Patent application number | Description | Published |
20080219806 | SEMICONDUCTOR MANUFACTURING PROCESS MODULES - A variety of process modules are described for use in semiconductor manufacturing processes. | 09-11-2008 |
20080219807 | SEMICONDUCTOR MANUFACTURING PROCESS MODULES - A variety of process modules are described for use in semiconductor manufacturing processes. | 09-11-2008 |
20080219808 | SEMICONDUCTOR MANUFACTURING PROCESS MODULES - A variety of process modules are described for use in semiconductor manufacturing processes. | 09-11-2008 |
20080219809 | SEMICONDUCTOR MANUFACTURING PROCESS MODULES - A variety of process modules are described for use in semiconductor manufacturing processes. | 09-11-2008 |
20080219810 | SEMICONDUCTOR MANUFACTURING PROCESS MODULES - A variety of process modules are described for use in semiconductor manufacturing processes. | 09-11-2008 |
20080219811 | SEMICONDUCTOR MANUFACTURING PROCESS MODULES - A variety of process modules are described for use in semiconductor manufacturing processes. | 09-11-2008 |
20080219812 | SEMICONDUCTOR MANUFACTURING PROCESS MODULES - A variety of process modules are described for use in semiconductor manufacturing processes. | 09-11-2008 |
20080226429 | MULTI-FUNCTION VACUUM LINK - Modular wafer transport and handling facilities are combined in a variety of ways deliver greater levels of flexibility, utility, efficiency, and functionality in a vacuum semiconductor processing system. Various processing and other modules may be interconnected with tunnel-and-cart transportation systems to extend the distance and versatility of the vacuum environment. Other improvements such as bypass thermal adjusters, buffering aligners, batch processing, multifunction modules, low particle vents, cluster processing cells, and the like are incorporated to expand functionality and improve processing efficiency. | 09-18-2008 |
20080232947 | SEMICONDUCTOR WAFER HANDLING AND TRANSPORT - Modular wafer transport and handling facilities are combined in a variety of ways deliver greater levels of flexibility, utility, efficiency, and functionality in a vacuum semiconductor processing system. Various processing and other modules may be interconnected with tunnel-and-cart transportation systems to extend the distance and versatility of the vacuum environment. Other improvements such as bypass thermal adjusters, buffering aligners, batch processing, multifunction modules, low particle vents, cluster processing cells, and the like are incorporated to expand functionality and improve processing efficiency. | 09-25-2008 |
20080232948 | SEMICONDUCTOR WAFER HANDLING AND TRANSPORT - Modular wafer transport and handling facilities are combined in a variety of ways deliver greater levels of flexibility, utility, efficiency, and functionality in a vacuum semiconductor processing system. Various processing and other modules may be interconnected with tunnel-and-cart transportation systems to extend the distance and versatility of the vacuum environment. Other improvements such as bypass thermal adjusters, buffering aligners, batch processing, multifunction modules, low particle vents, cluster processing cells, and the like are incorporated to expand functionality and improve processing efficiency. | 09-25-2008 |
20080260499 | FACET ADAPTER FOR A WAFER HANDLER - A facet adapter permits flexible coupling of wafer handler ports to various combinations of process modules. In one embodiment, a facet adapter connects a port of a wafer handler to two process modules. The facet adapter may provide additional facets oriented, for example, at ninety degrees to one another. Facet adapters may be employed to flexibly accommodate various semiconductor fabrication system layouts, and in particular, to increase the number of process modules serviced by a single robotic wafer handler. | 10-23-2008 |
20080260500 | BATCH SUBSTRATE HANDLING - A substrate-handling vacuum robot includes a first robotic arm with a single-substrate end effector and a second robotic arm with a batch end effector. The single-substrate end effector permits single-substrate pick-and-place operations while the batch end effector permits batch handling of substrates within a vacuum environment. | 10-23-2008 |
20080298936 | VACUUM SUBSTRATE STORAGE - A two piece shell is employed for intermediate and long term storage of substrates. The shell is formed of two halves that can be juxtaposed in vacuum and externally vented, with the internal vacuum retaining the halves in vacuum-sealed engagement. One of the halves also provides a vacuum-sealing perimeter for selectively sealing to a process chamber during loading and/or unloading of the shell with a substrate. A vacuum monitor or the like may be employed to monitor pressure during storage and provide alerts if the vacuum within the sealed shell is compromised. | 12-04-2008 |
20090053016 | MID-ENTRY LOAD LOCK FOR SEMICONDUCTOR HANDLING SYSTEM - In a system having a number of semiconductor processing modules sharing a common vacuum environment, a mid-entry load lock is provided to permit insertion and removal of wafers into the vacuum environment at a point between various other robotic handlers, process modules, and load locks. This arrangement permits increased flexibility in scheduling when multiple wafers are processed concurrently. | 02-26-2009 |
20090067958 | STACKED PROCESS MODULES FOR A SEMICONDUCTOR HANDLING SYSTEM - Methods and systems are provided for a vacuum-based semiconductor handling system. The system may be a linear system with a four-link robotic SCARA arm for moving materials in the system. The system may include one or more vertically stacked load locks or vertically stacked process modules. | 03-12-2009 |
20090087286 | SEMICONDUCTOR MANUFACTURING SYSTEMS - Linear semiconductor handling systems provide more balanced processing capacity using various techniques to provide increased processing capacity to relatively slow processes. This may include use of hexagonal vacuum chambers to provide additional facets for slow process modules, use of circulating process modules to provide more processing capacity at a single facet of a vacuum chamber, or the use of wide process modules having multiple processing sites. This approach may be used, for example, to balance processing capacity in a typical process that includes plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition steps and bevel etch steps. | 04-02-2009 |
20090095886 | WAFER PRESENCE DETECTION - The presence of a workpiece on an end effector of a vacuum robotic handler is detecting using any of a number of non-contact techniques in which some or all of the detection hardware is positioned outside a vacuum chamber that encloses the vacuum robotic handler. Various deployments include laser beam breaking, analysis of radar reflection signals, or analysis of radio frequency identification tag signatures. By providing non-physical couplings between hardware inside and outside of a vacuum environment, integrity of the vacuum is improved. These non-contact techniques are further adapted as described herein to multi-wafer and multi-end effector environments so that independent detection of multiple wafers (e.g., for each end effector) can be performed. | 04-16-2009 |
20090272743 | SUBSTRATE CONTAINER SEALING VIA MOVABLE MAGNETS - A system of moving magnets for sealing a container may include a plurality of moveable magnets disposed near a perimeter of a container door and a rotatable linkage hub positioned within the perimeter of the container door. In addition, the system may include a plurality of control linkages connecting each of the plurality of moveable magnets to the linkage hub so that rotating the linkage hub causes the control linkages to move the moveable magnets between a sealed position and an open position. Alternatively, the moveable magnets may be connected to each other by a magnet positioning mechanism to physically move the magnets along a path near the perimeter. A plurality of static magnets may be disposed near an opening sized to receive the container door and positioned to form a magnetic seal with the moveable magnets when the moveable magnets are positioned at the sealed position. | 11-05-2009 |
20100172721 | SUBSTRATE LOADING AND UNLOADING STATION WITH BUFFER - A substrate processing apparatus having a station for loading and unloading substrates from the apparatus, includes an aperture closure for sealing a loading and unloading aperture of the station, a fluidic magazine door drive for removing a door of a substrate magazine and thus opening the substrate magazine and for operating the aperture closure to open the aperture, and sensor for mapping vertical locations of substrates mounted to the magazine door of the drive. The fluidic magazine door drive may include an encoder different from the sensor, the encoder being configured for determining the vertical location of the sensor. | 07-08-2010 |
20100324732 | WAFER CENTER FINDING WITH A KALMAN FILTER - A device is provided having a robotic arm for handling a wafer, the robotic arm including one or more encoders that provide encoder data identifying a position of one or more components of the robotic arm. The device also having a processor adapted to apply an extended Kalman Filter to the encoder data to estimate a position of the wafer. | 12-23-2010 |
20110093237 | WAFER CENTER FINDING WITH CHARGE-COUPLED DEVICES - A device for handling a substantially circular wafer is provided. The device includes an interior accessible through a plurality of entrances, and a plurality of sensors consisting of two sensors for each one of the plurality of entrances, each sensor capable of detecting a presence of the substantially circular wafer, at a predetermined location within the interior, wherein the plurality of sensors are arranged so that at least two of the plurality of sensors detect the wafer for any position of the wafer entirely within the interior, wherein a first one of the two sensors is positioned to detect the wafer when the wafer has passed entirely into the interior through one of the plurality of entrances, and a second one of the two sensors is positioned immediately outside a diameter of the wafer when the wafer has passed entirely into the interior through one of the plurality of entrances. | 04-21-2011 |
20120014769 | STACKED PROCESS MODULES FOR A SEMICONDUCTOR HANDLING SYSTEM - Methods and systems are provided for a vacuum-based semiconductor handling system. The system may be a linear system with a four-link robotic SCARA arm for moving materials in the system. The system may include one or more vertically stacked load locks or vertically stacked process modules. | 01-19-2012 |
20120020759 | SEMICONDUCTOR MANUFACTURING SYSTEMS - Linear semiconductor handling systems provide more balanced processing capacity using various techniques to provide increased processing capacity to relatively slow processes. This may include use of hexagonal vacuum chambers to provide additional facets for slow process modules, use of circulating process modules to provide more processing capacity at a single facet of a vacuum chamber, or the use of wide process modules having multiple processing sites. This approach may be used, for example, to balance processing capacity in a typical process that includes plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition steps and bevel etch steps. | 01-26-2012 |
20120148374 | LINEAR SEMICONDUCTOR PROCESSING FACILITIES - Methods and systems are provided for handling materials, including materials used in semiconductor manufacturing systems. The methods and systems include linear semiconductor processing facilities for vacuum-based semiconductor processing and handling, as well as linkable or extensible semiconductor processing facilities that can be flexibly configured to meet a variety of constraints. | 06-14-2012 |
20120154822 | WAFER CENTER FINDING WITH CHARGE-COUPLED DEVICES - A device for handling a substantially circular wafer is provided. The device includes an interior accessible through a plurality of entrances, and a plurality of sensors consisting of two sensors for each one of the plurality of entrances, each sensor capable of detecting a presence of the substantially circular wafer, at a predetermined location within the interior, wherein the plurality of sensors are arranged so that at least two of the plurality of sensors detect the wafer for any position of the wafer entirely within the interior, wherein a first one of the two sensors is positioned to detect the wafer when the wafer has passed entirely into the interior through one of the plurality of entrances, and a second one of the two sensors is positioned immediately outside a diameter of the wafer when the wafer has passed entirely into the interior through one of the plurality of entrances. | 06-21-2012 |
20130085595 | WAFER CENTER FINDING WITH KALMAN FILTER - A device is provided having a robotic arm for handling a wafer, the robotic arm including one or more encoders that provide encoder data identifying a position of one or more components of the robotic arm. The device also having a processor adapted to apply an extended Kalman Filter to the encoder data to estimate a position of the wafer. | 04-04-2013 |
20130121792 | SEMICONDUCTOR MANUFACTURING PROCESS MODULE - A semiconductor handling system including a vacuum workpiece handling system having a vacuum environment therein, the vacuum workpiece handling system including at least two workpiece handling robotic facilities, a mid-entry station positioned between the at least two workpiece handling robotic facilities, the mid-entry station including vertically stacked load locks, where the at least two workpiece handling robotic facilities are configured to transfer workpieces between the vertically stacked load locks, at least one workpiece loading station connected to the vacuum handling system, and a workpiece delivery system having an internal environment different from the vacuum environment, the workpiece delivery system being configured to transport the workpieces between each of the vertically stacked load locks of the mid-entry station and the at least one workpiece loading station. | 05-16-2013 |
20130343841 | SEMICONDUCTOR MANUFACTURING SYSTEMS - Linear semiconductor handling systems provide more balanced processing capacity using various techniques to provide increased processing capacity to relatively slow processes. This may include use of hexagonal vacuum chambers to provide additional facets for slow process modules, use of circulating process modules to provide more processing capacity at a single facet of a vacuum chamber, or the use of wide process modules having multiple processing sites. This approach may be used, for example, to balance processing capacity in a typical process that includes plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition steps and bevel etch steps. | 12-26-2013 |
20140199138 | SEMICONDUCTOR WAFER HANDLING TRANSPORT - Modular wafer transport and handling facilities are combined in a variety of ways deliver greater levels of flexibility, utility, efficiency, and functionality in a vacuum semiconductor processing system. Various processing and other modules may be interconnected with tunnel-and-cart transportation systems to extend the distance and versatility of the vacuum environment. Other improvements such as bypass thermal adjusters, buffering aligners, batch processing, multifunction modules, low particle vents, cluster processing cells, and the like are incorporated to expand functionality and improve processing efficiency. | 07-17-2014 |
20140207284 | WAFER CENTER FINDING WITH KALMAN FILTER - A device is provided having a robotic arm for handling a wafer, the robotic arm including one or more encoders that provide encoder data identifying a position of one or more components of the robotic arm. The device also having a processor adapted to apply an extended Kalman Filter to the encoder data to estimate a position of the wafer. | 07-24-2014 |