Thermal Processing with Maximized Simplicity and Energy Efficiency

Process capability, quality (including uniformity and short-and long-term repeatability), and throughput had been the main focus for the semiconductor tool manufacturers in the past. While these are still in most cases non-negotiable requirements, the chip manufacturers are increasingly paying attention to other tool features as well. Examples include wafer manufacturing process cycle time, tool and process simplicity, and energy efficiency. In addition to these, a number of other features are included in the general concept of overall tool productivity. We discuss a very simple isothermal cavity approach for RTP from the overall process capability and tool productivity point of view. First, we show that the process capability when using this simple design concept is equivalent or better than the more complicated conventional RTP approaches. Second, we outline the key features of the isothermal cavity approach that result in a high overall tool process capability and productivity.