Mechanical Pellicle Frame Attachment for Reticle Cleaning
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing methods for attaching protective pellicles to lithographic photomasks require adhesive removal, which can damage the reticle, lead to contamination, and necessitate costly and time-consuming repair processes, and do not allow for easy reuse of the pellicle, limiting cleaning and inspection to a mask shop.
Innovation Solution
A mechanical attachment system using clamps that extend behind the reticle to secure a pellicle frame without adhesives, allowing for easy removal, cleaning, and reattachment, and incorporating a non-adhesive liner to prevent residue.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If adhesive is used to attach pellicle to reticle, then attachment strength is improved, but cleaning complexity and damage risk increase
Solution Approach 1:
The attachment system is divided into separate functional components: clamps that mechanically secure the pellicle frame and a liner that provides sealing without adhesive bonding. This segmentation allows the pellicle to be easily removed and reused while maintaining secure attachment during operation.
Solution Approach 2:
A liner is introduced as an intermediary component between the pellicle frame and the reticle. This liner provides the necessary sealing and contact pressure without requiring adhesive bonding, enabling easy removal and reuse of the pellicle while maintaining attachment strength during operation.
2Strength
If adhesive is used to attach pellicle to reticle, then attachment strength is improved, but reticle damage risk increases
Solution Approach 1:
The adhesive bonding process is completely removed from the attachment system. Instead, mechanical clamps combined with a liner provide the necessary attachment strength without any adhesive residues that could damage the reticle during cleaning or require aggressive cleaning processes.
Solution Approach 2:
The liner is designed as a disposable or replaceable component that can be easily exchanged with the pellicle frame. This eliminates the need for aggressive cleaning processes to remove adhesive residues, thereby protecting the reticle from damage while maintaining effective attachment.
3Strength
If adhesive is used to attach pellicle to reticle, then attachment strength is improved, but contamination risk increases
Solution Approach 1:
The adhesive component is extracted from the attachment system entirely. The mechanical clamp and liner combination provides secure attachment without generating adhesive residues that would contaminate the reticle surface, eliminating the need for aggressive cleaning processes to remove contaminants.
Solution Approach 2:
The liner serves as a disposable sealing element that can be replaced with the pellicle frame without leaving contamination behind. This eliminates the contamination risk associated with adhesive residues while maintaining effective attachment strength during operation.
4Stability of the object's composition
If pellicle is firmly glued to reticle, then attachment stability is improved, but reusability decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The attachment system transitions from a static adhesive bond to a dynamic mechanical clamp system. The clamps can be tightened to provide stable attachment during operation and easily released to enable removal and reuse of the pellicle frame, combining both stability and reusability.
Solution Approach 2:
The attachment system is segmented into removable mechanical components (clamps and liner) rather than a permanent adhesive bond. This allows the pellicle frame to be easily detached and reused while maintaining stable attachment when the clamps are secured, resolving the contradiction between stability and reusability.
5Manufacturing precision
If pellicle removal is required for cleaning, then cleaning effectiveness is improved, but cycle time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The liner is pre-installed on the reticle before pellicle attachment, creating a ready-to-remove sealing layer. When cleaning is required, the entire pellicle frame with liner can be quickly removed as a unit without adhesive bonding, enabling effective cleaning while minimizing cycle time through rapid attachment and detachment.
6Ease of operation
If mechanical clamps are used to attach pellicle, then ease of removal is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The complex adhesive removal process is extracted and replaced with simple mechanical clamp operation. The clamps provide easy attachment and detachment through mechanical force alone, eliminating the need for chemical cleaning processes while introducing only simple mechanical components that are straightforward to implement.
Data Source
AI summary
A pellicle frame is mechanically attached to a reticle, without use of an adhesive. An embodiment includes mechanically attaching a pellicle frame to a front surface of a reticle, removing the pellicle frame from the reticle, cleaning the reticle, and mechanically reattaching the pellicle frame to the reticle. Embodiments further include using a clamp to mechanically attach the pellicle frame to the reticle. Embodiments further include forming the pellicle frame with a flange having an opening in the center, and forming the clamp with two portions, one portion with a protrusion that fittingly engages the opening in the flange and with a second opening, and the second portion with a segment that extends behind the reticle and with a second protrusion that fittingly engages the second opening.