Immersion Hood Extractor Piping for Residual Liquid Removal
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Solution Overview
Problem
In immersion lithography, residual liquid on semiconductor substrates is not effectively removed by existing output piping, leading to potential damage and interference with future processing steps.
Innovation Solution
The immersion hood apparatus incorporates extractor piping on its outermost sidewalls, arranged at favorable angles and diameters to efficiently remove residual liquid by creating a continuous path with increased exhaust velocity, ensuring effective removal of liquid beyond the immersion area.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If existing output piping is used to remove liquid, then liquid containment is achieved, but residual liquid remains on substrate
Solution Approach 1:
The liquid removal system is segmented into two distinct components: output piping for containing and removing bulk liquid, and extractor piping for removing residual liquid. This segmentation allows each component to specialize in a specific removal task, with the extractor piping positioned on outermost sidewalls to specifically target residual liquid that the output piping cannot reach.
Solution Approach 2:
The extractor piping is positioned on the outermost sidewalls of the immersion hood apparatus, adding a lateral dimension to liquid removal. This positioning allows the extractor to access and remove residual liquid from areas beyond the immersion area that the vertically-oriented output piping cannot reach, effectively extending the removal capability to a new spatial dimension.
2Loss of substance
If extractor piping is added on outermost sidewalls, then residual liquid removal is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The extractor piping system is merged with the existing immersion hood apparatus structure, integrating the residual liquid removal function into the already-complex lithography tool. By combining this new function with the existing framework rather than adding a completely separate system, the patent minimizes the increase in overall device complexity while achieving improved residual liquid removal.
3Productivity
If liquid is not completely removed, then processing continues, but substrate damage and feature reliability deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The extractor piping performs preliminary removal of residual liquid immediately after the immersion lithography process, before any subsequent processing steps occur. This preliminary action prevents residual liquid from causing damage during later processing, ensuring feature reliability is maintained without requiring interruptions to the overall processing flow.
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 solution mitigates damage to semiconductor substrates and enhances the reliability of features by completely removing residual liquid, thereby improving the precision and reliability of the immersion lithography process.
Implementation Method 1
extractor piping on outermost sidewalls of the immersion hood apparatus configured to remove residual liquid
Data Source
AI summary
In some embodiments, the present disclosure relates to a process tool that includes a lithography apparatus arranged over a wafer chuck and an immersion hood apparatus laterally around the lithography apparatus. The lithography apparatus includes a photomask arranged between a light source and a lens. The immersion hood apparatus comprises input piping, output piping, and extractor piping. The input piping is arranged on a lower surface of the immersion hood apparatus and configured to distribute a liquid between the lens and the wafer chuck. The output piping is arranged on the lower surface of the immersion hood apparatus and configured to contain the liquid arranged between the lens and the wafer chuck. The extractor piping is arranged on an outer sidewall of the immersion hood apparatus and configured to remove any liquid above the wafer chuck that is outside of the immersion hood apparatus.