Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Comp. Ltd.

Jun-Hao Deng

Sheng-Chi Chin

Yu-Ching Lee

Kuan-Wen Lin

Methods and systems disclosed herein use acoustic energy to determine a gap between a wafer and an integrated circuit (IC) processing system and/or determine a thickness of a material layer of the wafer during IC processing implemented by the IC processing system. An exemplary method includes emitting acoustic energy through a substrate and a material layer disposed thereover. The substrate is positioned within an IC processing system. The method further includes receiving reflected acoustic energy from a surface of the substrate and a surface of the material layer disposed thereover and converting the reflected acoustic energy into electrical signals. The electrical signals indicate a thickness of the material layer.

Acoustic measurement of fabrication equipment clearance

Acoustic measurement of film thickness

A system and method for determining clearance between a fabrication tool and a workpiece is provided. In an exemplary embodiment, the method includes receiving a substrate within a tool such that a gap is defined there between. A transducer disposed on a bottom surface of the substrate opposite the gap provides an acoustic signal that is conducted through the substrate. The transducer also receives a first echo from a top surface of the substrate that defines the gap and a second echo from a bottom surface of the tool that further defines the gap. A width of the gap is measured based on the first echo and the second echo. In some embodiments, the bottom surface of the tool is a bottom surface of a nozzle, and the nozzle provides a liquid or a gas in the gap while the transducer is receiving the first and second echoes.

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Hsin-Chu, Taiwan

Jun-Hao Deng