Heater Current Monitoring in Substrate Processing Chambers
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing substrate processing apparatuses in semiconductor manufacturing lack reliable methods to detect failures in components such as heaters and drive circuits, which can lead to overheating and other operational issues.
Innovation Solution
A substrate processing apparatus equipped with temperature sensors, thyristors, ammeters, and an abnormality detecting controller that compares actual current measurements with theoretical values to detect abnormalities in the drive circuit, triggering alarms and stopping power supply when deviations are detected.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If substrate processing is performed in a large-sized chamber, then productivity is improved by processing multiple substrates simultaneously, but contamination control becomes difficult and manufacturing precision deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The large chamber is divided into multiple independent processing regions, each capable of processing substrates independently. This segmentation allows simultaneous processing of multiple substrates while maintaining contamination control in each region through separate shielding structures and gas flow paths.
Solution Approach 2:
Shielding structures are introduced as intermediary elements between substrate processing regions to prevent contamination spread. These shields act as physical barriers that isolate processing zones while allowing the system to maintain large chamber volume for high productivity.
2Manufacturing precision
If substrate processing is performed in a small-sized chamber, then contamination control is improved, but productivity deteriorates due to inability to process multiple substrates simultaneously
Solution Approach 1:
The chamber is segmented into multiple processing regions that can operate independently, effectively creating multiple small clean zones within a larger chamber volume, thus maintaining contamination control while enabling parallel substrate processing.
Solution Approach 2:
The system transitions from processing substrates in a single spatial dimension to utilizing multiple vertical and horizontal zones within the chamber, allowing simultaneous processing at different positions while maintaining small effective processing volumes for contamination control.
3Measurement precision
If anomaly detection uses multiple measurement positions, then detection precision is improved, but device complexity increases due to multiple sensors and signal lines
Solution Approach 1:
A single sensor is designed to perform multiple measurement functions by detecting signals from different positions. The sensor can measure plasma state, temperature, and anomaly conditions at various locations through selective signal reception, eliminating the need for multiple dedicated sensors.
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses signal copying or replication where a single sensor position can infer conditions at multiple positions through detected electromagnetic field patterns, reducing the need for physical sensors at every measurement point while maintaining detection precision.
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
Enables early detection of circuit failures, preventing overheating and ensuring consistent substrate processing by automatically stopping power supply to faulty components.
Implementation Method 1
an ESR signal detecting unit that detects an ESR signal during processing of the semiconductor substrate
Data Source
Figure 1~2
Figure 3~5
Figure 6
AI summary
The present disclosure provides a substrate processing apparatus comprising: a temperature detection unit for detecting the temperature of a heating unit for generating heat to increase the temperature of a processing chamber; a temperature adjusting unit for adjusting the rate of output of power that can be supplied to the heating unit per unit time, so as to reduce a difference between the temperature obtained from the temperature detection unit and a temperature setting value; a measuring unit for measuring a current that flows through a circuit including the heating unit; and an anomaly sensing unit which compares a current measurement value measured by the measuring unit with a theoretical current value calculated on the basis of the ratio of output of the power acquired from the temperature adjusting unit, and which determines that there is an anomaly if the current measurement value and the theoretical current value are different.