Semiconductor device manufacturing: process – With measuring or testing
Reexamination Certificate
1999-09-14
2001-11-20
Graybill, David E. (Department: 2814)
Semiconductor device manufacturing: process
With measuring or testing
C438S016000, C438S115000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06319733
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a semiconductor device having an integrated circuit or a discrete element, for example, a method of manufacturing the same, as well as a manufacturing system and semiconductor equipment to which the manufacturing method applied.
2. Description of the Background Art
FIG. 27
is a conceptual diagram showing a conventional manufacturing system MSa. The manufacturing system MSa manufactures at least one semiconductor device DVa from a semiconductor substrate W.
The manufacturing system MSa includes n semiconductor equipment PAa, a control unit CAa and a database DBa. Unique numbers from No. 1 to No. n are assigned to the semiconductor equipment PAa respectively.
Operations of the conventional manufacturing system MSa are now described. The control unit CAa controls each semiconductor equipment PAa, to make the semiconductor equipment PAa process the semiconductor substrate W in order shown in
FIG. 28
, for example. The database DBa previously stores this order.
If it turns out that large foreign matter adheres to the semiconductor substrate W processed by the third semiconductor equipment PAa in
FIG. 28
, the database DBa stores this information. If it thereafter turns out from the information stored in the database DBa that the third semiconductor equipment PAa has caused the large foreign matter, the third semiconductor equipment PAa is inspected, not to cause large foreign matter. Alternatively, operations of the third semiconductor equipment PAa are corrected as described in Japanese Patent Laying-Open Gazette No. 10-233374 (1998), for example.
In general, however, the semiconductor substrate W processed by the third semiconductor equipment PAa shown in
FIG. 28
is processed by the first, second, . . . semiconductor equipment PAa along the order stored in the database DBa in the state having the large foreign matter adhering thereto, to form the semiconductor device DVa. Thus, the yield of the semiconductor device DVa is disadvantageously reduced due to the large foreign matter.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
According to a first aspect of the present invention, a method of manufacturing at least one semiconductor device from a semiconductor substrate with a plurality of semiconductor equipment comprises steps of (a) comparing information sensed by the semiconductor equipment from on the semiconductor substrate with a selection reference thereby selecting the semiconductor equipment corresponding to the information from the plurality of semiconductor equipment, and (b) performing processing on the semiconductor substrate with the semiconductor equipment selected through the step (a).
According to the first aspect, the optimum semiconductor equipment can be selected in response to the information of the semiconductor substrate to process the semiconductor substrate, whereby the yield of the semiconductor device can be improved.
According to a second aspect of the present invention, the step (b) includes steps of (b-1) changing the information on the semiconductor substrate with the semiconductor equipment selected through the step (a), and (b-2) sensing information from on the semiconductor substrate with the semiconductor equipment selected through the step (a) after the step (b-1), and the method further includes a step (c) of updating the selection reference from the information sensed through the step (b-2).
According to the second aspect, more optimum semiconductor equipment can be selected by updating the selection reference from the information on the processed semiconductor substrate, whereby the yield of a semiconductor device manufactured from a subsequently processed semiconductor substrate can be improved.
According to a third aspect of the present invention, the method of manufacturing a semiconductor device further includes steps of (d) testing the semiconductor device, and (e) updating the selection reference from a test result obtained through the step (d).
According to the third aspect, more optimum semiconductor equipment can be selected by updating the selection reference from the result of the test on the semiconductor device, whereby the yield of the semiconductor device manufactured from the subsequently processed semiconductor substrate can be improved.
According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, the information is foreign matter or a defect.
According to the fourth aspect, reduction of the yield of the semiconductor device caused by foreign matter or a defect can be suppressed.
According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, the information is foreign matter, and the step (b-1) includes a step (b-1-1) of removing the foreign matter with the semiconductor equipment selected through the step (a).
According to the fifth aspect, foreign matter can be removed in an intermediate stage of the manufacturing process, whereby reduction of the yield of the semiconductor device can be suppressed.
According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, semiconductor equipment employed for the method of manufacturing a semiconductor device according to the first aspect of the present invention has a function of sensing information from on the semiconductor substrate.
According to the sixth aspect, it is possible to structure such a manufacturing system that semiconductor equipment itself determines and selects semiconductor equipment employed next.
According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, a manufacturing system manufactures the semiconductor device from the semiconductor substrate by the method of manufacturing a semiconductor device according to the first aspect.
According to the seventh aspect of the present invention, the manufacturing system can select the optimum semiconductor equipment for processing the semiconductor device by sensing information from the semiconductor device. Thus, the optimum order for employing the optimum semiconductor equipment can be automatically decided from the information of the semiconductor substrate regardless of the order for employing the semiconductor equipment previously set in a database, for example, for manufacturing a semiconductor device having a high yield.
According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, a semiconductor device is manufactured by the method of manufacturing a semiconductor device according to the first aspect.
According to the eighth aspect, the semiconductor device hardly fails since the same is manufactured with the optimum semiconductor equipment.
An object of the present invention is to provide a method of manufacturing a semiconductor device which can improve the yield of a semiconductor device, a manufacturing system and semiconductor equipment to which the manufacturing method is applied, and a semiconductor device manufactured by the same.
The foregoing and other objects, features, aspects and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description of the present invention when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
REFERENCES:
patent: 5550372 (1996-08-01), Yasue
patent: 6016562 (2000-01-01), Miyazuki et al.
patent: 62-86740 (1987-04-01), None
patent: 63-135848 (1988-06-01), None
patent: 7-94563 (1995-04-01), None
patent: -7-94563- (1995-04-01), None
patent: 10-233374 (1998-09-01), None
Graybill David E.
Mitsubishi Denki & Kabushiki Kaisha
Oblon & Spivak, McClelland, Maier & Neustadt P.C.
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