Information processing apparatus and parameter control method

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2024087925-A1
Application number	US-202318243059-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Sep 6, 2023
Priority date	Sep 12, 2022
Publication date	Mar 14, 2024
Grant date	—

Abstract

An information processing apparatus includes a data acquisition unit, a simulation execution unit, and an optimization unit. The data acquisition unit acquires execution result data including an execution result of the substrate processing based on a process parameter including a pressure in the substrate processing apparatus and including sensor data of the pressure in the substrate processing apparatus. The simulation execution unit inputs the execution result data into a simulation model pre-stored in a storage to calculate a pressure in the substrate processing apparatus that is predicted to approach a target value for a substrate processing result. The optimization unit calculates a predicted value of the substrate processing result based on the process parameter including the calculated pressure.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . An information processing apparatus comprising:
a data acquisition circuitry configured to acquire execution result data including an execution result of a substrate processing based on a process parameter including a pressure in a substrate processing apparatus, and including sensor data of the pressure in the substrate processing apparatus; a simulation execution circuitry configured to input the execution result data into a simulation model stored in a storage, and calculate a pressure in the substrate processing apparatus that is predicted to approach a target value for a substrate processing result; and an optimization circuitry configured to calculate a predicted value of the substrate processing result based on the process parameter including the calculated pressure.

2 . The information processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the simulation execution circuitry calculates an opening degree of a pressure control valve arranged in an exhaust pipe connected to the substrate processing apparatus as the pressure in the substrate processing apparatus.

3 . The information processing apparatus according to claim 2 , wherein the data acquisition circuitry acquires the execution result data including the execution result of the substrate processing, the opening degree of the pressure control valve, and sensor data of a temperature in the substrate processing apparatus,
the simulation execution circuitry inputs the execution result of the substrate processing and the opening degree of the pressure control valve into a first model of the simulation model, and calculates the opening degree of the pressure control valve that is predicted to approach the target value for the substrate processing result, the simulation execution circuitry inputs the execution result of the substrate processing and the sensor data of the temperature into a second model of the simulation model, and calculates a temperature of a heater of the substrate processing apparatus that is predicted to approach the target value for the substrate processing result, the optimization circuitry optimizes the process parameter based on the calculated opening degree of the pressure control valve and the calculated temperature of the heater, the first model represents a correlation between the opening degree of the pressure control valve and the execution result of the substrate processing, and the second model represents a correlation between the temperature of the heater and the execution result of the substrate processing.

4 . The information processing apparatus according to claim 3 , wherein the data acquisition circuitry further acquires the execution result data including a film formation time,
the simulation execution circuitry inputs the execution result of the substrate processing, the sensor data of the temperature, and the film formation time into the second model of the simulation model, and calculates the temperature of the heater of the substrate processing apparatus and the film formation time that are predicted to approach the target value for the substrate processing result, and the optimization circuitry optimizes the process parameter based on the calculated opening degree of the pressure control valve, the calculated temperature of the heater, and the calculated film formation time.

5 . The information processing apparatus according to claim 4 , wherein the substrate processing is film formation processing using an ALD method in which one cycle of a process including supplying a raw material gas and supplying a reactant gas is repeated for a film formation count set in advance, and
the optimization circuitry optimizes the film formation count to be used as the film formation time.

6 . The information processing apparatus according to claim 5 , further comprising:
a display control circuitry configured to display the predicted value of the substrate processing result on a display.

7 . The information processing apparatus according to claim 6 , wherein the optimization circuitry updates the process parameter to be used in the substrate processing apparatus with an optimized process parameter in accordance with an instruction from a user for the predicted value of the substrate processing result displayed on the display.

8 . The information processing apparatus according to claim 6 , wherein the optimization circuitry automatically determines whether or not to update the process parameter to be used in the substrate processing apparatus with the optimized process parameter based on the predicted value of the substrate processing result being displayed.

9 . The information processing apparatus according to claim 2 , wherein the substrate processing apparatus processes a plurality of substrates simultaneously by inserting a substrate holding portion configured to hold the substrates into the substrate processing apparatus,
the data acquisition circuitry acquires execution result data including an execution result of processing for the plurality of substrates based on the process parameter, the opening degree of the pressure control valve, and the temperature of the substrate processing apparatus, and the execution result of the substrate processing includes a value indicating in-plane uniformity of film thickness on the substrate formed by the substrate processing and inter-plane uniformity of film thickness between the plurality of substrates.

10 . A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having stored therein a parameter control program that causes a computer to execute a process comprising:
acquiring execution result data including an execution result of a substrate processing based on a process parameter including a pressure in a substrate processing apparatus, and including sensor data of the pressure in the substrate processing apparatus; inputting the execution result data into a simulation model stored in a storage to calculate a pressure in the substrate processing apparatus that is predicted to approach a target value for a substrate processing result; and calculating a predicted value of the substrate processing result based on the process parameter including the calculated pressure.

Assignees

• Tokyo Electron Ltd

Inventors

• Kang Youngtai
• Takenaga Yuichi
• Ito Kiwamu
• Ikeda Rui
• Okoshi Ken

Classifications

• H10P72/0602 Primary

  Temperature monitoring · CPC title

• H10P72/0604 Primary

  Process monitoring, e.g. flow or thickness monitoring · CPC title

• H10P72/0402

  Apparatus for fluid treatment (H10P72/0441, H10P72/0448 take precedence) · CPC title

• H10P14/6339

  deposition by cyclic CVD, e.g. ALD, ALE or pulsed CVD · CPC title

• H01L21/67253 Primary

  Electricity · mapped topic