Patents by Inventor Stephen Hickerson

Stephen Hickerson has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 10818525
    Abstract: Methods and apparatus for processing a substrate are provided herein. In one implementation, the apparatus includes a load lock chamber coupled to a transfer chamber. The transfer chamber is coupled to a thermal process chamber and a substrate is transferred between each of the load lock chamber, the transfer chamber, and the thermal process chamber. In other implementations, a process platform having a load lock chamber, a transfer chamber, and a thermal process chamber is disclosed. Methods of measuring oxygen concentration in a load lock chamber via evacuation of a transfer chamber are also described herein.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 4, 2019
    Date of Patent: October 27, 2020
    Assignee: Applied Materials, Inc.
    Inventors: Shay Assaf, Andrew Constant, Jacob Newman, Charles Carlson, William Tyler Weaver, Stephen Hickerson
  • Publication number: 20190295872
    Abstract: Methods and apparatus for processing a substrate are provided herein. In one implementation, the apparatus includes a load lock chamber coupled to a transfer chamber. The transfer chamber is coupled to a thermal process chamber and a substrate is transferred between each of the load lock chamber, the transfer chamber, and the thermal process chamber. In other implementations, a process platform having a load lock chamber, a transfer chamber, and a thermal process chamber is disclosed. Methods of measuring oxygen concentration in a load lock chamber via evacuation of a transfer chamber are also described herein.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 4, 2019
    Publication date: September 26, 2019
    Inventors: Shay ASSAF, Andrew CONSTANT, Jacob NEWMAN, Charles CARLSON, William Tyler WEAVER, Stephen HICKERSON
  • Patent number: 10361104
    Abstract: Methods and apparatus for processing a substrate are provided herein. In one implementation, the apparatus includes a load lock chamber coupled to a transfer chamber. The transfer chamber is coupled to a thermal process chamber and a substrate is transferred between each of the load lock chamber, the transfer chamber, and the thermal process chamber. In other implementations, a process platform having a load lock chamber, a transfer chamber, and a thermal process chamber is disclosed. Methods of measuring oxygen concentration in a load lock chamber via evacuation of a transfer chamber are also described herein.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 26, 2017
    Date of Patent: July 23, 2019
    Assignee: APPLIED MATERIALS, INC.
    Inventors: Shay Assaf, Andrew Constant, Jacob Newman, Charles Carlson, William Tyler Weaver, Stephen Hickerson
  • Publication number: 20180254207
    Abstract: Methods and apparatus for processing a substrate are provided herein. In one implementation, the apparatus includes a load lock chamber coupled to a transfer chamber. The transfer chamber is coupled to a thermal process chamber and a substrate is transferred between each of the load lock chamber, the transfer chamber, and the thermal process chamber. In other implementations, a process platform having a load lock chamber, a transfer chamber, and a thermal process chamber is disclosed. Methods of measuring oxygen concentration in a load lock chamber via evacuation of a transfer chamber are also described herein.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 26, 2017
    Publication date: September 6, 2018
    Inventors: Shay ASSAF, Andrew CONSTANT, Jacob NEWMAN, Charles CARLSON, William Tyler WEAVER, Stephen HICKERSON
  • Publication number: 20080216077
    Abstract: Embodiments of the invention generally provide apparatus and method for scheduling a process sequence to achieve maximum throughput and process consistency in a cluster tool having a set of constraints. One embodiment of the present invention provides a method for scheduling a process sequence comprising determining an initial individual schedule by assigning resources to perform the process sequence, calculating a fundamental period, detecting resource conflicts in a schedule generated from the individual schedule and the fundamental period, and adjusting the individual schedule to remove the resource conflicts.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 2, 2007
    Publication date: September 4, 2008
    Inventors: Shyam Emani, Chongyang Wang, Stephen Hickerson, Johanes Swenberg, Jacob Newman