APC Is Gaining Widespread Adoption
Laura Peters, Senior Editor -- Semiconductor International, 12/1/2001
Advanced process control (APC) and advanced equipment control (AEC) techniques have gained industrywide acceptance over the past year and are rapidly appearing in production facilities. That was the consensus that emerged from the 13th annual AEC/APC Symposium organized by International SEMATECH (Austin, Texas), Semiconductor Equipment and Materials International (SEMI, San Jose) and the Fraunhofer Institute (Erlangen, Germany). The six-day conference was held recently in Banff, Alberta, Canada.
Brad Van Eck, symposium chairman and APC program manager at International SEMATECH, commented that chipmakers are now employing APC methods in high-volume manufacturing, which was only occurring to a limited extent a few years ago.
Nearly 100 technical papers were presented at the symposium. Highlights included a presentation and panel discussion on "The Ins and Outs of APC Integration." The focus was on the challenges that are encountered — and ultimately overcome — among several sensor and software suppliers and a large equipment supplier during APC implementation in a fab.
In a presentation on the transition to APC in the automotive industry, it was noted that the semiconductor industry, chipmakers and process tool suppliers must agree to a standard interface for all process tools to allow for a direct, efficient connection of the factory's data systems.
International SEMATECH presented details on its cost analysis and factory logistics simulation tools used to quantify the benefit of two integrated metrology scenarios in the operation of an automated 300 mm fab. Simulation showed a potential 20% reduction in cycle time through the integration of CD and overlay functions into the lithography track. The improvement came from elimination of 80% of the CD and overlay steps as well removal of "send-ahead" requirements. "This technology represents a major source of cost reductions in the fab," Van Eck said.
For more on the AEC/APC Symposium XIII, including information on ordering the symposium proceedings on CD-ROM, visit www.aecapcsymposium.org. The European AEC/APC Symposium will be held in Dresden, Germany, in April (www.aecapc-europe.com). The AEC/APC Symposium XIV will be held in Salt Lake City in September next year.
For additional information on yield management, go to www.semiconductor.net/yield.
