Lam Research Corporation

Applied Materials, Inc.

Other

Dj Parker Company, Inc.

Todd Alan Balisky

Yezdi N Dordi

Fritz C Redeker

Aleksander Owczarz

Alan M Schoepp

William Thie

John P Parks

John M Boyd

Tiruchirapalli Arunagiri

Clint Thomas

Jacob Wylie

Zhi-Wen Sun

Donald A Cameron

Srujal (Steven) Patel

Improvements in a variable volume capture device are disclosed to capture a variable amount of sample. The variable amount is controlled by a linear actuator that produces a variable and adjustable stroke length that capture the programmed amount of fluid in the syringe barrel. Air or other supernatant fluid can be separated and expelled at this point. The captured fluid is then dispensed out of the syringe barrel for further testing and analysis. The capture device is then able to drain or flush the sample. Valves located on each side of the syringe barrel allow for sample collecting, dispensing and draining to ensure that the capture device is free to collect new samples. The variable volume capture device can have changeable syringe and barrel diameters and lengths to accommodate larger or smaller ranges of samples.

Variable volume sample capture device

A semiconductor wafer electroless plating apparatus includes a platen and a fluid bowl. The platen has a top surface defined to support a wafer, and an outer surface extending downward from a periphery of the top surface to a lower surface of the platen. The fluid bowl has an inner volume defined by an interior surface so as to receive the platen, and wafer to be supported thereon, within the inner volume. A seal is disposed around the interior surface of the fluid bowl so as to form a liquid tight barrier when engaged between the interior surface of the fluid bowl and the outer surface of the platen. A number of fluid dispense nozzles are positioned to dispense electroplating solution within the fluid bowl above the seal so as to rise up and flow over the platen, thereby flowing over the wafer when present on the platen.

Method and apparatus for wafer electroless plating

A chemical fluid handling system is defined to supply a number of chemicals to a number of fluid inputs of a mixing manifold. The chemical fluid handling system includes a number of fluid recirculation loops for separately pre-conditioning and controlling the supply of each of the number of chemicals. Each of the fluid recirculation loops is defined to degas, heat, and filter a particular one of the number of chemical components. The mixing manifold is defined to mix the number of chemicals to form the electroless plating solution. The mixing manifold includes a fluid output connected to a supply line. The supply line is connected to supply the electroless plating solution to a fluid bowl within an electroless plating chamber.

Fluid handling system for wafer electroless plating and associated methods

A dry-in/dry-out system is disclosed for wafer electroless plating. The system includes an upper zone for wafer ingress/egress and drying operations. Proximity heads are provided in the upper zone to perform the drying operations. The system also includes a lower zone for electroless plating operations. The lower zone includes an electroless plating apparatus that implements a wafer submersion by fluid upwelling method. The upper and lower zones of the system are enclosed by a dual-walled chamber, wherein the inner wall is a chemically inert plastic and the outer wall is a structural metal. The system interfaces with a fluid handling system which provides the necessary chemistry supply and control for the system. The system is ambient controlled. Also, the system interfaces with an ambient controlled managed transfer module (MTM).

Wafer electroless plating system and associated methods

Embodiments of the invention provide an analytical method and analytical reagent solutions for determining the concentration of electrolyte components, such as copper, acid and chloride constituents in an acid or basic metal plating bath using a chemical analyzer. Common methods for measuring the concentration of copper general require two reagent solutions/two steps. This invention provides a novel analytical reagent solution that simplifies the chelating, buffering, and cleaning functions of separate regent solutions required for measuring electrolyte concentration. This has the benefits of reducing chemical inventory and associated dispensing equipment, and thus reducing chemical consumption.

Analytical reagent for acid copper sulfate solutions

A chemical control system for controlling the chemistry of a chemical solution having predetermined chemical constituents in a plating system, such as a NiFe plating system, employs a mix container for containing a plating solution and a hold container for containing a plating solution delivered from the mix container. A precision delivery arrangement delivers a precise predetermined quantum of a predetermined constituent of the plating solution to multiple mix containers and the hold containers. Transfer of plating solution between the mix and hold containers is effected by a transfer pump. Nitrogen gas that has been humidified with deionized water protects the plating solution from either acquiring water or becoming dehydrated, the humidified nitrogen gas being humidified to a predetermined relative humidity with respect to the temperature of the plating solution in the mix container. This is achieved by urging the nitrogen gas through a column that is at the same temperature as the plating solution. Precise delivery of the chemical constituents is achieved by a pneumatic pump arranged serially with an orifice and an inexpensive flow meter. The pneumatic pump is a positive displacement, double diaphragm pump.

Chemical mixing, replenishment, and waste management system

A method and apparatus for analyzing plating solutions. The apparatus generally includes a plating cell, a reference electrolyte input, one or more external additive pumps, and a process controller. In one embodiment, the plating cell includes a cavity therein having a larger volumetric portion adjacent a smaller volumetric portion adapted to hold one or more solutions therein. The plating cell also includes a base disposed adjacent the bottom of the plating cell and adapted to receive and mix one or more test solutions as part of the plating solution analysis. In one configuration, the base includes electrical ports adapted to connect stimulation signals to a working electrode, counter electrode, and reference electrode disposed within the cell. The base also includes a thermal sensor in thermal contact with test solutions contained within the vessel.

Apparatus for plating solution analysis

A method and apparatus for automatically refilling reference electrodes used in chemical analysis. The apparatus generally includes a reference electrode including an outer chamber with an electrolyte contained therein, an adapter to secure the plumbing to the reference electrode, and a computer to control the refill unit. The refill unit further includes a pump, a refill bottle, and plumbing to connect the refill bottle to the pump and the pump to the reference electrode. The method generally includes drawing refill electrolyte from a refill bottle and pumping the refill electrolyte to the reference electrode. Embodiments of the invention further include an automatically refillable reference electrode. The automatically refillable reference electrode generally includes an outer chamber, with an electrolyte contained therein, a reference junction to provide communication between the electrolyte and an electroplating solution, an adapter to secure an electrolyte refill source to a refill opening in the outer chamber, and an overflow hole to drain excess electrolyte from the outer chamber.

Electrode refilling mechanism

A method of controlling the content of a chemical bath includes the steps of: determining a replenishment condition for the chemical bath; defining a unit of the replenishment condition; establishing a pacing factor corresponding to a replenishment volume of a replenishment medium per unit of the replenishment condition; and defining a replenishment threshold corresponding to the product of a predetermined number of the defined units of the replenishment condition and the pacing factor. The rate of continued replenishment of the predetermined constituent of the chemical bath is determined in response to the replenishment condition, which may be elapsed time, ampere-hours (or coulombs), number of product loads, product surface area, or line speed over time. The method replenishes constituents as they actually are consumed. It also prevents depletion (or buildup in the case of decanting a by-product) and the associated time delay related to detection and correction. The method is effective in controlling a copper electroplating operation.

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Corona, CA, United States of America

Todd Alan Balisky