The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
May. 03, 1994
Filed:
Jun. 09, 1992
Russell E Lewis, Cupertino, CA (US);
Richard E Howard, Pleasanton, CA (US);
Herbert E Litvak, Cupertino, CA (US);
Luxtron Corporation, Santa Clara, CA (US);
Abstract
Techniques of monitoring and controlling removal or forming of layers of material, such as employed in the manufacture of flat panel displays and integrated circuit wafers. Examples of material removal include the development of a photoresist layer and etching of layers of other material according to a pattern across the surface of the layer. The material removal process is terminated in response to detecting when breakthrough occurs in a preselected number of individual regions across the surface of the layer. A measure of uniformity of processing across the layer surface is obtained from monitoring removal of material in such individual surface regions, and can be used to control the process to improve such uniformity.