Hitachi-high-technologies Corporation

Hitachi Electronics Engineering Co., Ltd.

Other

Takashi Okawa

Kenji Mitomo

Minori Noguchi

Hidetoshi Nishiyama

Akira Hamamatsu

Yoshimasa Ohshima

Shinichi Suzuki

Yasuo Yatsugake

Shigeharu Iizuka, Deceased

Shigeharu Iizuka

Norihiko Mizutani

When measuring an edge region, a photo detector with an angle not influenced by the diffracted light, the diffracted light causing noise, is selected to thereby allow for inspection that minimizes the sensitivity reduction. This allows for the management of foreign matters in the outer peripheral portion, which conventionally could not be measured, and this also eliminates the oversight of critical defects on the wafer, thus leading to reduction of failures of IC.

Surface inspection method and surface inspection apparatus

An apparatus and method for detecting foreign particle and defect on an object in detection by means of a laser beam, in which the laser beams of different wavelengths are irradiated onto the surface of the object in detection from different angles and the state of foreign particle and defect is separately detected according to the output level of the scattered light reflected from that surface. Further, it is arranged such that the scattered light reflected from the object onto which the laser beam is irradiated from the sole source or the plurality of sources is detected in plural directions, which detecting result is compared for the detection of the directivity of said scattered light in reflection.

Apparatus for detecting foreign particle and defect and the same method

A wafer surface inspection method and device including a low angle light receiving system having an elevation angle less than 30.degree. with reference to the wafer surface, and a high angle light receiving system having an elevation angle equal to or larger than 30.degree., scans the wafer with a laser beam, receives scattered light to perform extraneous substance detection in response to the scanning, and detects wafer defects only by the high angle light receiving system, and sticking extraneous substances by either the low angle receiving system or by both the low angle light receiving system and the high angle light receiving system.

Inspection method and device of wafer surface

A detector is provided to optically monitor the outer periphery of a wafer rotated by rotation of a rotary stage, so as to detect how much the center of the wafer placed on the rotary inspection stage is offset from the rotational center of the rotary stage as well as an angular position, on the stage, of a V-shaped notch formed in the wafer. From the detected eccentricity of the wafer, it is determined whether a precise positioning operation, using at least three positioning pins, to locate the center of the wafer at the rotational center of the rotary stage should be performed or not. When the detected eccentricity is so great as to necessitate the precise positioning operation, one of the positioning pins is caused to fit into the V-shaped notch of the wafer on the basis of the detected angular position of the notch and then the precise positioning of the wafer is performed using the other two positioning pins. In this manner, the wafer can be properly positioned so that the center of the wafer lies exactly at the rotational center of the rotary stage, using the at least three positioning pins.

Device and method for positioning a notched wafer

Growing community of inventors

Fujioka, Japan

Takashi Okawa