Abstract: An apparatus for heat treatment of a wafer is disclosed. The apparatus includes a heating chamber having a heat source. A cooling chamber is positioned adjacent to the heating chamber and includes a cooling source. A wafer holder is. configured to move between the cooling chamber and the heating chamber through a passageway and one or more shutters defines the size of the passageway. The one or more shutters are movable between an open position where the wafer holder can pass through the passageway and an obstructing position which defines a passageway which is smaller than the passageway defined when the shutter is in the open position.

Abstract: An inertial temperature control system and method are provided for changing the temperature of a body between two temperatures such that the ending temperature is reached smoothly without substantial temperature overshoot or oscillation. A temperature control algorithm is fed a set point temperature that accelerates and decelerates at a physically attainable rate.

Abstract: In the Chemical Mechanical Polishing (CMP) process employed for microelectronics manufacturing, three contact regimes between the wafer surface and the polishing pad may be proposed: direct contact, mixed or partial contact, and hydroplaning. However, an effective in situ method for characterizing the wafer/pad contact and a systematic way of relating contact conditions to the process parameters are still lacking. In this work, the interfacial friction force, measured by a load sensor on the wafer carrier, has been employed to characterize the contact conditions. Models that relate the friction coefficient to the applied pressure, relative velocity, and slurry viscosity are developed and verified by experiments. Additionally, a correlation between friction coefficient and the material removal rate (MR) is established and the effects of process parameters on the Preston constant are investigated.

Abstract: The present invention provides a method and system for simultaneously imaging at least two reticles onto a substrate. According to the present invention, the wafer is passed through the exposure sequence once with images from the reticles being exposed simultaneously onto the wafer. The throughput of the system is effectively maintained at the standard single pass throughput level or twice that of conventional systems. In one embodiment, the present invention produces two reticle images side-by-side in the exit pupil of the optics of a step and scan wafer exposure system. The scanning action of the exposure tool then effectively superimposes the two images during the exposure of the wafer. Each image exposes the photoresist as the wafer is scanned through the image field synchronously with the scanning of the reticles. According to one embodiment, the image scanning is synchronized so that two required images are superimposed.

Abstract: Active compensation of aberrations in an optical system involves attaching first and second force bars to a mirror. The first force bar is bifurcated to form an opening near its longitudinal midpoint. This opening defines first and second opposed surfaces. A second force bar is substantially perpendicular to the first force bar and extends through the opening of the first force bar so that a medial portion of the second force bar is disposed in the opening of the first force bar. The second force bar is connected to the first surface by at least one actuator. Longitudinal movement of the actuator causes a displacement of the mirror. A support structure is used to support the weight of the force bars and actuator. The force bars are connected to the support structure by a plurality of flexures. A control module receives information from a sensing module and controls the actuator. Other embodiments use more than two force bars and are capable of more fully compensating for any aberrations in the optical system.

Abstract: A system for adjusting a deformable mirror including a reaction plate, a plurality of pneumatic actuators coupled to the reaction plate, and a plurality of push-pull flexures coupled on a first end to the pneumatic actuators, and coupled on a second end to the non-reflective side the deformable mirror, the plurality of push-pull flexures being disposed at various locations on the back of the deformable mirror. The respective pairs of push-pull flexures and pneumatic actuators are operated to support and alter the shape of the deformable mirror to allow for correction of a plurality of optical aberrations.