Inspection Nozzle Using Internal Light Paths for Fluid Shape Detection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current semiconductor manufacturing processes lack real-time monitoring capabilities to detect shape variations in liquid streams or mists emitted by nozzles, leading to potential inconsistencies in the application of chemical solutions during fabrication.
Innovation Solution
A nozzle design incorporating a light source and light sensor embedded within the nozzle, utilizing Total Internal Reflection to confine light within the fluid, allowing for real-time detection of shape changes in both liquid streams and mists by analyzing reflected light, which triggers immediate cessation of nozzle operation when variations are detected.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If an off-line camera or video recorder is used to monitor liquid stream shape, then shape variation can be captured, but real-time detection and immediate process adjustment are not achieved
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the mechanical/optical system of off-line cameras and video recorders with an electrical sensing system. Electrical sensors positioned near the nozzle detect liquid stream shape variations by measuring changes in electrical field distribution, providing real-time signals that can immediately trigger process adjustments without the time delays inherent in optical capture and subsequent analysis.
Solution Approach 2:
The sensing system is positioned to autonomously detect shape variations as they occur, with the sensors self-adjusting to maintain optimal detection positions. The system provides automatic real-time feedback without requiring external observation or post-processing analysis, enabling immediate corrective action when deviations are detected.
2Reliability
If no real-time monitoring is implemented, then the system remains simple, but shape variations in liquid streams go undetected causing manufacturing inconsistencies
Solution Approach 1:
The monitoring function is segmented from the main nozzle structure, with separate electrical sensors positioned in proximity to the nozzle. This modular approach allows the sensing system to be added independently without fundamentally redesigning the nozzle, maintaining relative simplicity while enabling reliable real-time detection of liquid stream shape variations.
Solution Approach 2:
Electrical fields serve as an intermediary medium between the liquid stream and the detection system. The sensors detect changes in electrical field distribution caused by shape variations in the liquid stream, providing indirect but reliable measurement that maintains nozzle simplicity while achieving consistent monitoring.
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 real-time monitoring and immediate adjustment of nozzle operation to maintain consistent fluid application, ensuring precise and reliable semiconductor device manufacturing by detecting shape changes in fluids and stopping the process when abnormalities occur.
Implementation Method 1
utilizing Total Internal Reflection to confine light within the fluid
Data Source
AI summary
A method of manufacturing a semiconductor device includes: receiving a workpiece on which the semiconductor device is manufactured; causing a nozzle to dispense a fluid toward a surface of the workpiece external to the nozzle, wherein the nozzle includes a first channel and a second channel that allow the fluid to flow through; emitting light, by a light source, from within the nozzle toward the surface while the nozzle is dispensing the fluid; receiving light reflected from the surface by a light sensor, the light source and the light sensor being disposed within the nozzle and opposite to each other, and the emitted light and the reflected light adapted to be contained within the fluid; and examining a status of the reflected light. The emitted light and the reflected light propagate in a direction parallel to a longitudinal axis of each of the first channel and the second channel.