Process development visualization tool

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2020202044-A1
Application number	US-201916716274-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Dec 16, 2019
Priority date	Dec 19, 2018
Publication date	Jun 25, 2020
Grant date	—

Abstract

A process development visualization tool generates a first visualization of a parameter associated with a manufacturing process, and provides a GUI control element associated with a process variable of the manufacturing process, wherein the GUI control element has a first setting associated with a first value for the process variable. The process development tool receives a user input to adjust the GUI control element from the first setting to a second setting, determines a second value for the process variable based on the second setting, and determines a second set of values for the parameter that are associated with the second value for the process variable. The process development tool then generates a second visualization of the parameter, wherein the second visualization represents the second set of values for the parameter that are associated with the second value for the process variable.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A method, comprising:
generating a first visualization of a first parameter associated with a manufacturing process performed on a wafer, wherein values for the first parameter are dependent on a plurality of process variables of the manufacturing process, and wherein the first visualization represents a first set of values for the first parameter that are associated with a first value for a first process variable of the manufacturing process; providing a first graphical user interface control element associated with the first process variable of the manufacturing process, wherein the first graphical user interface control element has a first setting associated with the first value for the first process variable; receiving a user input to adjust the first graphical user interface control element from the first setting to a second setting; determining a second value for the first process variable based on the second setting of the first graphical user interface control element; determining a second set of values for the first parameter that are associated with the second value for the first process variable of the manufacturing process; and generating a second visualization of the first parameter associated with the manufacturing process, wherein the second visualization represents the second set of values for the first parameter that are associated with the second value for the first process variable.

2 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
generating a first visualization of a second parameter associated with the manufacturing process performed on a wafer, wherein values for the second parameter are dependent on the plurality of process variables of the manufacturing process, and wherein the first visualization of the second parameter represents a first set of values for the second parameter that are associated with the first value for the first process variable of the manufacturing process; determining a second set of values for the second parameter that are associated with the second value for the first process variable of the manufacturing process; and generating a second visualization of the second parameter associated with the manufacturing process, wherein the second visualization represents the second set of values for the second parameter that are associated with the second value for the first process variable.

3 . The method of claim 2 , further comprising:
receiving an export command via user interaction with a second graphical user interface control element; generating a first file comprising a) the second set of values for the first parameter and b) process variable values of the plurality of process variables associated with the second set of parameter values, the process variable values comprising the second value for the first process variable; and generating a second file comprising a) the second set of values for the second parameter and b) the process variable values of the plurality of process variables associated with the second set of parameter values.

4 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the first graphical user interface control element comprises a slider, and wherein each position of the slider is associated with a different value of the first process variable.

5 . The method of claim 1 , wherein determining the second set of values for the first parameter that are associated with the second value for the first process variable of the manufacturing process comprises:
generating a query comprising the second value for the first process variable; sending the query to a remote computing device; and receiving a response to the query, the response comprising the second set of values for the first parameter.

6 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the first set of values for the first parameter that are represented in the first visualization are further associated with a first value for a second process variable of the manufacturing process, the method further comprising:
providing a second graphical user interface control element associated with the second process variable of the manufacturing process, wherein the second graphical user interface control element has a first setting associated with the first value for the first process variable; receiving a user input to adjust the second graphical user interface control element from the first setting of the second graphical user interface control element to a second setting of the second graphical user interface control element; determining a second value for the second process variable based on the second setting of the second graphical user interface control element; determining a third set of values for the first parameter that are associated with the second value for the first process variable of the manufacturing process and the second value for the second process variable of the manufacturing process; and generating a third visualization of the first parameter associated with the manufacturing process, wherein the third visualization represents the third set of values for the first parameter that are associated with the second value for the first process variable and the second value for the second process variable.

7 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the first parameter comprises a metrology measurement selected from the group consisting of coating thickness, refractive index, sheet resistance, resistivity, conductivity, grain size, roughness, stress across the wafer, coating composition, reflectance, absorbance, angle of observation, angle of incidence, angle of reflection, angle of diffraction, density, etch rate, and step coverage.

8 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the first process variable is selected from a group consisting of temperature, chamber pressure, gas flow rate for one or more gasses, one or more device dimensions, process timing, and location within a chamber.

9 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the first visualization comprises a first wafer map of the wafer, and the second visualization comprises a second wafer map of the wafer.

10 . The method of claim 1 , wherein determining the second set of values for the first parameter that are associated with the second value for the first process variable of the manufacturing process comprises:
determining that no real data was generated for the first value for the first process variable of the manufacturing process; and interpolating the second set of values based on additional values for the first parameter that are associated with additional values for the first process variable, wherein the second visualization comprises an indicator that the second visualization was not generated using real data.

11 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the first parameter comprises at least one of a sensor reading of a physical sensor or a sensor reading of a virtual sensor.

12 . A system comprising:
a data store to store process development data for a manufacturing process performed on a wafer; and a computing device comprising:
a memory comprising instructions for a process development visualization tool; and
a processing device operatively connected to the memory, wherein execution of the instructions for the process development visualization tool causes the processing device to:
generate a first visualization of a first parameter associated with the manufacturing process, wherein values for the first parameter are dependent on a plurality of process variables of the manufacturing process, and wherein the first visualization represents a first set of values for the first parameter that are associated with a first value for a first process variable of the manufacturing process;

Assignees

• Applied Materials Inc

Inventors

• Vats Vinayak Veer
• Bhatia Sidharth
• Sin Garrett Ho-Yee
• Nambiar Pramod
• Yu Hang
• Kamath Sanjay
• Padhi Deenesh
• Pai Heng-Cheng

Classifications

• G06F16/248

  Presentation of query results · CPC title

• G05B19/41885 Primary

  characterised by modeling, simulation of the manufacturing system · CPC title

• G05B2219/45031

  Manufacturing semiconductor wafers · CPC title

• G05B2219/13144

  GUI graphical user interface, icon, function bloc editor, OI operator interface · CPC title

• G05B2219/2602

  Wafer processing · CPC title