Intellemetrics Laser Etch Monitor Procedure for Panasonic ICP Etchers

Procedure for performing an etch with laser monitor endpoint on the Panasonic ICP etchers.

Demis D. John, 2019-05-15

–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

You must be officially trained to use the laser monitors. Please contact Demis for training.

Mount sample such that area to be monitored is located in the laser monitor's cutout window, as indicated by the Carrier wafer mounted to the tool and/or the glass slide showing the laser monitor location.
1. The locations on ICP#1 and ICP#2 are different.
Load wafer into etch chamber
1. ICP#1 Manual Load:
  1. {Test} Mode soft-button
  2. Remove all wafers from cassettes
  3. Place only your sample wafer in the bottom slot (#1) on left cassette (No. 1)
  4. Check that cassette is seated properly. It will not map the cassette!
  5. F6 Test
  6. F1 Wf. Trans.
  7. F1 Wf TRWIN ("Throw In")
  8. Confirm that Wafer #1 will be transferred into the E-Ch. ("Etching Chamber")
  9. {Start} soft-button
2. ICP#2 Manual Load:
  1. {Test} Mode soft-button
  2. Place Carrier wafer in load slot
  3. Menu Test > Trans/Test > Transport > Wafer Load
  4. {Start} soft-button

Edit your ICP Recipe, make sure Step Time is longer than expected, to stop using the Manual Box instead of the recipe time.
Laser Monitor Setup: (Windows: log in as GeneralUser)
1. Launch "uEye" Camera software.
  1. Start Camera feed
  2. Enable "Auto Contrast"
  3. Enable "Fit to Window"
2. Turn on Illumination on laser head.
3. Plug in Laser Interlock to turn on laser (RF connector on keychain)
  1. Should see laser spot on wafer immediately. Can only see laser spot if a wafer is in the chamber, and laser is projected through the cutouts in the chamber heaters/casing.
4. Adjust focus (small changes only), to minimize size of laser spot.
5. GREY knobs ONLY to adjust X/Y. Place Laser on region to be monitored.
  1. Do NOT adjust the Black tilt knobs! If you are not an optics guru, then you usually will only make a mess of this.
6. Launch "Etch Director 2" Laser monitoring software
  1. Check that Signal level is live (non-zero). Can block laser head with hand to ensure signal shows dramatic change.
  2. Make sure "Endpoint" panel does Not have "Accept" or "Auto Go" checked on any of the Endpoint tabs, or it may stop recording at some point.
  3. Make sure you have your simulation or a screenshot of the expected stopping point handy.
7. {Start} & {Go} to begin laser monitoring

Make sure you have your laser interferogram reference handy, so you know when to stop the etch. Eg. screenshot, simulation etc.
Run your etch in "Process Test" Mode:
1. ICP#1:
  1. Make sure Manual Box has "Etching Chamber Select" Enabled, not another chamber. All Chambers should have "Evacuate" enabled"
  2. OPTIONALLY: Set switch to "MR" to use side keyboard/screen/manual box
    1. Make sure Manual Box on that side has "Evacuate" enabled on all chambers!
    2. You must set this back to "CR" when you are done!
  3. {Test} mode soft-button (should already be enabled)
  4. F6 Test
  5. F2 Test
  6. F1 Etch Test
  7. F2 Selection
  8. Choose your recipe, edit if needed
  9. F4 Register
  10. {Start} soft-button
  11. F5 & F5 to exit out to main menu
  12. F3 Monitor > F1 E-Ch. to monitor the etch
2. ICP#2:
  1. {Test} mode soft-button (should already be enabled)
  2. Menu [Test]
  3. [Process Test]
  4. [Etch Test]
  5. ¿ [Selection]
  6. Choose your recipe, edit if needed
  7. [Register]
  8. {Start} soft-button
  9. Return & Return to exit out to main menu
  10. Monitor > P/C1 to monitor the etch

ICP#1: Manual Box

Manual Box (Paddle) to End Step at the appropriate time according to laser monitor (eg. some overetch after reaching desired endpoint)
1. ICP#1: Hold down both Enable buttons on the sides & press [RF__ OFF] button to end current step. Make sure you use the correct Manual Box, there is one at each side of the tool (CR and MR sides)!
2. ICP#2: Hold down both Enable buttons on the sides & press [Process Skip] to end current step.
Wait for decharge steps to complete, done when top-left of screen "RUN" changes to "STOP"

Transfer wafer out of chamber:
1. ICP#1 Unload:
  1. Return to main menu
  2. F6 Test
  3. F1 Wf. Trans.
  4. F2 Collect
  5. Double-Check that all cassettes are EMPTY and seated properly
  6. {Start} soft button. Will check all three chambers before removing your wafer, takes a while. Do not touch until screen says "STOP" on top-left.
  7. {Auto} soft-button for normal operation (to run your clean etc.)
  8. Set side back to CR if you changed the switch.
2. ICP#2 Unload:
  1. Return to main menu
  2. Menu Test > Trans/Test > Transport > Wafer Unload
  3. {Start} soft-button. Do not touch until screen says "STOP" on top-left.
  4. {Auto} soft-button for normal operation (to run your clean etc.)
3. End Laser Monitoring / Save Data:
  1. [Force Cut]
  2. Save Data if desired (Right-click the plots, copy data into Notepad, save BMP etc.)
  3. Turn off Camera Illumination & Unplug Laser Interlock Key from Laser Head.
Set system back to [Auto] Mode (soft-button).
1. On ICP#1: Also set switch back to "CR" mode so regular computer/screen is in control.
Run your cleaning process as normal.

Contents