Category Archives: Metrology

December 16, 2003 – PANalytical, Almelo, The Netherlands, a supplier of analytical devices for x-ray diffraction and x-ray fluorescence (XRF) spectrometry, says it has found a way to double the detection capability of XRF wafer analysis of boron concentrations for thin-film semiconductor wafers, reducing the counting time by a factor of four.

The work is notable for manufacturers of dielectric materials and films used in MRAM and GMR devices. XRF provides both film thickness and chemical composition of thin films, vs. optical metrology techniques which only provide thickness results.

December 10, 2003 – The past week has been busy for high-k materials, with three separate announcements from companies and organizations detailing the progress of their research.

The Interuniversity MicroElectronics Center (IMEC) in Belgium has demonstrated the use of high-k dielectrics and metal gates at sub-1nm nodes. The material, which uses TiN or TaN gates and HfO2 as a dielectric, scaled down to 0.8nm thickness for both nMOS and pMOS transistors, with better results in terms of conductance, leakage and threshold-voltage instabilities than polysilicon-based materials. “We are convinced that within our industrial affiliation program we now have all the necessary technology and understanding to bring high-k metal-gate devices to implementation in the next technology nodes and within ITRS timeline specifications,” said Luc Van den hove, VP of silicon process and device technology at IMEC. The research was done in collaboration with International Sematech, Renesas, Matsushita, and Samsung.

Also, International Sematech, Austin, TX, has qualified a high-k baseline process at the 85nm technology node, to be used as a comparison standard for ongoing metal gate development. The baseline, which uses hafnium silicide, was achieved by ISMT’s Front End Processes division, which has been working on the material for more than two years. ISMT has built a functional high-k/metal gate device using the material.

And Texas Instruments made a splash at the International Electron Devices Meeting (IEDM) in Washington, DC, with a pair of announcements. The first results demonstrated the viability of a hafnium silicon oxynitride (HfSiON) high-k dielectric material with 90% of the mobility curve of silicon dioxide with “dramatically lower leakage current.” Also at IEDM, TI said that in collaboration with the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology of Lausanne, it has developed a combination of single electron transistors and standard CMOS transistors that can perform logic functions on a much smaller scale than CMOS alone. Shrinking CMOS configurations with field-effect transistors is expected to eventually create problems with signal integrity and heat dissipation. The next step, says TI, is to manufacture onto silicon many SETs in a CMOS-compatible process, with initial uses in memory and metrology applications.

Dec. 10, 2003 — Texas Instruments Inc. is working with the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology at Lausanne on a chip combining standard semiconductor and single-electron transistors (SET) that could shrink the size and power consumption of computing devices, according to a news release.

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The researchers, who are presenting a paper and simulations this week at the IEEE International Electron Devices Meeting, say the hybrid could perform logic functions at a much smaller scale than CMOS-based chips alone. Researchers said the method also overcomes obstacles related to random background charges that have hampered SET research.

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The approach is one of several alternative state devices under development that in 10-15 years could replace Field Effect Transistors, which use large number of electrons in operation. The TI and Swiss researchers tout their approach because the “charged electron” concept provided the basis for modern computing, the release said.

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The next challenge would be reliably manufacturing the devices in a CMOS-compatible process. If those efforts are successful, such devices initially could be used for memory and metrology, including thermometers and electrometers.

November 28, 2003 – International Sematech, Austin, TX, plans to form a new consortium of fabs and chipmakers to focus on manufacturing infrastructure, methods, standards, and productivity.

Based in Austin, the new subsidiary, International Sematech Manufacturing Initiative Inc., will aim to help semiconductor manufacturers in council-guided areas including fab and equipment productivity, metrology, and environment/safety/health, with the ultimate goal of reducing cost/wafer and cost/die.

Efforts now underway include e-manufacturing, manufacturing operations analysis, benchmarking and best practices, predictive maintenance-system design, and life-cycle assessment.

GAITHERSBURG, Md., Nov. 12, 2003 — Carbon nanotubes are a hundred times stronger than steel, right?

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That factoid has been reported so often that few realize that such superstrength is predicted by calculations, not by any direct measurement of the force it takes to pull an actual nanotube apart. James Von Ehr, chief executive and founder of Zyvex Inc., made this observation about nanoscale measurements last week in a National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) workshop on developing standards and road maps for nanoelectronics.

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Organized by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), the meeting gathered more than 60 scientists, executives and government representatives from around the world. Some of the corporate players on hand included Eastman Kodak Co., Motorola Inc. and Samsung, as well as organizations such as the Office of Naval Research and the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.

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One of the fundamental questions raised: What do voltage, resistance and current mean at the infinitesimal scale of individual molecules and atoms?

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Nanotech researchers described how difficult it is to measure a single device such as an individual nanotube or wire. Scale the problem up to precise, industrial-strength metrology on millions or billions of similar structures in a display or computer memory chip, and you begin to appreciate the scale and shape of the standards conundrum.

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The first day of the conference was devoted to assessing where more accurate and standardized ways of measuring could advance nanoelectronics and materials. The second was the kickoff meeting for IEEE’s Working Group P1650, which is drafting standards for testing the electrical properties of carbon nanotubes.

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The milewide scope of the first day revealed that developing standards for nanoelectronics will be challenging because the field itself is all over the map, figuratively and geographically. Cliff Lau, the new president of IEEE’s Nanotechnology Council, reported that beyond the United States and Japan, research is flourishing in such disparate countries as India, Mexico, Latvia and Turkey. Lau insisted that nanotechnology, as a global phenomenon, needs better mechanisms for international collaboration to make sure everybody is “talking about the same thing.”

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In nanoelectronics alone, research and development is exploding through divergent scientific disciplines and on multiple fronts — molecular switches, spintronics, carbon nanotube transistors, silicon nanowires, and quantum dots, among them. Several participants noted that in many instances chemists and biologists, not electrical engineers, are the ones who have to measure extremely small electrical characteristics of materials.

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The challenge of crafting standards is further complicated by the fact that building blocks, such as carbon nanotubes, are often synthesized by different processes that create structures with widely varying properties, making protocols even more elusive.

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One thing is clear: There are countless characteristics that companies and researchers would like to measure in predictable, repeatable ways at the nanoscale, such as the exact sizes of nanostructures or the quantum effects at work in individual nanoparticles.

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But here’s the rub: The tools to gauge such ultrafine nano attributes don’t yet exist, much less accepted procedures for taking them. Still, there was consensus that measurement methods should be globally agreed upon so that science and industry don’t end up contending with competing standards or scales. One engineer from outside the United States noted ruefully that NASA still doesn’t fully work on the metric system.

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Indeed, how different standards-setting organizations in the United States, Europe and Asia might coordinate their efforts remained a wide-open question. In the United States, for example, NIST encourages and supports standards, but does not set or enforce them. Some participants also questioned whether IEEE was the appropriate body to create standards in the realm of nanomaterials, an area a bit afield of its electrical engineering roots.

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Nevertheless, Jonathan Tucker, from toolmaker Keithley Instruments Inc., said that developing instruments and standardized nanometrics is more than an issue of academic interest. “Customers are asking us how they can make these measurements now,” he said.

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Motorola’s Dan Gamota, chairman of IEEE’s nanotech standards committee, said that essential industry-endorsed standards exist for manufacturing cell phones and other high-volume products his company makes.

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Charles Gause, director of manufacturing for Luna Nanomaterials, said that production standards that allow buyers to verify and sellers to guarantee materials are the lifeblood of high tech.

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Gause spent eight years earlier in his career growing silicon wafers. “The product had to be virtually defect-free or you were out of business,” he recalled. His current company, based in Blacksburg, Va., produces buckyballs with atoms of three metals caged inside for a variety of applications.

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Yet an industrywide standard does not yet exist for characterizing buckminsterfullerenes (aka buckyballs) that would allow customers to know exactly what they were buying.

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As for Von Ehr’s question of just how strong carbon nanotubes really are, after he posed it, one quick-witted workshop attendee shot back: “Well, they better find out before they go and build that space elevator out of them.”

October 23, 2003 – Micronic Laser Systems AB, Taby, Sweden, has introduced a new registration measurement system for TFT-LCD photomasks. Designed to complement the company’s pattern generators, the MMS15000 verifies photomask pattern placements with an accuracy better than 100nm, and can measure masks as large as 1300 x 1500mm. The system already has a customer in Japan, with shipment scheduled for 2H03.

October 17, 2003 – Rudolph Technologies, Flanders, NJ, has introduced a wafer-bow/stress metrology tool for measuring stress that develops during thin film deposition.

The ultra-WB uses multiple parallel laser beams rather than vibration techniques to measure the radius of wafer bow on unpatterned wafers.

The tool is build on the company’s Vanguard automation platform, and can be optionally equipped with FOUPs or SMIFs and 200mm or 300mm automation software.

Oct. 8, 2003 — More than 90 percent of nanotech researchers expect spending on nanotechnology tools and other capital equipment to stay the same or increase in the first half of next year, compared to the second of this year, according to a new report.

The Semiconductor Capital Equipment Metrology and Nanotech Tools Study, from nano VC firm Lux Capital LLC and market research firm TheInfoPro, found that 4 percent of academic researchers and 14 percent of corporate researchers expected to spend less money on metrology tools in the first half of 2004.

The study, the first in a planned series from Lux and TheInfoPro, is based on discussions with more than 40 researchers around the world. It includes findings on purchasing trends, vendor ratings, technology road maps and user information.

New Products


October 1, 2003

BCD Process Devices

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This company introduces two new devices, which are said to reduce die size and chip costs for its PBC4 0.5 µm BiCMOS-DMOS (BCD) process. The addition of a high-power driver with a low specific on resistance (RSP) of 25 Ω mm2 reportedly permits the production of smaller die sizes and lowers chip costs. The N-channel medium volt DMOS large-angle body device also features a 1.3 µm gate length, a threshold voltage of 2.0 V and a maximum operating voltage of 13.2 V. PolarFab, Bloomington, Minn., www.polarfab.com.

Diode Technology

PMEG Series Schottky diodes are designed to further enable miniaturization of equipment, such as mobile phones and digital cameras, while improving overall electrical efficiency. The low forward volt drop and high-speed switching capabilities are said to make these diodes ideal for applications such as high-efficiency DC/DC converters. The series reportedly provides designers with packages that reduce the PCB area required for Schottky rectifier diodes to as little as one quarter of that previously occupied by devices in SMA packages. It also reportedly extends current (IF) handling capacity of SMT Schottky diodes to unprecedented levels. Royal Philips Electronics, Eindhoven, The Netherlands, www.semiconductors.philips.com.

Elastomer Socket

A new line of elastomer test sockets has been announced for AFN devices. Providing higher speed with an inductance of 0.1 nH, the sockets reportedly are for high-frequency (beyond 15 GHz), mixed-signal and low-voltage applications. Additionally, the socket is said to be suited for users looking for the low inductance of an elastomer socket but one that offers higher insertion rates than are typical for this type of socket. Other elastomer sockets generally break down after 100 to 2,000 insertions; however, this line gives an average of 50,000 to 200,000 insertions. Dimensions Consulting Inc. (DCI), Santa Clara, Calif., www.dci-us.com.

Illuminator Controls

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This company introduces new programmable illuminator controls for their liquid dispensing systems, reportedly providing enhanced fiducial/feature recognition. By changing the color and/or intensity of the illuminator on the vision alignment system prior to pattern recognition, the systems can compensate for various substrate colors, reflective properties or textures. This is said to allow for more accurate and repeatable dispensing on such substrates as ..FR4, gold and ceramic, critical for advanced applications in the high-density and semiconductor packaging markets. GPD Global, Grand Junction, Colo., www.gpd-global.com.

ICT Solution

This company introduces the availability of SafeTest production technologies on its line of TestStation ICT systems. The protection technologies are said to protect today's newest low-voltage devices against exposure to the over-voltage and over-current conditions common to conventional ICT systems. The protection technologies combine the company's UltraPin digital pin electronics and software features for accurate, reliable and safe powered-up testing. Features include: automatic driver verification, background current sensing, closed-loop driver, multi-level digital-isolation software, per-pin programmable logic thresholds and timing, programmable backdrive current and duration thresholds, and specialized digital controller. Teradyne, Assembly Test Div., North Reading, Mass., www.teradyne.com/prods/cbt/pressroom.html.

Linear Height Gage

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A high-productivity linear height gage, QM-Height increases measuring efficiency by incorporating a red/green back-lit display that indicates immediately whether a measurement is in or out of tolerance. The gage is said to use the company's absolute-type linear encoder, eliminating the reset of origin on start up. Additionally, increased accuracy of ±(2.8+5 L/1,000) µm results from a more rigid column and a smoother floating slider motion. Both the 14 and 24″ models reportedly feature selectable resolutions of 0.00005, 0.00001 and 0.00002″, depending on the workpiece. Mitutoyo America Corp., Aurora, Ill., www.mitutoyo.com.

SSRAM Devices

Two high-density, SSRAM devices are available: the first offers a total density of 72 Mb, organized as 1 M ¥ 72 and the second also is a ¥ 72 device but features a total density of 36 Mb and is organized as 512 K ¥ 72. The ¥ 72 Mb no bus latency (NBL) reportedly provides high-density, speed and flexibility, allowing OEM design engineers to reduce overall active memory device count, reduce power and improve PCB space utilization. The SSRAM product family is said to address the density, power and data transfer requirements of high-performance, communications-orientated markets. White Electronic Designs, Phoenix, Ariz., www.whiteedc.com.

Slide Lock Socket

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In high-power IC devices, thermal control is key during testing to ensure accurate test results. The Tornado Heat Transfer Socket reportedly is constructed of materials that have a highly conductive nature and can be used where convection cooling is needed for hot device applications. A built-in fan and custom-machined air channeling baffle plate is said to generate a “tornado” effect to remove heat buildup during testing. The socket's small footprint design and slide lock ..mechanism ensure quick load and release where board space is at a minimum. Tecknit Interconnection Products, Cranford, N.J., www.fuzzbuttons.com.

RF Probing Station

Offering a complete solution for multiport or differential linear devices and circuits to be characterized to 8.5 GHz, this turnkey probing solution includes high-performance characterization probes, a series of dedicated dual ISSs, ENA Wafer Call calibration software, an Agilent ENA Series RF network analyzer and probing system. The calibration software reportedly provides productivity enhancements to ensure RF engineers, in addition to achieving both accurate and repeatable calibrations, can perform the entire procedure up to 10 times faster than using a front panel. Additionally, the software wizard guides the user through the setup and calibration processes, thereby eliminating the need for the user to navigate the system's internal menus. Cascade Microtech Inc., Beaverton, Ore., www.cascademicrotech.com.

Full-field Lithography

Extending the capabilities of cost-effective 1X full-field lithography (1XFFL) with a package of four new technologies, SupraYield is said to provide a high-performance solution for advanced thick-resist applications, such as WLP, MEMS and optoelectronics. Systems enhanced with the tool reportedly can double throughput, achieve 1 µm resolution and submicron overlay, and reduce lithography costs by up to 66 percent (compared to steppers). The technology ensures that 1XFFL systems can meet the demands of several future design generations, fulfilling requirements and enabling higher yields with the throughput and cost efficiency provided by full-field tools. SUSS MicroTech, Munich, Germany, www.suss.com.

Wafer Bump Tester

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The 580-300 universal bond test system is available for shear testing bumps on 300 mm wafers. Reportedly capable of controlling tool shear height to better than 1 µm, the tester ..enables rapid, repeatable evaluation of wafer bump adhesion. Optional image capture is said to save a digital image of the failure site for future reference. BondTest Manager, a Windows-based user interface application, performs local SPC functions and networks the tester to external databases. The system also is capable of performing bond shear tests, wire bond pull tests and die shear tests to Mil specs. The tester is set up automatically when test modules are interchanged, and menu-driven programming enables quick product changeover. Royce Instruments Inc., Napa, Calif., www.royceinstruments.com.

Metrology Tool Addition

This company introduced an advancement to its nanotechnology initiative. The UltraMet 100 is said to be the industry's first metrology system developed to measure any (or every) die on a wafer, providing full-wafer validation of the company's Nanotech 160 DSA stepper. The tool measures the alignment of an image on the backside of a wafer to an image on the front-side. Additionally, the system uses the MVS imaging system, which reportedly eliminates the requirement for the special metrology targets required by other DSA-capable metrology tools, and provides improved measurement capability compared to other currently available back-to-front metrology tools. Ultratech Inc., San Jose, Calif., www.ultratech.com.

Hermetic Packaging

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A discrete semiconductor package product family consisting of G1111M and G1010M reportedly offers low-cost hermetic surface mount packages for high-reliability applications. The packages are available with lead profiles meeting JEDEC standards. Assembled using a glass-to-metal seal process, the packages are rugged and reliable. The hermetic seal is said to provide enhanced reliability for semiconductor devices ..and offers protection from environmental conditions. G1111M is a 3 ¥ 3 mm outline with an internal cavity of 0.9 mm, and is supplied with six leads. G1010M, however, is a 2.5 ¥ 2.5 mm outline with an internal cavity of 0.75 mm, and is available with two leads. StratEdge, San Diego, Calif., www.stratedge.com.

High-Speed Test Heads

High-speed test heads for the company's MTS 500 Condor flying prober test system have been introduced that reportedly are capable of reaching an acceleration of greater than 20 g. The four-headed design is driven by servo motors, and permits movements of 6 mm in less than 12 milliseconds. By reducing the time required to move the heads, test times can be reduced. Because completed assemblies often require thousands of probings during testing, the time saved can be significant. Using the technology in moving parts, the test heads reportedly are flying on an air cushion that enables high-speed requirement with almost no friction. Additionally, the incorporation of this technology is said to allow for maintenance-free operation and reliable long-term operation in the production environment. US Digitaltest Inc., Concord, Calif., www.digitaltest.net.

Veeco sues Asylum Research


September 19, 2003

Sept. 19, 2003 — Veeco Instruments Inc., a Woodbury, N.Y., provider of metrology products and process equipment tools, filed a lawsuit against Asylum Research Inc. of Santa Barbara, Calif., according to a Veeco news release.

The lawsuit alleges that Asylum’s MFP-3D atomic force microscope infringes on five patents owned by Veeco, in addition to other claims.

Asylum issued a statement denying that any Veeco patents are infringed in the manufacture of the MFP-3D and adding that the company would vigorously defend itself.