Metrology, Inspection, and Process Control in VLSI Manufacturing

Abstract

Continuous innovations in microelectronics and materials science have led to the introduction of a broad array of electronic devices with increasing performance and decreasing size characteristics. Manufacturing these highly engineered products requires complex, multi-stage production processes, increasing the potential for defects and errors associated with equipment failures, contamination of materials, drift in process parameters, human error and other related factors. Manufacturing complexity also increases investment in work-in-progress inventories and lengthens production cycles. To better manage and enhance their yields, manufacturers are increasing their emphasis on automated testing and inspection at various points in the manufacturing process. As production processes become more complex and reducing material and labor cost becomes increasingly important, we believe that ongoing yield management provides manufacturers with an important competitive advantage.

Technical challenges revolve around the need to continually advance along the International Technology Roadmap for Semiconductors (ITRS) in order for the industry to provide increasing device performance and drive the economies of scale required to maintain profitability in a more competitive global environment. These challenges include the constant introduction of new materials and processes required as performance is increased and node size is decreased. For both the device manufacturer and equipment supplier, the most difficult challenges to overcome, however, may not be technical but economic.

Because of the consistent absence of the next "killer app", the industry has reached a new maturity. This has resulted in the dramatic reduction of a predictable and repeatable high-volume demand for higher-performing devices. This lack of a killer-app driver has greatly reduced the ability of device manufacturers to premium price products based on device performance and early availability. This trend has also resulted in a consolidating device manufacturing customer base whose strategy is increasingly focused on manufacturing excellence, in addition to technology excellence.

As a result, device manufacturers are increasingly operationally and financially focused, demonstrated by their aversion to risk during the most recent semiconductor upturn. They are much more cost-conscious, as margins are being squeezed more and more by pricing pressures. For the equipment manufacturer, this means that, in addition to developing products that are able to successfully process newly developed devices, they must also satisfy the new economic realities that the industry is facing. Nowhere is this challenge more evident for equipment suppliers than in metrology.

Metrology is not perceived as a value-added step but rather as a cost adder. However, given the huge challenge and accompanying risk of converting entire processes from aluminum to copper and maintaining control on that process in high-volume production, it may be a very valuable and necessary cost adder. To meet these criteria, this "new metrology" must have certain critical features in addition to acceptable measurement capability.

The semiconductor industry is entering an operationally driven era that represents a new set of challenges both technical and economic. Both the device and capital equipment manufacturers must change the way they approach these challenges to remain competitive. It is no longer sufficient to modify strategy and products from the previous technology-driven era. There needs to be some fundamental changes to the approach. The companies that successfully accomplish this will be the new emerging market leaders.

This report offers a complete analysis of the Process Control market. We follow standard conventions in analyzing the market as follows:

There are four major sectors

• Lithography Metrology
• Wafer Inspection/Defect Review
• Thin Film Metrology
• Other Process Control Systems

The Lithography Metrology sector is comprised of four major segments:

• Overlay
• CD Measurement
• Mask Inspection
• Mask Metrology

The Wafer Inspection/Defect Review sector is comprised of four major segments:

• Patterned Wafer Inspection
• Defect Review
• Unpatterned Wafer Inspection
• Macro Defect Inspection

The Patterned Wafer Inspection segment is further segmented by:

E-beam Patterned Wafer Inspection Optical Patterned Wafer Inspection

The Defect Review segment is further segmented by:

• SEM Defect Review
• Optical Defect Review
• "Other" Defect Review

The Thin Film Metrology sector is comprised of two major segments:

• Non-metal Thin Film Metrology
• Substrate / "Other" Thin Film Metrology

The Non-metal Thin Film Metrology segment is further segmented by:

• Non-Metal Standalone Thin Film Metrology
• Non-Metal Integrated Thin Film Metrology

The Other Process Control Systems segment is further segmented by:

• "Other" Process Control
• Software

This report offers a complete analysis of the Process Control market, segmented as: Lithography Metrology; Wafer Inspection/Defect Review; Thin Film Metrology; and Other Process Control Systems. Each of these sectors is further segmented. Market shares of competitors for all segment is presented.