Dedicated Controller for Pulse Gas Delivery Repeatability
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current pulse gas delivery systems face challenges in repeatability and accuracy due to high workload on host controllers and communication jitter, which are critical for high-speed processes like the Bosch process in semiconductor manufacturing.
Innovation Solution
A high-performance mass flow controller (MFC) with a dedicated controller is used to manage pulse gas delivery independently, reducing reliance on the host controller for sequencing and timing, allowing for time-based, mole-based, and profile-based delivery modes, thereby improving repeatability and accuracy.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a host controller is used to manage pulse gas delivery sequencing and timing, then the system can coordinate multiple gases, but repeatability and accuracy deteriorate due to high workload and communication jitter
Solution Approach 1:
The control system is segmented into a host controller for high-level coordination and a dedicated controller for precise pulse delivery execution. This division allows the host to manage multiple gases (adaptability) while the dedicated controller ensures high repeatability and accuracy by handling timing-critical tasks independently, eliminating communication jitter from the precision path.
Solution Approach 2:
A dedicated controller acts as an intermediary between the host controller and the pulse gas delivery system. It receives commands from the host and translates them into precise pulse delivery operations, isolating the precision-critical path from the host's workload and communication variations, thereby improving repeatability while maintaining coordination capability.
2Extent of automation
If communication between host controller and gas delivery system is used, then centralized control is achieved, but communication jitter increases at high speeds
Solution Approach 1:
The time-critical pulse delivery control functions are extracted from the host controller and placed in a dedicated controller. This extraction removes communication jitter from the precision path while maintaining centralized coordination through the host, achieving both automation and communication reliability.
3Adaptability or versatility
If host controller workload is high, then comprehensive process control is possible, but pulse delivery accuracy deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
Control responsibilities are segmented between the host controller (comprehensive process control) and dedicated controller (pulse delivery accuracy). The host handles high-level process coordination while the dedicated controller manages precise pulse timing, allowing comprehensive control without sacrificing pulse delivery accuracy even under high workload conditions.
Data Source
AI summary
A system for delivering pulses of a desired mass of gas to a tool, comprising: a mass flow controller including flow sensor, a control valve and a dedicated controller configured and arranged to receive a recipe of a sequence of steps for opening and closing the control valve so as to deliver as sequence of gas pulses as a function of the recipe. The mass flow controller is configured and arranged so as to operate in either one of at least two modes: as a traditional mass flow controller (MFC) mode or in a pulse gas delivery (PGD) mode. Further, the dedicated controller is configured and arranged to delivery pulses of gas in accordance with anyone of three different types of pulse gas delivery processes: a time based pulse delivery process, a mole based pulse delivery process and a profile based pulse delivery process.