Buried Defect Cleaving via Infrared Imaging
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing methods for sample preparation of buried defects are inefficient and damaging, as they require removing a large area of the object to expose the defect, making it difficult to accurately locate and expose the buried defect without causing damage.
Innovation Solution
A method and device that uses infrared radiation to illuminate and detect buried defects, allowing for precise alignment of a cleaving element with the imaging device, enabling the object to be cleaved along a specific axis without moving the object or imaging device, thereby exposing the buried defect efficiently.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If a large area of the object is removed to expose the buried defect, then the buried defect becomes visible, but the object is damaged and the process is inefficient
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by using infrared imaging to detect and locate the buried defect before the cleaving process. The defect is identified and its coordinates are recorded in advance, allowing the cleaving line to be precisely positioned without removing large areas of material. This preliminary detection enables targeted cleaving that exposes the defect while minimizing damage to the object.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the traditional mechanical removal process with an optical detection system. Instead of mechanically removing material to find the defect, infrared radiation is used to detect and locate the defect non-invasively. This substitution of mechanical exploration with optical detection allows precise localization without the harmful effects of extensive material removal.
2Manufacturing precision
If the object is moved to align the cleaving line with the defect, then precise cleaving can be achieved, but the process complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses copying by creating an infrared image copy of the defect location on the object surface. The imaging device captures the defect position, and these coordinates are transferred to guide the cleaving process. This optical copy eliminates the need for complex physical alignment operations, as the defect location is replicated as coordinate data that directly guides the cleaving line positioning.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary coordinate system that bridges the imaging device and the cleaving device. The defect location is first captured in the imaging coordinate system, then transformed and transferred to guide the cleaving operation. This intermediary coordinate transformation serves as a mediator that simplifies the alignment process between different devices without requiring complex mechanical adjustments.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This approach allows for accurate and efficient exposure of buried defects in wafer substrates, lithography layers, and multi-stack semiconductor devices, reducing damage and improving the efficiency of defect analysis by using infrared light to locate and visualize the defect before precise cleaving.
Implementation Method 1
The light source is infrared light source, or any light source containing an infrared range in its spectrum. The optical device and the registration device are capable of forming an infrared image.
Implementation Method 2
The light emitted from the light source passes through the hole in the chuck or through the IR transparent material of the chuck and illuminates the sample from it bottom side.
Data Source
AI summary
A method for exposing a buried defect, the method may include illuminating, by a radiation source, an object that comprises the buried defect, with illuminating radiation that passes through radiation transparent part of a chuck, while the object is supported by the chuck; detecting, by a sensor, a detected radiation that passed through the object, to provide a visual indication about the buried defect, wherein the visual indication is indicative of a location of the buried defect; setting, based on the location of the buried object and a spatial relationship between a cleaving element and the sensor, a cleaving axis of a cleaving element to virtually cross the buried defect; and cleaving, by the cleaving element, the object to expose the buried object.