Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Comp. Ltd.

Tsung-Chi Hsieh

Yuan-Ko Hwang

Ruei-Hung Jang

Chih-Lin Ying

Shih-Shiung Chen

Tien-Hsing Woo

Kuei-Jen Chang

Sheng-Liang Pan

Wen-Hung Tseng

Yung-Kai Lin

Ming-Kuo Yu

Hung-Hsin Liu

Juei-Wen Lin

Jean-Hur Yuen

Ching-Hui Tai

Ching-Hian Chou

Shih Chiung Chen

Chun-Li Fang

A self-contained ventilator includes a housing having a support member for supporting a pollution source. A filter is further disposed in the housing for filtering contaminants emitted from the pollution source. A conduit is adapted to connect to the housing to provide non-housing communication between portions of the housing. A fan is situated in the conduit to generate an airflow that follows a path through the housing, through the conduit, and back to the housing. The airflow entrains the contaminants such that the contaminants are captured by the filter upon passage of the airflow through the filter.

Method and apparatus for filtering contaminants

A method and apparatus for measuring the vacuum gripping strength of a vacuum wand or robotic arm provides a pressure gauge and a conduit extending from the pressure gauge and terminating at an opening formed in a receiving surface. A vacuum wand head is positioned on the receiving surface such that the gripping surface of the vacuum wand forms a conterminous boundary with the receiving surface and the vacuum port of the vacuum wand is aligned over the opening formed in the receiving surface. The receiving surface replicates a wafer surface so that the same vacuum gripping strength as would be delivered to a wafer being gripped by the vacuum wand, is thereby sensed by the pressure gauge. Spring loaded positioning members act in conjunction with a clamp member and a mechanical stop position the vacuum wand head in the receiving area and over the opening and also to assure that the gripping surface of the vacuum wand head is flush against the surface of the receiving area. Diminution of vacuum gripping strength caused by scratches or other defects of the gripping surface that cause vacuum leaks between gripping surface and the wafer surface, are similarly reproduced and sensed by the pressure gauge.

Method and apparatus for measuring gripping strength of a vacuum wand

A method of forming very small silicon nitride spacers in split-gate flash EPROMs is disclosed which prevent the occurrence of 'write disturb', unwanted reverse tunneling, or erasing. This is accomplished by forming spacers with well-controlled dimensions and well-defined shapes through a judicious use of a fully wet etch technique, including main-etch and over-etch. The use of a phosphoric acid solution in combination with sulfuric acid+hydrogen peroxide widens the process window from a few seconds to several minutes so that the small-dimensioned silicon nitride spacers can be better controlled than it has been possible in the past. In the first embodiment phosphoric solution is used both for main-etch and for over-etch. In the second embodiment, phosphoric solution is used for main-etch only, while the sulfuric+hydrogen peroxide solution is used as an over-etch in forming the tiny silicon nitride spacers of the invention. In the third embodiment, the step of over-etching of the spacers is combined with the step of stripping off of an implant photomask, thus, shortening the manufacturing product cycle.

Method of forming tiny silicon nitride spacer for flash EPROM by fully wet etching technology

A wet etch system including a process tank having an inner etch bath chamber and an outer overflow chamber surrounding the etch bath chamber. A frame which is removably mounted on the process tank defines a diversion channel between the upper ends of the etch bath chamber and overflow chamber. The etch bath chamber receives a wafer-containing cassette, which displaces etchant from the etch bath chamber, through the diversion channel and into the overflow chamber, where the etchant is drained from the process tank. Particulate impurities leave the etch bath chamber, enter the overflow chamber and drain from the process tank with the overflow etchant. Fresh etchant is poured into the etch bath chamber prior to a subsequent etch cycle. A water spray loop may be provided in the overflow chamber for removing etch particles from the interior wall surfaces of the overflow chamber.

Wet etch system with overflow particle removing feature

A static mixer comprises a mixing chamber with an inlet mixing module, fluids to be mixed being fed into the module to undergo swirling and jet collision, at least one intermediate mixing module connected to the inlet mixing module and provided with means for splitting liquid flow into a plurality of jet flows with subsequent recombination of said jets and mixing action of vortices formed around the jet flows, and an outlet mixing module connected to the intermediate mixing module and provided with means for further swirling premixed fluids.

Fluid mixing apparatus

A backside cannelure of an electrode to provide for detecting semiconductor wafer shift after the wafer has been positioned over the cannelure of the electrode is disclosed. The wafer has a backside and a proper position over the cannelure. The cannelure exposes the backside of the wafer to a gas piped in through one or more holes of the electrode. The cannelure has a size such that deviation of the wafer from its proper position by more than a threshold partially exposes the cannelure, such that the gas leaks from the cannelure as now partially exposed. A gas flow detector may detect the gas leaking from the cannelure, and provide corresponding detection of the wafer deviating from its proper position.

Backside cannelure to provide for wafer shift detection

A liquid supply/drain conduit system that is equipped with an inner leakage detector and a liquid process tank that is equipped with such liquid supply/drain conduit system are disclosed. The liquid supply/drain conduit system includes a first conduit for feeding a liquid into an inlet of a first valve of the normal-closed type, a second conduit of T-shape that has a horizontal portion and a vertical portion, the horizontal portion of the second conduit flows a liquid from an outlet of the first valve into a reservoir tank. The second valve of the normal-open type has an inlet and an outlet, the inlet is situated in relation to the first valve in such a way that it receives through a vertical portion of the second conduit a leaked flow of liquid by gravity when the normal-closed first valve failed to close. A liquid detector is further provided for detecting a leaked flow of liquid through the second valve. The leakage detector may optionally include an alarm system to be activated when a leakage flow is detected. The leakage detector may further send a signal to a process controller for alerting a machine operator of the leakage status of the liquid supply/drain conduit system.

Liquid supply or drain pipe equipped with a leakage detector

A process for creating a fuse structure opening in a stack of materials comprised with overlying dielectric layers, and comprised with an underlying polysilicon layer, to expose a conductive fuse structure, has been developed. The process initiates with a dry etching procedure used to create an initial fuse structure opening in the dielectric layers, using a photoresist shape as an etch mask. Subsequent removal of the photoresist shape results in the completion of the fuse structure opening via in situ etching of the polysilicon layer exposed in the initial fuse structure opening. The isotropic wet etch procedure used for photoresist removal and in situ patterning of polysilicon, avoids polysilicon spacer formation on the sides of the conductive fuse structure, which would have been present with the use of an all dry etch procedure. In addition the wet etch procedure selectively terminates on a thin silicon oxide layer, located on the underlying conductive fuse structure.

Method of etching a polysilicon layer during the stripping of the photoresist shape used as an etch mask to create an opening to an underlying fuse structure

An electrically conductive workpiece such as a semiconductor wafer or the like is transported between a staging area and an electrostatic chuck within a processing chamber using an electrostatic arm. The arm is used to apply an electrical charge to the wafer and to hold the wafer during transport by means of an electrostatic force of attraction between the arm and the wafer. The arm also pre-charges the wafer in preparation to be electrostatically chucked within the processing chamber. Pre-charging the wafer eliminates the need for using a gas plasma within the chamber for chucking and dechucking the wafer.

Method for transporting and electrostatically chucking a semiconductor wafer or the like

An electrostatic arm transports a semiconductor wafer between a staging area and a processing chamber and also electrically charges the wafer in order to eliminate the need for using gas plasma in the chamber to chuck and dechuck the wafer. The arm includes a pair of electrically conductive members coupled with an electrical power supply which respectively control the polarity of the charge applied to the wafer and create an electrostatic force which holds the wafer on the arm without the need for mechanical clamping. One of the members comprises a plate spaced from the face of the wafer by an air gap, and when charged with a polarity opposite that of the wafer, creates an electrostatic attraction force which holds the wafer the carrier. A controller is used to selectively reverse the polarity of charge on the plate so as to create an electrostatic repulsion force which positively releases the wafer from the carrier.

Growing community of inventors

Tamshui, Taiwan

Tsung-Chi Hsieh