Virtual Semiconductor Fabrication for Process Window Optimization
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional mechanical CAD tools are inadequate for modeling semiconductor device structures, while TCAD tools are limited to small regions and fail to capture the complex interactions between processes in advanced semiconductor fabrication, leading to costly and time-consuming trial-and-error experimentation.
Innovation Solution
A virtual fabrication environment with an analytics module for process window optimization, enabling sensitivity analysis and 'what-if' scenarios to optimize yield by adjusting parameter nominals and ranges, using a geometrically accurate 3D modeling approach.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If trial-and-error experimental methodology is used to fabricate experimental wafers, then process development can be conducted, but the cost and duration increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a virtual copy of the semiconductor fabrication process that replicates physical experimentation without requiring actual wafer fabrication. The virtual fabrication environment models process steps, equipment, and materials to predict outcomes, allowing multiple experiments to be conducted digitally before committing to physical runs, thereby reducing both time and cost while maintaining development validity
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary virtual experiments and process simulations before actual fabrication begins. By pre-validating process parameters, equipment configurations, and material interactions in the virtual environment, the system identifies potential issues and optimizes parameters in advance, preventing costly and time-consuming trial-and-error cycles during physical production
2Manufacturing precision
If TCAD tools are used for modeling, then physics-based simulations can be performed, but the scope is restricted to very small regions
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the fabrication process into discrete, modelable steps (deposition, etching, lithography, etc.) that can be simulated independently and then integrated. This allows the system to maintain high simulation accuracy for each process step while scaling to entire wafers or multiple wafers, overcoming the area limitation of traditional TCAD tools that focus on single-device physics
Solution Approach 2:
The system transitions from the microscopic device-level modeling of TCAD to a mesoscopic process-level modeling approach. By changing the dimension of analysis from individual transistor physics to entire wafer process flows, the system achieves both manufacturing precision through detailed process modeling and large-area coverage through systematic process integration
3Ease of operation
If conventional CAD tools are used, then design work can be performed, but they cannot automatically mimic material addition, removal, and modification processes
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a process modeling layer that acts as an intermediary between conventional CAD design tools and physical fabrication. This intermediary layer automatically translates design intent into process-specific parameters and simulates material transformations, bridging the gap between easy-to-use CAD interfaces and the complex physics of material addition, removal, and modification without requiring users to master specialized simulation tools
Data Source
AI summary
A virtual fabrication environment for semiconductor device fabrication that includes an analytics module for performing process window optimization is discussed.