Mattson Technology, Inc

Ljubomir Kaludjercic

David Malcolm Camm

Sergiy Dets

Joseph Cibere

Mladen Bumbulovic

Tony Komasa

Guillaume Sempere

Marc Rudolph

Gregory Stuart

Tim Tran

Greg Stuart

Tilman Thrum

Igor Rudic

Kevin McDonnell

Apparatuses and methods for supporting a workpiece such as a semiconductor wafer. A support system is configured to support the workpiece while allowing thermally-induced motion of the workpiece, which may include thermal bowing or thermal bending. The system may include a support member having a moveable engagement portion engageable with the workpiece, the engagement portion being moveable to allow the thermally-induced motion of the workpiece while supporting the workpiece. The moveable engagement portion may include a plurality of moveable engagement portions of a plurality of respective support members, which may be resiliently engageable with the workpiece. The support members may include flexible support members each having an unconstrained portion and a constrained portion, and the moveable engagement portions may include the unconstrained portions. Alternatively, the support members may be rigid and the system may include a plurality of force applicators such as springs in communication with the support members.

Methods and systems for supporting a workpiece and for heat-treating the workpiece

A first heat-treating method involves monitoring at least one thermal efficiency parameter associated with an irradiance system configured to produce an irradiance flash incident on a surface of a workpiece, and automatically updating control information used by the irradiance system to produce the irradiance flash, in response to the monitoring of the thermal efficiency parameter. A second method involves predicting a heating effect of an irradiance flash to be incident upon a surface of a workpiece, in response to a measurement of a heating parameter of the surface, and pre-adjusting the irradiance flash, in response to the predicted heating effect. A third method involves measuring a temperature of a surface of a workpiece during an initial portion of an irradiance flash incident on the surface, and controlling a power of a remaining portion of the irradiance flash, in response to the temperature.

Repeatable heat-treating methods and apparatus

An apparatus for supporting a semiconductor workpiece includes a heating system configured to cause thermally-induced motion of the semiconductor workpiece by heating a surface of the workpiece relative to a bulk of the workpiece. The thermally-induced motion includes vertical motion of an outer edge region of the workpiece and a center of the workpiece relative to each other. The apparatus further includes a support system configured to allow the thermally-induced motion including the vertical motion of the outer edge region of the workpiece and the center of the workpiece relative to each other while supporting the workpiece.

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Vancouver, Canada

Ljubomir Kaludjercic