Apparatus for optical inspection of wafers during polishing
DCFirst Claim
1. A measurement station for use with a processing machine that includes a processing station for processing a semiconductor wafer and an exit station outside the processing station and including a wafer transfer means and at least one wafer cassette, the measurement station being so dimensioned as to be installable within the exit station of the processing machine and comprising a spectrophotometric measuring unit and a holding unit for receiving and holding the wafer in a measuring position during measurements, said measuring unit comprising an optical system including an imaging system operable to locate measurements, a focusing optics for focusing illuminating light onto the wafer and collecting light reflected from the illuminated water;
- a beam splitter for directing the illuminating light towards the wafer and directing the collected reflected light towards the spectrophotometer; and
a pin hole mirror accommodated in an optical path of the collected light propagating towards the spectrophotometer and separating a portion of the collected light to propagate to a charge coupled device (CCD) for imaging.
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Abstract
An optical system is disclosed for the inspection of wafers during polishing which also includes a measurement system for measuring the thickness of the wafers top layer. The optical system views the wafer through a window and includes a gripping system, which places the wafer in a predetermined viewing location while maintaining the patterned surface completely under water. The optical system also includes a pull-down unit for pulling the measurement system slightly below the horizontal prior to the measurement and returns the measuring system to the horizontal afterwards.
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Citations
38 Claims
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1. A measurement station for use with a processing machine that includes a processing station for processing a semiconductor wafer and an exit station outside the processing station and including a wafer transfer means and at least one wafer cassette, the measurement station being so dimensioned as to be installable within the exit station of the processing machine and comprising a spectrophotometric measuring unit and a holding unit for receiving and holding the wafer in a measuring position during measurements, said measuring unit comprising an optical system including an imaging system operable to locate measurements, a focusing optics for focusing illuminating light onto the wafer and collecting light reflected from the illuminated water;
- a beam splitter for directing the illuminating light towards the wafer and directing the collected reflected light towards the spectrophotometer; and
a pin hole mirror accommodated in an optical path of the collected light propagating towards the spectrophotometer and separating a portion of the collected light to propagate to a charge coupled device (CCD) for imaging. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
- a beam splitter for directing the illuminating light towards the wafer and directing the collected reflected light towards the spectrophotometer; and
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21. A processing machine for processing a semiconductor wafer, the processing machine comprising a processing station having a processing tool to be applied to the wafer, and an optical measurement station, the optical measurement station being associated with an exit station of the processing machine that includes a wafer transfer means and at least one wafer cassette, the optical measurement station comprising:
- a holding unit for receiving the wafer and holding it in a measuring position during measurements; and
an optical system including a spectrophotometric measuring unit, an imaging system including a light detector operable to locate measurements, a focusing optics for focusing illuminating light onto the wafer and collecting light reflected from the illuminated water;
a beam splitter for directing the illuminating light towards the wafer and directing the collected reflected light towards the spectrophotometer; and
a pin hole mirror accommodated in an optical path of the collected light and separating a portion of the collected light to the light detector. - View Dependent Claims (22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38)
- a holding unit for receiving the wafer and holding it in a measuring position during measurements; and
Specification