Abstract: Disclosed are systems and methods for providing a rules engine as a platform within a portable electronic device. In one embodiment, a rules engine platform is provided within a portable electronic device by receiving a plurality of rules for one or more modules of the portable electronic device. Additionally, the rules engine platform can receive one or more samples from one or more of the modules within the portable electronic device. The rules engine platform identifies and evaluates one or more relevant rules based on the received sample. The rules engine platform can then determine an action to provide to other modules of the portable electronic device. The rules engine platform may be configured to optimize the performance and power consumption of the portable electronic device.

Abstract: Disclosed are systems and methods to optimize a rules engine as a platform within a computing system. The computing system may identify a context of interest, such as environment or circumstance of the computing system or a user of the computing system. Based on the identified context of interest, the rules engine platform may selectively identify rules or sets of rules that are relevant to the context of interest. Accordingly, rules or sets of rules that are irrelevant to the context of interest may be omitted from evaluation. Therefore, resources of the computing system may not consumed in some embodiments by resolving conflicts between rules and evaluating rules that result in actions that are not suitable for the context of interest.

Abstract: Liquid detection sensors are attached to both sides of a robotic arm end effector of a semiconductor wafer process system. The sensor mechanism or probe is situated on the front side and backside of the end effector, designed with electrical lines that are traced onto a polyester base material. The electrical lines are positioned in a serpentine formation. The high conductance of the sulfuric acid in the copper sulfate solution acts as the conductor between the traced lines. When the conductive liquid comes in contact with the traced lines, the lines short and the sensor activates or turns on.

Abstract: Several techniques are described for reducing or mitigating the formation of seams and/or voids in electroplating the interior regions of microscopic recessed features. Cathodic polarization is used to mitigate the deleterious effects of introducing a substrate plated with a seed layer into an electroplating solution. Also described are diffusion-controlled electroplating techniques to provide for bottom-up filling of trenches and vias, avoiding thereby sidewalls growing together to create seams/voids. A preliminary plating step is also described that plates a thin film of conductor on the interior surfaces of features leading to adequate electrical conductivity to the feature bottom, facilitating bottom-up filling.

Abstract: Methods and apparatus are provided for processing semiconductor wafers sequentially. Sequential processes employ multi-station processing modules, where particular encompassing wafer processes are divided into sub-processes, each optimized for increasing wafer to wafer uniformity, result quality, and overall wafer throughput. In one example, a copper electroplating module includes separate stations for wetting, initiation, seed layer repair, fill, overburden, reclaim, and rinse.

Abstract: A method for controlling the composition of a chemical bath in which predictive dosing is used to account for changes in the composition of the bath in which the operating characteristics of the process are partitioned into a plurality of operating modes and the consumption or generation of materials related to the process are determined empirically and additions of material are made as appropriate.

Abstract: An electrochemical reactor is used to electrofill damascene architecture for integrated circuits. A shield is used to screen the applied field during electroplating operations to compensate for potential drop along the radius of a wafer. The shield establishes an inverse potential drop in the electrolytic fluid to overcome the resistance of a thin film seed layer of copper on the wafer.

Abstract: Chemical etching methods and associated modules for performing the removal of metal from the edge bevel region of a semiconductor wafer are described. The methods and systems apply liquid etchant in a precise manner at the edge bevel region of the wafer under viscous flow conditions, so that the etchant is applied on to the front edge area and flows over the side edge and onto the back edge in a viscous manner. The etchant thus does not flow or splatter onto the active circuit region of the wafer.

Abstract: An apparatus for depositing an electrically conductive layer on the surface of a wafer comprises a flange. The flange has a cylindrical wall and an annulus attached to a first end of the cylindrical wall. The annulus shields the edge region of the wafer surface during electroplating reducing the thickness of the deposited electrically conductive layer on the edge region. Further, the cylindrical wall of the flange can be provided with a plurality of apertures adjacent the wafer allowing gas bubbles entrapped on the wafer surface to readily escape.

Abstract: An apparatus for depositing an electrically conductive layer on the surface of a wafer comprises a flange. The flange has a cylindrical wall and an annulus attached to a first end of the cylindrical wall. The annulus shields the edge region of the wafer surface during electroplating reducing the thickness of the deposited electrically conductive layer on the edge region. Further, the cylindrical wall of the flange can be provided with a plurality of apertures adjacent the wafer allowing gas bubbles entrapped on the wafer surface to readily escape.

Abstract: An isolation region is fabricated in a silicon substrate by first forming a silicon dioxide insulating layer on the substrate. A silicon nitride mask layer and an oxide layer are then deposited on the insulating layer. The oxide, mask and insulating layers and the substrate are etched to form a trench in the substrate. A channel stopper is implanted in substrate below the trench and the oxide layer is then stripped. Thereafter, the trench surface is oxidized to extend the insulating layer into the trench. Next, the trench is partially filled with polysilicon material, the surface of which is initially oxidized to extend the insulating layer over the trench. The mask layer is etched back to expose portions of the insulating layer adjacent the trench. The upper surface of the polysilicon material in the trench and portions of the substrate beneath exposed portions of the insulating layer are further oxidized to thicken the insulating layer over the trench.