Abstract: An information processing apparatus includes a prediction unit configured to calculate, based on a film thickness model representing a relationship between a state of a substrate processing apparatus and a film thickness of a coating film formed on a front surface of a substrate by the substrate processing apparatus and pre-data representing the state of the substrate processing apparatus before the substrate is processed by the substrate processing apparatus, a predicted film thickness when the substrate is processed by the substrate processing apparatus; and an output unit configured to output, based on the predicted film thickness, instruction information on a processing of the substrate before the substrate is processed by the substrate processing apparatus.

Abstract: A display method includes acquiring, based on an image obtained by imaging a peripheral region of a front surface of a substrate having a film formed on the front surface thereof, edge information indicating a relationship between a circumferential position and an edge position of the film in a radial direction of the substrate for each of multiple circumferential positions around a center of the substrate; displaying, on a monitor, a graph indicating the edge position for each of the multiple circumferential positions based on the edge information; and determining, before displaying the graph on the monitor, a display range for the edge position on the graph based on statistical information of the edge position included in the edge information.

Abstract: A film thickness analysis method includes: acquiring film thickness values at a plurality of measurement points different from each other along a radial direction for a target film formed on an analysis target substrate by supplying a processing liquid while rotating the target substrate based on predetermined liquid processing conditions; and creating an approximate expression related to a film thickness distribution of the target film by approximating the film thickness values at the plurality of measurement points with respect to one Zernike polynomial. The approximate expression is created by specifying a coefficient related to the film thickness of the entire target substrate and one or more coefficients related to concentric curvature components, among a plurality of coefficients included in the Zernike polynomial.

Abstract: An information processing apparatus includes a prediction unit configured to calculate, based on a film thickness model representing a relationship between a state of a substrate processing apparatus and a film thickness of a coating film formed on a front surface of a substrate by the substrate processing apparatus and pre-data representing the state of the substrate processing apparatus before the substrate is processed by the substrate processing apparatus, a predicted film thickness when the substrate is processed by the substrate processing apparatus; and an output unit configured to output, based on the predicted film thickness, instruction information on a processing of the substrate before the substrate is processed by the substrate processing apparatus.

Abstract: A substrate processing apparatus includes a periphery removal unit configured to remove a peripheral portion of a film formed on a surface of a substrate; a profile acquisition unit configured to acquire a removal width profile indicating a relationship between a position in a circumferential direction of the substrate and a width of a portion of the substrate from which the film is removed; and a factor estimation unit configured to output factor information indicating a factor of an error in the width based on the removal width profile.

Abstract: Various embodiments of systems and methods for monitoring thermal characteristics of substrates, substrate processes and/or substrate processing module components are disclosed herein. More specifically, the present disclosure provides various embodiments of a thermal imaging sensor within various substrate processing modules (e.g., a liquid dispense module, a baking module or combined bake module, an interface block, a wafer inspection system (WIS) module, a plating dispense module or another processing module) of a substrate processing system. By positioning the thermal imaging sensor at various locations within the substrate processing system, the present disclosure enables thermal data to be remotely collected from the substrate surface, a liquid dispensed onto the substrate surface, a processing space surrounding the substrate, or a component included within a substrate processing module (e.g.

Abstract: A substrate processing apparatus includes a periphery removal unit configured to remove a peripheral portion of a film formed on a surface of a substrate; a profile acquisition unit configured to acquire a removal width profile indicating a relationship between a position in a circumferential direction of the substrate and a width of a portion of the substrate from which the film is removed; and a factor estimation unit configured to output factor information indicating a factor of an error in the width based on the removal width profile.

Abstract: A substrate processing apparatus which processes includes a thermal processor that performs thermal processing on the substrate; an imager that images the substrate; and a controller that executes adjustment processing of adjusting conditions of processing on the substrate.

Abstract: Various embodiments of systems and methods for calibrating wafer inspection system modules are disclosed herein. More specifically, the present disclosure provides various embodiments of systems and methods to calibrate the multiple spectral band values obtained from a substrate by a camera system included within a WIS module. In one embodiment, multiple spectral band values are red, green, and blue (RGB) values. As described in more detail below, the calibration methods disclosed herein may use a test wafer having a predetermined pattern of thickness changes or color changes to generate multiple spectral band offset values. The multiple spectral band offset values can be applied to the multiple spectral band values obtained from the substrate to generate calibrated RGB values, which compensate for spectral responsivity differences between camera systems included within a plurality of WIS modules.

Abstract: Camera images may be utilized to detect substrate edges and provide information regarding the centering of the substrate within the fluid dispense system. Camera images may also be utilized to monitoring the location of a cup within the fluid dispense system. The signal processing techniques utilized may include data smoothing, analyzing only certain wavelengths of reflected energy, transforming the data (in one embodiment utilizing a Fourier transform), and/or analyzing a sub-set of the collected pixels of data. The camera image data collected herein may be combined with a wide variety of other data so as to better monitor, characterize and/or control a substrate processing process flow.

Abstract: A substrate inspection system is provided to monitor characteristics of a substrate, while the substrate is disposed within (or being transferred into/out of) a processing unit of a liquid dispense substrate processing system. The inspection system is integrated within a liquid dispense substrate processing system and includes one or more optical sensors of a reflectometer (such as a spectrometer or laser-based transceiver) configured to obtain spectral data from a substrate. A controller is coupled to receive the spectral data from the optical sensors(s). The one or more optical sensors (or one or more optical fibers coupled to the rest of the optical sensor hardware) are coupled at locations within the substrate processing system. The controller analyzes the spectral data received from the optical sensors(s) to detect characteristic(s) of the substrate including, but not limited to, film thickness (FT), refractive index changes, and associated critical dimension (CD) changes.

Abstract: A method of processing a plurality of substrates includes loading a substrate onto a coating track, moving the substrate into a module of the coating track, performing a process to modify a film formed over the substrate, and obtaining, at a controller, optical sensor data from an optical sensor. The optical sensor data includes a measurement of a property of the film. The method includes determining a drying metric based on the property of the film, and adjusting a process parameter of the process based on the determined drying metric.

Abstract: A substrate processing apparatus which processes a substrate, includes: a thermal processor configured to perform thermal processing on the substrate; an imager configured to image the substrate; and a controller, wherein: the controller is configured to execute adjustment processing of adjusting conditions of processing on the substrate; and the adjustment processing includes: a pre-exposure imaging step of controlling the imager to image an unexposed adjustment substrate on which a resist film is formed; a thermal processing step of controlling the thermal processor to perform the thermal processing on the adjustment substrate subjected to uniform exposure processing of exposing each region of a substrate surface with a fixed exposure amount after the pre-exposure imaging step; a post-heating imaging step of controlling the imager to image the adjustment substrate after the thermal processing step; a temperature distribution estimation step of estimating an in-plane temperature distribution of the adjustmen

Abstract: A substrate processing apparatus includes a periphery removal unit configured to remove a peripheral portion of a film formed on a surface of a substrate; a profile acquisition unit configured to acquire a removal width profile indicating a relationship between a position in a circumferential direction of the substrate and a width of a portion of the substrate from which the film is removed; and a factor estimation unit configured to output factor information indicating a factor of an error in the width based on the removal width profile.

Abstract: Various embodiments of systems and methods for monitoring thermal characteristics of substrates, substrate processes and/or substrate processing module components are disclosed herein. More specifically, the present disclosure provides various embodiments of a thermal imaging sensor within various substrate processing modules (e.g., a liquid dispense module, a baking module or combined bake module, an interface block, a wafer inspection system (WIS) module, a plating dispense module or another processing module) of a substrate processing system. By positioning the thermal imaging sensor at various locations within the substrate processing system, the present disclosure enables thermal data to be remotely collected from the substrate surface, a liquid dispensed onto the substrate surface, a processing space surrounding the substrate, or a component included within a substrate processing module (e.g.

Abstract: An information processing apparatus includes a prediction unit configured to calculate, based on a film thickness model representing a relationship between a state of a substrate processing apparatus and a film thickness of a coating film formed on a front surface of a substrate by the substrate processing apparatus and pre-data representing the state of the substrate processing apparatus before the substrate is processed by the substrate processing apparatus, a predicted film thickness when the substrate is processed by the substrate processing apparatus; and an output unit configured to output, based on the predicted film thickness, instruction information on a processing of the substrate before the substrate is processed by the substrate processing apparatus.

Abstract: There is provided a coated film removing apparatus for removing, with a removal liquid, a peripheral portion of a coated film formed by supplying a coating liquid to a surface of a circular substrate, including: a rotary holding part configured to hold the substrate and rotate together with the substrate; a removal liquid nozzle configured to discharge the removal liquid on a peripheral portion of the surface of the substrate held by the rotary holding part so that the removal liquid is oriented toward a downstream side in a rotational direction of the substrate; and a control part configured to output a control signal so as to rotate the substrate at a rotation speed of 2,300 rpm or more when discharging the removal liquid.

Abstract: Various embodiments of systems and methods for calibrating wafer inspection system modules are disclosed herein. More specifically, the present disclosure provides various embodiments of systems and methods to calibrate the multiple spectral band values obtained from a substrate by a camera system included within a WIS module. In one embodiment, multiple spectral band values are red, green, and blue (RGB) values. As described in more detail below, the calibration methods disclosed herein may use a test wafer having a predetermined pattern of thickness changes or color changes to generate multiple spectral band offset values. The multiple spectral band offset values can be applied to the multiple spectral band values obtained from the substrate to generate calibrated RGB values, which compensate for spectral responsivity differences between camera systems included within a plurality of WIS modules.

Abstract: Camera images may be utilized to detect substrate edges and provide information regarding the centering of the substrate within the fluid dispense system. Camera images may also be utilized to monitoring the location of a cup within the fluid dispense system. The signal processing techniques utilized may include data smoothing, analyzing only certain wavelengths of reflected energy, transforming the data (in one embodiment utilizing a Fourier transform), and/or analyzing a sub-set of the collected pixels of data. The camera image data collected herein may be combined with a wide variety of other data so as to better monitor, characterize and/or control a substrate processing process flow.

Abstract: In a liquid dispense system, camera images may be utilized to identify puddle edges of a liquid dispensed on a substrate. The camera image may be used to determine the percentage of puddle coverage and puddling non-idealities. The camera within a fluid dispense system may also be utilized to monitor the intensity of wavelengths reflected from a substrate during a spin coating step. The reflected intensity as a function of time as a substrate is spin coated may be used to monitor and characterize a spin coating process. The reflected intensity as a function of time may be compared to other substrates to identify substrate to substrate film thickness variations. The analysis may be based upon peaks and/or troughs of the reflected intensity as a function of time.