Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.

Min-gyu Kim

Yun-sik Yang

Kyung-dae Kim

Jae-hoon Cha

Hyung-sik Hong

Min-Soo Yang

Seong-su Kim

Seung-Woo Lee

Yoon-Kyung Choi

Seong-il Park

Woo-Hyun Baek

Sun-Kwon Kim

Hun Cha

In-Jung Baek

Hyoung-Sun Ji

Se-woong Ahn

Ho-Seong Jeon

Gi-Sung Bae

Jae-hun Hur

Jin-ho Lim

Yun-nam Kim

An appliance is provided. The appliance includes a transceiver, and a processor configured to, based on an external appliance being identified to be adjacent to the appliance, receive arrangement state information of the external appliance through the transceiver, identify whether the appliance is a slave device controlled by the external appliance or a master device to control the external appliance based on the arrangement state information of the external appliance and arrangement state information of the appliance, based on the appliance being identified as the slave device, transmit a control authority to the external appliance through the transceiver, and based on the appliance being identified as the master device, request the control authority from the external appliance identified as the slave device through the transceiver.

Appliances and control method thereof

Provided are a fingerprint controller for driving a fingerprint sensing array in a touchscreen divided by at least a touch sensing region and a fingerprint sensing region, a method of operating the fingerprint controller, and a driver integrated circuit for driving the touchscreen including the fingerprint sensing array. The method includes: receiving a reference timing signal from an external module; generating a fingerprint sensing timing signal for driving the fingerprint sensing array in synchronization with the reference timing signal; and driving the fingerprint sensing array based on the fingerprint sensing timing signal.

Apparatus and method for driving fingerprint sensing array provided in touchscreen, and driver integrated circuit for driving the touchscreen including the fingerprint sensing array

A method for operating an electronic device is provided. The method includes performing initialization of a camera system of the electronic device, controlling the camera system to operate in a sleep mode upon completion of the initialization, controlling the camera system to switch to a normal mode from the sleep mode, and displaying an image output from the camera system in the normal mode on a display of the electronic device.

Method for controlling camera system, electronic device, and storage medium

An indoor unit of an air conditioner including a plurality of indoor units and one outdoor unit connected to the plurality of indoor units to be operated as a cooling cycle or a heating cycle is provided. The indoor unit includes: a communicator receiving setting information for performing air conditioning in a room from a control terminal apparatus; and a controller determining whether the received setting information is valid setting information applicable to the indoor unit depending on whether the air conditioner is operated as the cooling cycle or the heating cycle and setting the setting information in the indoor unit depending on the determination result.

Indoor unit of air conditioner, control terminal apparatus and air conditioning method

A pedestal of a load-cup for supporting wafers loaded onto and being unloaded from a chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) apparatus includes a pedestal plate, and a pedestal film which extends over only a limited area at the upper surface of the pedestal plate. This area includes the regions directly around the fluid ports provided in the pedestal plate for vacuum-chucking the wafers and spraying deionized water. The pedestal plate may have a cross-shaped part, the entirety of which bears the fluid ports. The pedestal film may include annular members each extending around only a respective one of the fluid ports, or one or more members each extending radially around several of the fluid ports. By offering a rather limited contact area to the wafer supported on the pedestal, the pedestal film reduces the amount of contaminants which could be transferred to the wafer surface in contact therewith.

Pedestal of a load-cup which supports wafers loaded/unloaded onto/from a chemical mechanical polishing apparatus

A polishing pad conditioner cleaning method and an apparatus for effectively removing particles from a polishing pad conditioner. The polishing pad conditioner is immersed into a cleaning liquid contained in a cleaning bath. The cleaning liquid is continuously supplied into the cleaning bath. An inert gas is injected into the cleaning liquid from a bottom of the cleaning bath. The injected inert gas bubbles the cleaning liquid, so that the particles sticking to the polishing pad conditioner are removed and overflow from the cleaning bath. The polishing pad conditioner is effectively cleaned, so that formation of particles and scratches on a wafer are reduced when a polishing process is subsequently carried out using the cleaned polishing pad conditioner.

Method of cleaning a polishing pad conditioner

An apparatus for manufacturing a semiconductor device includes a rotatable spindle, a head detachably connected to the spindle, and a clamp for clamping outer circumferential surfaces of the spindle and the head to one another so that the head may be driven by the spindle. The clamp has an annular clamping frame sized to encircle the outer circumferential surfaces of the spindle and the head, a projection disposed on one end of the clamping frame, a lever pivotally connected to the other end of the clamping frame, and a fastener pivotally connected to the lever and configured to hook over the projection. Once the fastener is hooked over the projection, the lever is pivoted to force the ends of the annular clamping frame together and thereby produce a clamping force that secures the spindle and head to one another. The clamp can be manipulated easily and with a simple motion to clamp the head to the spindle. Also, the parts of the clamp generate little mechanical friction. Accordingly, the head can be quickly connected to and disconnected from the spindle, and such operations will not produce particles that could contaminate the semiconductor wafer.

Clamp for connecting/disconnecting a rotary head to/from a spindle in apparatus for manufacturing a semiconductor device

Method of cleaning a polishing pad conditioner and apparatus for performing the same

A retainer ring of a polishing head of a CMP apparatus facilitates the removal of contaminants, such as slurry debris, which have found their way into the polishing head. The retainer ring includes an annular ring body, and a plurality of contaminant outlets extending from the inner peripheral surface of the ring body to the outer peripheral surface of the ring body. Inner openings defined at the inner peripheral surface of the ring body and outer openings defined at the outer peripheral surface of the ring body by the contaminant outlets are horizontally elongated slots. Also, each of the contaminant outlets consists of a plurality of inner holes and an outer hole which is joined to the plurality of inner holes. The contaminant outlets occupy at least 30% of the radially innermost peripheral surface along a line extending circumferentially along the surface. The CMP apparatus itself includes a polishing head having such a retainer ring and a washing unit having a nozzle for spraying deionized water through the contaminant outlets of the retainer ring toward an inner space formed in the polishing head.

Growing community of inventors

Suwon, South Korea

Min-gyu Kim