detail herein. In an embodiment, each of the plurality of gas reservoirs are coupled to two or more of the plurality of chambers.

[0079] In an embodiment, the process 670 may continue with operation 672, which comprises pressurizing the plurality of gas reservoirs, where each of the gas reservoirs comprises a different gas composition. In an embodiment, the gas reservoirs are pressurized by gas pallets, similar to any gas pallet described in greater detail herein. The gas pallet flows a gas composition into the gas reservoir in order to pressurize the reservoir with that gas composition. For example, gas reservoirs may be pressurized to between lOOTorr and 600Torr.

[0080] In an embodiment, the process 670 may continue with operation 673, which comprises running a process in each of the plurality of chambers. The process in each chamber may sometimes be referred to as a recipe or a process recipe. The recipe may be the same for each of the chambers, or the chambers may have different recipes. When the recipes are the same, the recipes may be run in a staggered manner. This allows for lower demand on any one reservoir at a given time. In an embodiment, each processes uses an input gas, and the input gas is switched between different gas compositions stored in different gas reservoirs. That is, the each chamber can pull gas from multiple different reservoirs, and each reservoir can supply gas to multiple different chambers.

[0081] Referring now to Figure 7, a schematic illustration of a gas distribution system 700 is shown, in accordance with an additional embodiment. In an embodiment, the gas distribution system 700 may be a shared gas distribution system similar to other embodiments described in greater detail herein. For example, while a single main reservoir 720B (i.e., Reservoir B), a single chamber 730, and a single gas pallet 710 are shown for simplicity, multiple instances of each component may be present.

[0082] In an embodiment, the gas distribution system 700 in Figure 7 enables a more consistent gas pressure within the main reservoir 720B. This provides a more consistent gas flow characteristic to the chamber 730. Particularly, an auxiliary reservoir 720A (e.g., Reservoir A) can be used to maintain a constant supply of the gas mixture. In an embodiment, the auxiliary reservoir 720 A may be held at a pressure higher than a pressure of the main reservoir 720B. When the main reservoir 720B is sufficiently depleted and / or being used by the chamber 730, the valve 728 can be opened to allow the immediate flow of the gas mixture into the main reservoir 720B. Accordingly, replenishing the main reservoir 720B is not dependent on the performance of the gas pallet 710. Also, this allows for a consistent and ideal pressure to be maintained within the main reservoir 720B with only a minimal change in pressure when the gas is being fed into one or more chambers 730. Such an embodiment can eliminate dynamic pressure fluctuations induced by changes in the MFC of each gas stick 711.

[0083] In some embodiments, the gas pallet 710 may supply a constant feed of gas to the auxiliary reservoir 720A. However, in order to prevent oversupply of gas to the auxiliary reservoir 720A, a bleed line 725 may be provided before output 718. The bleed line 725 may be controlled by a valve 723 that allows gas to pass back to a foreline, exhaust, or the like.

[0084] Similarly, if flow of gas into the main reservoir 720B overshoots a target, then the main reservoir 720B may have a bleed line 727 that leads to the foreline, exhaust, or the like. Flow of gas through the bleed line 727 may be controlled by valve 726, which may be provided between the valve 722 and the chamber 730 or between the main reservoir 720B and the valve 722. In the illustrated embodiment, the auxiliary reservoir 720A is provided before the main reservoir 720B. In other embodiments, the auxiliary reservoir 720A may be provided after the main reservoir 720B.

[0085] In some instances, the performance of the MFCs is non-ideal. Particularly, upon the opening of the valves of the MFCs, the gas flow rate through the MFCs may be in a non-steady state condition. For example, Figure 8A is a graph of gas flow rate versus time for a series of gas flows 840 A - 840C of different MFCs. In an embodiment, the value of gas flows 840 A - 840C during an initial time period 841 is non-steady state, and the gas flows 840A - 840C approach a stead state during time period 842.

[0086] Accordingly, if the gas from the MFCs is supplied to the reservoir during the time period 841 that is non-steady state, then the gas mixture may not match a desired composition. Accordingly, embodiments disclosed herein include a process for diverting the gas mixture from the gas pallet until a steady state is reached.

[0087] Referring now to Figure 8B, a process flow diagram of a process 880 for maintaining an accurate gas mixture for a shared gas distribution system is disclosed, in accordance with an embodiment. In an embodiment, the process 880 may begin with operation 881, which comprises opening a plurality of valves for a plurality of gas feed lines. In an embodiment, the plurality of valves and the plurality of gas feed lines may be part of a gas pallet similar to any of the gas pallets described in greater detail herein. For example, the valves may be part of an MFC used to control the flow of gas into a reservoir.

[0088] In an embodiment, the process 880 may continue with operation 882, which comprises diverting gas flow from the plurality of gas feed lines to an exhaust for a first duration. In an embodiment, the gas flow may be diverted by opening a valve to a bleed line of the system. The first duration may be a period of time sufficient to ensure that the gas flow behavior has gone from a non- steady state behavior to a steady state behavior. For example, the first duration may be up to 1 second, up to 10 seconds, up to a minute, or longer if necessary.

[0089] In an embodiment, the process 880 may continue with operation 883, which comprises allowing gas flow from the plurality of gas feed lines to fill a reservoir. In an embodiment, the gas flow is provided to the reservoir after each of the plurality of gas feed lines has stabilized to a steady state condition. Accordingly, a precise gas mixture is able to be provided to the reservoir for future use by one or more chambers. In an embodiment, the reservoir may be one reservoir in a shared gas distribution system similar to any of the shared gas distributions systems described in greater detail herein.

[0090] In some embodiments, the process 880 may be initiated at the start of processing within a chamber and / or at the time a tool is brought online. The flow of the stabilized gas mixture may be continued for the duration of processing so that the non-steady state condition can be avoided. For example, when the gas mixture is not needed (e.g., due to chamber idling, oversupply of the gas, etc.), the gas mixture can be diverted to an exhaust path, similar to embodiments described in greater detail herein.

[0091] As can be appreciated, precise control of the gas mixture is beneficial for recipe and processing performance within the tool. That is, the proper gas mixture needs to be supplied to the reservoir in order to provide the proper processing gasses to execute a desired operation in a process recipe within a chamber. Accordingly, accurate control of the MFCs within the gas pallet is necessary in order to match desired gas mixture targets. However, existing MFC design is targeted at hitting desired flow rates. The control of gas mixtures from multiple MFCs is currently beyond the scope of existing solutions.

[0092] Accordingly, embodiments disclosed herein may include an MFC controller that improves the coordination between a plurality of MFCs within a single gas pallet. An example of such a solution is shown in Figure 9. As shown, the gas pallet 910 may comprise a plurality of MFCs

[0093] 916 (e.g., each MFC 916 may be paired with a gas line for gasses A - N). The subsequent valve

[0094] 917 may provide control of gas flow out to a reservoir 920 or the rest of the gas distribution system.

[0095] Usually, each of the MFCs 916 are operated independently. However, as shown in Figure 9, the MFCs 916 may be communicatively linked together (as indicated by the arrows), as well as being controlled by a controller 919. In an embodiment, the controller 919 operates the MFCs 916 in unison in order to set the desired gas mixture that is fed to the reservoir 920. For example, the controller 919 may maintain the system so that a change to one MFC 916 results in a proportional change to the remaining MFCs 916 in order to maintain the desired gas mixture ratios.

[0096] Embodiments disclosed herein may also include control mechanisms in order to maintain proper pressures, gas flows rates, gas mixtures, and / or the like. In one embodiment, a dual control loop process may be used in order to control the gas distribution system. A first control loop may provide gas flow control and a second control loop may provide pressure control. In some embodiments, the two control loops may be operated in parallel.

[0097] Referring now to Figure 10A, a control loop 1060 for gas flow control is shown, in accordance with an embodiment. Generally, the total flow from the mixer 1010 (e.g., a gas pallet) should match the total flow from the reservoir 1020 into the chambers 1030. The flow into the chambers 1030 and the flow from the mixer 1010 can be determined from information provided by MFCs (not shown) associated with each component (as described in greater detail herein). In an embodiment, total gas flow to the chambers 1030 may be passed back to a set-point 1063 along line 1062. The set-point value may pass through a filter 1066 (e.g., a low-pass filter) prior to reaching the summator 1065. Line 1064 to the summator 1065 is shared between the second control loop 1061 (as will be described with respect to Figure 10B).

[0098] In an embodiment, the actual gas flow into the chamber 1030 may be behind the target set-point. That is, the set-point 1063 is generated before the gas is fed to the chambers 1030. Accordingly, the control loop may function as a feed forward control loop in order to improve process performance.

[0099] Referring now to Figure 10B, a schematic illustration of the pressure control loop 1061 is shown, in accordance with an embodiment. The pressure control loop 1061 may comprise the summator 1065 that is also coupled to the gas flow control loop 1060 by line 1064. In an embodiment, the pressure control loop 1061 may manage pressure deviations from the set-point 1058 by PID control based on negative feedback 1059 from pressure readings within the reservoir 1020 by a pressure sensor 1026. In an embodiment, the set-point 1058 feeds forward towards one or more transfer functions comprising proportional gain (Kp) in block 1069A and derivative gain (Kd*s) in block 1069B. The transfer functions continue to a summator 1067 that also includes a flow component 1068. The output of summator 1067 is provided to the summator 1065 for combination with the input from line 1064 (which links to the parallel control loop 1060 for gas flow control). The output of the summator 1067 is then used to control the mixer 1010 in order to maintain a desired pressure within the reservoir 1020.

[0100] Embodiments disclosed herein may also include the use of artificial intelligence (Al) and / or machine learning (ML) in order to control pressures, flowrates, gas compositions, and / or the like within a gas distribution system, such as those described in greater detail herein. An example of such a system is shown in Figure 11.

[0101] Referring now to Figure 11, a block diagram of system 1100 is shown, in accordance with an embodiment. The system 1100 may comprise a gas distribution assembly 1110 that is communicatively coupled to control systems. The control systems may comprise a system controller 1106, a tool server 1103, and a data store 1107. In an embodiment, the gas distribution assembly 1110 may be similar to any of the gas distribution assemblies or systems described in greater detail herein. For example, a shared gas distribution assembly 1110 may provide gas mixtures in a plurality of reservoirs that provide gas supplies to a plurality of chambers for various processing operations.

[0102] In an embodiment, system controller 1106 may be communicatively coupled to the gas distribution assembly 1110. The system controller 1106 may comprise a computing device or devices (e.g., processor, logic controller, server, microcontroller, etc.) with on board memory. In an embodiment, system controller 1106 may execute instructions to perform any of the processing embodiments described in greater detail herein. The system controller 1106 may also be capable of causing the gas distribution assembly 1110 to implement and / or execute processing recipes or portions of processing recipes that are used to process substrates in chambers (not shown).

[0103] The system controller 1106 may receive data from one or more sensors within the gas distribution assembly 1110. For example, sensors may include pressure sensors, temperature sensors, sensors for determining valve positioning, gas flow rate sensors, or the like. The data from the one or more sensors received by the system controller 1106 may be stored in a data store 1107 or the like. While shown as separate components, the data store 1107 may also be integrated with (i.e., part of) the system controller 1106 in some embodiments.

[0104] In an embodiment, the system 1100 may also comprise tool server 1103. The tool server 1103 may comprise one or more computing devices, servers, processors, etc. In an embodiment, tool server 1103 may execute instructions to perform any of the processes described in greater detail herein. In an embodiment, the tool server 1103 may execute instructions to perform one or more data collection operations within the system 1100 to retrieve data from sensors in the gas distribution assembly 1110.

[0105] In an embodiment, the tool server 1103 may store one or more evaluations systems 1105. An evaluation system 1105 may comprise an Al model and / or an ML model. Evaluation systems 1105 may also comprise inference engines, heuristic models, algorithms, physics-based models, and / or the like. In an embodiment, the evaluation system 1105 may be trained and / or stored on the tool server 1103. In other embodiments, the evaluation system 1105 may be trained and / or stored on an external server (not shown) that is communicatively coupled to the tool server 1103. In an embodiment, the tool server 1103 may comprise a node 1104 that is configured to interface between one or more evaluation systems 1105 and the gas distribution assembly 1110. For example, communication node 1104 may be configured to bridge data from the gas distribution assembly 1110 (e.g., generated by one or more sensors) to the evaluation system 1105. In an embodiment, remote procedure calls (RPCs) can be used to enable the communication between the evaluation system 1105 and the gas distribution assembly 1110.

[0106] In an embodiment, node 1104 can receive, from the evaluation system 1105, one or more attributes that the evaluation system 1105 desires from the gas distribution assembly 1110. For example, the attributes may include sensor data to describe one or more of a pressure, temperature, a gas flow rate, a valve position, and / or the like within the gas distribution assembly 1110. In this manner, the system 1100 is able to pull data from the gas distribution assembly 1110 and use the data as inputs to an evaluation system 1105 that can be used in the control and / or monitoring of the gas distribution assembly 1110.

[0107] In an embodiment, the one or more evaluation systems 1105 may be used to monitor drifts between different set-points. For example, if a given valve position provides a flow rate that is different than what would be expected under a previous model, the evaluation system 1105 may provide an update to the model in order to improve overall performance of the gas distribution assembly 1110. This is beneficial to prevent the gas distribution assembly 1110 from drifting out of specification due to many different reasons, such as worn or damaged parts, non-steady state performance (e.g., during warm-up), changing process recipes, and / or the like. More generally, the use of a ML and / or Al models through the evaluation system 1105 can prevent gas mixture drifts, target pressure drifts, gas flow rate drifts, and / or the like.

[0108] Referring now to Figure 12, a block diagram of an exemplary computer system 1200 of a processing tool is illustrated in accordance with an embodiment. In an embodiment, computer system 1200 is coupled to and controls processing in the processing tool. Computer system 1200 may be connected (e.g., networked) to other machines in a Local Area Network (LAN), an intranet, an extranet, or the Internet. Computer system 1200 may operate in the capacity of a server or a client machine in a client-server network environment, or as a peer machine in a peer- to-peer (or distributed) network environment. Computer system 1200 may be a personal computer (PC), a tablet PC, a set-top box (STB), a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), a cellular telephone, a web appliance, a server, a network router, switch or bridge, or any machine capable of executing a set of instructions (sequential or otherwise) that specify actions to be taken by that machine. Further, while only a single machine is illustrated for computer system 1200, the term “machine” shall also be taken to include any collection of machines (e.g., computers) that individually or jointly execute a set (or multiple sets) of instructions to perform any one or more of the methodologies described herein.

[0109] Computer system 1200 may include a computer program product, or software 1222, having a non-transitory machine-readable medium having stored thereon instructions, which may be used to program computer system 1200 (or other electronic devices) to perform a process according to embodiments. A machine-readable medium includes any mechanism for storing or transmitting information in a form readable by a machine (e.g., a computer). For example, a machine- readable (e.g., computer-readable) medium includes a machine (e.g., a computer) readable storage medium (e.g., read only memory (“ROM”), random access memory (“RAM”), magnetic disk storage media, optical storage media, flash memory devices, etc.), a machine (e.g., computer) readable transmission medium (electrical, optical, acoustical or other form of propagated signals (e.g., infrared signals, digital signals, etc.)), etc.

[0110] In an embodiment, computer system 1200 includes a system processor 1202, a main memory 1204 (e.g., read-only memory (ROM), flash memory, dynamic random access memory (DRAM) such as synchronous DRAM (SDRAM) or Rambus DRAM (RDRAM), etc.), a static memory 1206 (e.g., flash memory, static random access memory (SRAM), etc.), and a secondary memory 1218 (e.g., a data storage device), which communicate with each other via a bus 1230. System processor 1202 represents one or more general-purpose processing devices such as a microsystem processor, central processing unit, or the like. More particularly, the system processor may be a complex instruction set computing (CISC) microsystem processor, reduced instruction set computing (RISC) microsystem processor, very long instruction word (VLIW) microsystem processor, a system processor implementing other instruction sets, or system processors implementing a combination of instruction sets. System processor 1202 may also be one or more special-purpose processing devices such as an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA), a digital signal system processor (DSP), network system processor, or the like. System processor 1202 is configured to execute the processing logic 1226 for performing the operations described herein.

[0111] The computer system 1200 may further include a system network interface device 1208 for communicating with other devices or machines. The computer system 1200 may also include a video display unit 1210 (e.g., a liquid crystal display (LCD), a light emitting diode display (LED), or a cathode ray tube (CRT)), an alphanumeric input device 1212 (e.g., a keyboard), a cursor control device 1214 (e.g., a mouse), and a signal generation device 1216 (e.g., a speaker). The secondary memory 1218 may include a machine-accessible storage medium 1231 (or more specifically a computer-readable storage medium) on which is stored one or more sets of instructions (e.g., software 1222) embodying any one or more of the methodologies or functions described herein. The software 1222 may also reside, completely or at least partially, within the main memory 1204 and / or within the system processor 1202 during execution thereof by the computer system 1200, the main memory 1204 and the system processor 1202 also constituting machine-readable storage media. The software 1222 may further be transmitted or received over a network 1261 via the system network interface device 1208. In an embodiment, the network interface device 1208 may operate using RF coupling, optical coupling, acoustic coupling, or inductive coupling.

[0112] While the machine-accessible storage medium 1231 is shown in an exemplary embodiment to be a single medium, the term “machine-readable storage medium” should be taken to include a single medium or multiple media (e.g., a centralized or distributed database, and / or associated caches and servers) that store the one or more sets of instructions. The term “machine-readable storage medium” shall also be taken to include any medium that is capable of storing or encoding a set of instructions for execution by the machine and that cause the machine to perform any one or more of the methodologies. The term “machine-readable storage medium” shall accordingly be taken to include, but not be limited to, solid-state memories, and optical and magnetic media.

[0113] In the foregoing specification, specific exemplary embodiments have been described. It will be evident that various modifications may be made thereto without departing from the scope of the following claims. The specification and drawings are, accordingly, to be regarded in an illustrative sense rather than a restrictive sense.

Claims

CLAIMSWhat is claimed is:

1. A gas delivery system, comprising: a plurality of gas pallets, wherein each gas pallet comprises: an outlet; and one or more gas sticks fluidically coupled to the outlet; a plurality of gas reservoirs, wherein each of the plurality of gas reservoirs is fluidically coupled to the outlet of a different one of the plurality of gas pallets; and a plurality of gas feed lines fluidically coupled to each of the plurality of gas reservoirs.

2. The gas delivery system of claim 1, further comprising: a plurality of chambers, wherein each of the plurality of chambers is fluidically coupled to one or more of the plurality of gas reservoirs by different ones of the plurality of gas feed lines.

3. The gas delivery system of claim 2, further comprising: a valve on each of the plurality of gas feed lines between one of the plurality of gas reservoirs and one of the plurality of chambers.

4. The gas delivery system of claim 3, further comprising: a flow controller on each chamber, wherein the flow controller comprises one or more flow paths, and each flow path comprises: a flowmeter; and a variable conductance valve.

5. The gas delivery system of claim 4, wherein a first flow path is fluidically coupled to a center gas inlet of a first of the plurality of chambers, and a second flow path is fluidically coupled to an edge gas inlet of the first of the plurality of the chambers.

6. The gas delivery system of claim 2, wherein the plurality of chambers comprise a chemical vapor deposition (CVD) chamber, an etching chamber, an epitaxial growth chamber, an atomic layer deposition (ALD) chamber, an annealing chamber, or a plasma chamber.

7. The gas delivery system of claim 2, wherein the plurality of chambers are grouped into two or more cluster tools.

8. The gas delivery system of claim 1, wherein each gas stick comprises: a first valve; a mass flow controller after the first valve; and a second valve after the mass flow controller.

9. The gas delivery system of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of gas reservoirs comprises a tube, wherein a length of the tube is greater than an interior diameter of the tube, and wherein a volume of each of the plurality of gas reservoirs is at least 1.0 liters.

10. The gas delivery system of claim 9, wherein the tube is U-shaped between a first end and a second end.1 1 . A method of controlling gas flows in a cluster tool, comprising: pressurizing a plurality of gas reservoirs, wherein each of the plurality of gas reservoirs comprises a different gas composition, and wherein each of the plurality of gas reservoirs are coupled to two or more of a plurality of chambers; and running a process in each of the plurality of chambers, wherein each process uses an input gas, and wherein the input gas is switched between different gas compositions from different gas reservoirs.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the plurality of gas reservoirs comprises up to thirty gas reservoirs, and wherein the plurality of chambers comprises up to fifty chambers.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein each of the plurality of gas reservoirs are pressurized by two or more gas sticks.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein each gas stick is fluidically coupled to a single gas reservoir.

15. The method of claim 11, wherein the method is at least partially implemented by a tool server that comprises an evaluation system that is communicatively coupled to a plurality of sensors coupled to the cluster tool.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the evaluation system comprises a machine learning model and / or an artificial intelligence model.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the evaluation system is configured to control one or more of a gas mixture drift, a target pressure drift, or gas flow rate drift.

18. A tool, comprising: an equipment front end module (EFEM); a transfer chamber coupled to the EFEM; a plurality of chambers coupled to the transfer chamber, wherein each chamber of the plurality of chambers comprises a flow controller to regulate a flow of gas into each chamber of the plurality of chambers; and a gas delivery system fluidically coupled to each of the plurality of chambers, wherein the gas delivery system comprises: a gas box comprising a plurality of gas pallets; and a plurality of reservoirs fluidically coupled to the gas box, wherein a number ofgas pallets is equal to a number of reservoirs, and wherein each of the plurality of reservoirs is fluidically coupled to at least one of the plurality of chambers by a respective flow controller.

19. The tool of claim 18, wherein the gas box is mounted to the EFEM.

20. The tool of claim 19, wherein the plurality of reservoirs are tubes that are above each of the plurality of chambers.

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