Is a photolithography machine enough? What other equipment is needed for multi-chip manufacturing?

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Is a photolithography machine enough? What other equipment is needed for multi-chip manufacturing? [Copy link]

Chips are the food for many high-tech industries in the future, and chip design and manufacturing technology has become one of the most important areas of competition among the world's major powers. Chip production equipment provides the manufacturing basis for large-scale chip manufacturing, and is therefore the tip of the pyramid of the entire semiconductor chip industry. The following is an example of what equipment is needed to make a qualified chip.

Photolithography machine

The lithography machine is one of the core equipment for chip manufacturing. It can be divided into several types according to its use: there are lithography machines for chip production; there are lithography machines for packaging; and there are projection lithography machines for LED manufacturing. The lithography machine used to produce chips is China's biggest shortcoming in semiconductor equipment manufacturing. The high-end lithography machines needed by domestic wafer factories are completely dependent on imports.

In terms of high-end lithography machines, in addition to the leading ASML, Nikon and Canon have also made lithography machines, and Nikon has also received orders from Intel. However, in recent years, Nikon has been beaten by ASML without any ability to fight back, and the high-end lithography machine market is basically occupied by ASML.

• Working principle of lithography machine

In the process of processing chips, the photolithography machine transmits the light beam through the mask with the circuit diagram through a series of light source energy and shape control methods, and compensates for various optical errors through the objective lens. The circuit diagram is scaled down and mapped onto the silicon wafer, and then developed using chemical methods to obtain the circuit diagram engraved on the silicon wafer. The general photolithography process goes through the steps of silicon wafer surface cleaning and drying, primer coating, spin coating of photoresist, soft baking, alignment exposure, post-baking, development, hard baking, laser etching, etc. The chip that has been photolithographically processed once can continue to be coated with glue and exposed. The more complex the chip, the more layers of the circuit diagram, and the more precise the exposure control process is required.

Plasma etching machine

Plasma etcher, also known as plasma etcher, plasma plane etcher, plasma etcher, plasma surface treatment instrument, plasma cleaning system, etc. Plasma etching is the most common form of dry etching. Its principle is that the gas exposed to the electron area forms plasma, and the resulting ionized gas and the gas composed of released high-energy electrons form plasma or ions. When the ionized gas atoms are accelerated by the electric field, they will release enough force to tightly bond the material or etch the surface with the surface expulsion force.

In a way, plasma cleaning is actually a milder form of plasma etching. The equipment used for dry etching consists of a reaction chamber, a power supply, and a vacuum section. The workpiece is fed into the reaction chamber, which is evacuated by a vacuum pump. Gases are introduced and exchanged with the plasma. The plasma reacts on the surface of the workpiece, and the volatile byproducts of the reaction are pumped away by the vacuum pump. The plasma etching process is actually a reactive plasma process. Reactive Ion Etching System Reactive ion etching technology is a dry etching technology with strong anisotropy and high selectivity. It uses molecular gas plasma to etch in a vacuum system and uses ion-induced chemical reactions to achieve anisotropic etching, that is, it uses ion energy to form an easily etched damage layer on the surface of the etched layer and promote chemical reactions. At the same time, ions can also remove surface products to expose a clean etched surface. In reactive ion etching, there are a large number of chemically active gas ions in the plasma generated by gas discharge. These ions interact with the surface of the material, causing the surface atoms to react chemically and generate volatile products. These volatile products are discharged by the vacuum pumping system. With the cycle of "reaction-stripping-emission" on the surface of the material, the material is etched layer by layer to the specified depth. In addition to surface chemical reactions, energetic ions bombarding the surface of the material will also cause the surface atoms to sputter, producing a certain etching effect. Therefore, reactive ion etching includes a combination of physical and chemical etching.

Usually, the entire vacuum wall of the reactive ion etcher is grounded, serving as the anode, and the cathode is the power electrode. The grounded shield on the side of the cathode can prevent the power electrode from being sputtered. The substrate to be etched is placed on the power electrode. The corrosive gas fills the entire reaction chamber according to a certain working pressure and matching ratio. The corrosive gas in the reaction chamber is added with a high-frequency electric field greater than the critical value of gas breakdown. Under the action of the strong electric field, the stray electrons accelerated by the high-frequency electric field collide randomly with gas molecules or atoms. When the electron energy reaches a certain level, the random collision becomes an inelastic collision, resulting in secondary electron emission, which further collides with gas molecules.Continuously exciting or ionizing gas molecules. This violent collision causes ionization and recombination. When the process of electron generation and disappearance reaches equilibrium, the discharge energy can continue to be maintained. The ions, electrons and free radicals (free atoms, molecules or atomic groups) generated by the inelastic collision are also called plasma. They have strong chemical activity and can react chemically with the atoms on the surface of the etched sample to form volatile substances, thereby achieving the purpose of corroding the surface of the sample. At the same time, since the direction of the electric field near the cathode is perpendicular to the cathode surface, high-energy ions are vertically shot at the sample surface under a certain working pressure for physical bombardment, making reactive ion etching have good anisotropy. Ion implanter 25)]Ion implantation machine is a kind of high-voltage small accelerator. It obtains the required ions from the ion source, and obtains an ion beam with an energy of several hundred kiloelectron volts after acceleration. It is used for ion implantation of semiconductor materials, large-scale integrated circuits and devices, and also for surface modification and film making of metal materials.

The ion implanter consists of an ion source, ion introduction and mass analyzer, an accelerator tube, a scanning system and a process chamber. Minor parts can be omitted according to actual needs. The ion source is the main part of the ion implanter. Its function is to ionize the gaseous particles of the elements to be implanted into ions, and determine the type of ions to be implanted and the beam intensity. The electrons generated by the DC discharge or high-frequency discharge of the ion source are used as bombardment particles. When the energy of the foreign electrons is higher than the ionization potential of the atoms, the elements are ionized through collision. After the collision, in addition to the original electrons, positrons and secondary electrons also appear. The positive ions enter the mass analyzer to select the required ions, and then pass through the accelerator to obtain higher energy. After being focused by the four-stage lens, they enter the target chamber for ion implantation.

Single crystal furnace

Single crystal furnace is a kind of equipment that uses graphite heater to melt polycrystalline materials such as polysilicon in an inert gas (mainly nitrogen and helium) environment and grows single crystals without dislocation by Czochralski method.

Put high-purity polysilicon raw materials into a high-purity quartz crucible and melt them at high temperatures generated by a graphite heater; then, cool the molten silicon liquid slightly to produce a certain degree of supercooling, and then insert a silicon single crystal (called a seed crystal) fixed on the seed crystal axis into the melt surface. After the seed crystal and the melt are melted, slowly pull the seed crystal upward, and the crystal will grow at the lower end of the seed crystal;

Then, control the seed crystal to grow a thin neck with a length of about 100mm and a diameter of 3-5mm, which is used to eliminate the dislocation of atomic arrangement caused by the strong thermal shock of the high-temperature solution on the seed crystal. This process is called seeding; then, enlarge the crystal diameter to the size required by the process, generally 75-300mm, and this process is called shoulder release;

25)]Then, suddenly increase the pulling speed to perform shoulder turning operation, so that the shoulder is close to a right angle; then, enter the equal diameter process, by controlling the thermal field temperature and the crystal lifting speed, grow a single crystal column of a certain diameter specification; finally, when most of the silicon solution has completed crystallization, the crystal is gradually reduced to form a tail-shaped cone, which is called the finishing process. In this way, the single crystal pulling process is basically completed, and it can be taken out after a certain amount of insulation and cooling.

Wafer dicing machine

The main function of the wafer dicing machine is to cut the wafer into small pieces.

wafer thinning machine

Usually, before integrated circuit packaging, it is necessary to remove a certain thickness of excess substrate material on the back of the chip. This process is called chip back thinning process, and the corresponding equipment is a chip thinning machine.

The function of chip thinning machine:

1.Thinning the wafer substrate by thinning/grinding to improve the heat dissipation effect of the chip.

2.Thinning to a certain thickness is beneficial to the later packaging process. Vapor Phase Epitaxy Furnace Vapor Phase Epitaxy is a method for growing single crystal thin layers. It is a special form of chemical vapor deposition. The crystal structure of the grown thin layer is a continuation of the single crystal substrate and maintains a corresponding relationship with the crystal orientation of the substrate.

In the development of semiconductor science and technology, vapor phase epitaxy has played an important role, with typical representatives being Si vapor phase epitaxy and GaAs and solid solution vapor phase epitaxy. Si vapor phase epitaxy uses high-purity hydrogen as the transport and reduction gas to generate Si atoms after chemical reaction and deposit them on the substrate, growing a Si single crystal epitaxial layer with the same crystal orientation as the substrate. This technology has been widely used in the industrial production of Si semiconductor devices and integrated circuits.

The vapor phase epitaxy furnace mainly provides a specific process environment for vapor phase epitaxy growth, so as to grow a thin layer of crystal corresponding to the single crystal phase on the single crystal, and make basic preparations for the functionalization of the single crystal bottom.

Oxidation furnace (VDF)

The oxidation furnace mainly provides the required oxidation atmosphere, realizes the oxidation treatment process of the expected design of the semiconductor, and performs oxidation treatment for the semiconductor material, which is an indispensable part of the semiconductor processing process.

[color=rgb(25, 25, Low Pressure Chemical Vapor Deposition System The LPCVD process deposits a uniform dielectric film on the surface of the substrate, which is used as a micromechanical structure layer material, sacrificial layer, insulating layer, and mask material. The materials deposited by the LPCVD process include polysilicon, silicon nitride, and phosphosilicate glass. Different gases are used for the deposition of different materials. Among them, the stress control of the film used for surface micromechanical structure is the most important indicator of this process.

Equipment function: Introduce the vapor of gaseous reactants or liquid reactants containing thin film elements and other gases required for the reaction into the reaction chamber of the LPCVD equipment, and chemical reactions occur on the substrate surface to form a thin film.

Plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition system

A method for preparing semiconductor thin film materials and other material thin films by ionizing them in a deposition chamber using glow discharge and then chemically reacting and depositing them on a substrate. Plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition is a method in which gases are excited to produce low-temperature plasma in chemical vapor deposition, thereby enhancing the chemical activity of the reactants and performing epitaxy. This method can form a solid film at a relatively low temperature. For example, in a reaction chamber, a substrate material is placed on a cathode, and a reaction gas is introduced to a relatively low pressure (1-600 Pa). The substrate is kept at a certain temperature, and a glow discharge is generated in a certain way. The gas near the substrate surface is ionized, the reaction gas is activated, and cathode sputtering occurs on the substrate surface, thereby increasing the surface activity. There are not only common thermochemical reactions on the surface, but also complex plasma chemical reactions. The deposited film is formed under the combined action of these two chemical reactions. The main advantages of plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition are low deposition temperature, little effect on the structure and physical properties of the substrate; good uniformity of film thickness and composition; dense film structure and few pinholes; strong adhesion of the film layer; wide range of applications, and can be used to prepare various metal films, inorganic films and organic films. 25)]Magnetron sputtering station

Magnetron sputtering is to perform high-speed sputtering under low pressure, and the ionization rate of the gas must be effectively increased. By introducing a magnetic field on the surface of the target cathode, the magnetic field is used to confine the charged particles to increase the plasma density and increase the sputtering rate.

Equipment function: Through a closed magnetic field parallel to the target surface in dipole sputtering and an orthogonal electromagnetic field formed on the target surface, secondary electrons are bound to a specific area on the target surface, achieving high ion density and high energy ionization, and sputtering and depositing target atoms or molecules on the substrate at a high rate to form a thin film.

Chemical Mechanical Polisher

In wafer manufacturing, with the upgrading of process technology and the reduction of wire and gate size, the requirements of lithography technology for the flatness of wafer surface are getting higher and higher. Chemical mechanical polishing is also called chemical mechanical polishing. Its principle is a processing technology that combines chemical corrosion and mechanical removal. It is the only technology in mechanical processing that can achieve global surface flatness.

Chemical mechanical polishing technology combines the advantages of chemical polishing and mechanical polishing. Pure chemical polishing has high surface accuracy, low damage, good integrity, and is not prone to surface/subsurface damage, but the polishing rate is slow, the material removal efficiency is low, the surface profile accuracy cannot be corrected, and the polishing consistency is relatively poor; pure mechanical polishing has good polishing consistency, high surface flatness, and high polishing efficiency, but it is prone to surface layer/subsurface layer damage and the surface roughness value is relatively low. Chemical mechanical polishing absorbs the advantages of both, and can obtain a more perfect surface while ensuring material removal efficiency. The flatness obtained is 1-2 orders of magnitude higher than that of using these two types of polishing alone, and can achieve surface roughness from nanometer level to atomic level.

Wire bonder

Wire bonding machine Bonding is a process that uses thin metal wires to weld metal leads to substrate pads tightly using heat, pressure, and ultrasonic energy to achieve electrical interconnection between chips and substrates and information exchange between chips. Under ideal control conditions, electron sharing or atomic diffusion occurs between the leads and the substrate, thereby achieving atomic-level bonding between the two metals.

The function of wire bonding is to introduce and export electrical connections from core components.

Probe test station

The probe station is mainly used in the semiconductor industry, optoelectronics industry, integrated circuit and packaging testing. It is widely used in the research and development of precision electrical measurements of complex and high-speed devices to ensure quality and reliability, and reduce research and development time and device manufacturing process costs.

The probe test station contacts the pad of the semiconductor device through the probe to perform electrical testing to detect whether the performance indicators of the semiconductor meet the design performance requirements.

25)]Chemical mechanical polishing technology combines the advantages of chemical polishing and mechanical polishing. Pure chemical polishing has high surface accuracy, low damage, good integrity, and is not prone to surface/subsurface damage, but the polishing rate is slow, the material removal efficiency is low, the surface profile accuracy cannot be corrected, and the polishing consistency is relatively poor; pure mechanical polishing has good polishing consistency, high surface flatness, and high polishing efficiency, but it is prone to surface layer/subsurface layer damage and the surface roughness value is relatively low. Chemical mechanical polishing absorbs the advantages of both, and can obtain a more perfect surface while ensuring material removal efficiency. The flatness obtained is 1-2 orders of magnitude higher than that of using these two types of polishing alone, and can achieve surface roughness from nanometer level to atomic level.

Wire bonder

Wire bonding machine Bonding is a process that uses thin metal wires and uses heat, pressure, and ultrasonic energy to tightly weld metal leads to substrate pads to achieve electrical interconnection between chips and substrates and information exchange between chips. Under ideal control conditions, electron sharing or atomic diffusion will occur between the leads and the substrate, thereby achieving atomic-level bonding between the two metals. The purpose of wire bonding is to introduce and export electrical connections from core components.

Probe test station

The probe station is mainly used in the testing of semiconductor industry, optoelectronic industry, integrated circuit and packaging. It is widely used in the research and development of precision electrical measurements of complex and high-speed devices, aiming to ensure quality and reliability, and reduce the development time and cost of device manufacturing processes. The probe test station contacts the pad of the semiconductor device through the probe to perform electrical testing to detect whether the performance indicators of the semiconductor meet the design performance requirements. http://5b0988e595225.cdn.sohucs.com/images/20180515/7b6d1f57534b4063b124600547dc4702.jpeg25)]Chemical mechanical polishing technology combines the advantages of chemical polishing and mechanical polishing. Pure chemical polishing has high surface accuracy, low damage, good integrity, and is not prone to surface/subsurface damage, but the polishing rate is slow, the material removal efficiency is low, the surface profile accuracy cannot be corrected, and the polishing consistency is relatively poor; pure mechanical polishing has good polishing consistency, high surface flatness, and high polishing efficiency, but it is prone to surface layer/subsurface layer damage and the surface roughness value is relatively low. Chemical mechanical polishing absorbs the advantages of both, and can obtain a more perfect surface while ensuring material removal efficiency. The flatness obtained is 1-2 orders of magnitude higher than that of using these two types of polishing alone, and can achieve surface roughness from nanometer level to atomic level.

Wire bonder

Wire bonding machine Bonding is a process that uses thin metal wires and uses heat, pressure, and ultrasonic energy to tightly weld metal leads to substrate pads to achieve electrical interconnection between chips and substrates and information exchange between chips. Under ideal control conditions, electron sharing or atomic diffusion will occur between the leads and the substrate, thereby achieving atomic-level bonding between the two metals. The purpose of wire bonding is to introduce and export electrical connections from core components.

Probe test station

The probe station is mainly used in the testing of semiconductor industry, optoelectronic industry, integrated circuit and packaging. It is widely used in the research and development of precision electrical measurements of complex and high-speed devices, aiming to ensure quality and reliability, and reduce the development time and cost of device manufacturing processes. The probe test station contacts the pad of the semiconductor device through the probe to perform electrical testing to detect whether the performance indicators of the semiconductor meet the design performance requirements. http://5b0988e595225.cdn.sohucs.com/images/20180515/7b6d1f57534b4063b124600547dc4702.jpeg

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