Applied Materials Unveils New Defect-Review SEM for Advanced Chip Production
SANTA CLARA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 16, 1999--
High Productivity SEMVision cX Classifies Wafer Defects In-Line
to Isolate Their Source and Enable Rapid Control
of Process Excursions
Applied Materials, Inc. (Nasdaq/NMS:AMAT) announces the SEMVision(tm) cX, the latest member of the company's SEMVision product series, for the automatic review and classification of wafer defects in advanced semiconductor production lines. The cX builds on the company's breakthrough SEMVision system, which continues to be at the forefront of defect review technology.
Using OperatorFree(tm) EDX (energy dispersive x-ray) analysis,
the SEMVision cX features automatic material identification that
characterizes defects on unpatterned wafers and provides chipmakers
with information on the defect's source. The system also offers
high-productivity operation at 500 defects per hour and color MPSI
(Multiple Perspective SEM Imaging) for enhanced topography and
material information. These features work together to provide
chipmakers with fast, reliable defect information on both patterned
and unpatterned wafers, alerting them of process excursions and
helping identify the defect's source to enable faster time to
correction.
"The SEMVision cX's ability to automatically identify and
classify a large range of defects can change the way fabs make
decisions about process operations since the information stream can be
tied directly to the process equipment," said Dr. Gino Addiego,
president of Applied Materials' Process Diagnostics and Control
Product Business Group. "A fab can be highly productive without a
large investment in operator training, because the SEMVision cX
identifies, classifies and performs a defect material analysis
automatically, at high throughput appropriate to in-line use in the
fab."
EDX technology uses x-ray spectroscopy to identify the precise
material composition of many defect types so that users can determine
their source. The SEMVision cX is the first SEM review system to
feature OperatorFree EDX analysis that increases processing speed of
the system and requires less engineering expertise. For the first
time, material information is combined with automated defect
classification (ADC) to provide fab engineers with all vital defect
data. The automated EDX is used to analyze unpatterned wafers, such as
monitor wafers and those with blanket films or planarized surfaces.
Since fabs use a large number of monitor wafers to check process
conditions, the SEMVision cX offers chipmakers an easier, more rapid
and reliable review capability.
Although previous defect detection and review technologies could
determine bulk defect density on a wafer, the SEMVision cX lets
chipmakers go directly to a higher order of information, called
"classified defect density," which automatically classifies defects by
type (particle, scratch, buried layer, etc.), material properties, and
other characteristics that can be specified by the operator. This
unique capability lets chipmakers find the cause of defects in the
process flow much more rapidly and creates a useful database of
information for future reference.
"The SEMVision cX makes automatic in-line defect review and
classification a fab-ready defect reduction technology that chipmakers
can easily use with a minimum of operator involvement and expertise,
but with major benefits to process control," said Dr. Mark Wagner,
general manager of Applied Materials' SEMVision product line.
The original SEMVision system, launched in 1998, is already in
use or has been ordered by leading chipmakers in the U.S., Europe,
Korea, Taiwan and Japan. The SEMVision cX will begin shipping in the
third calendar quarter of 1999. Most of the features of the SEMVision
cX system can be cost-effectively retrofitted to earlier SEMVision
systems, upgrading their capability to that of the latest model.
According to Dataquest, the market for Auto Review and
Classification systems, which includes optical and SEM-based systems,
totaled $157 million in 1998, and is expected to grow to $405 million
by the year 2003.
"Having the SEMVision cX technology in our Equipment and Process
Integration Center (EPIC) is already giving us a preliminary database
of defect categories for several of Applied Materials' key process
technologies, which could be extremely valuable to customers in
managing rapid system startup and fast fab ramping," said Dr. Addiego.
"We expect to use the SEMVision system extensively as part of Applied
Materials' future process development strategy because it offers us
the same advantages in yield learning and cycle time as it does for
our customers in their fabs."
Applied Materials, Inc. is a Fortune 500 global growth company
and the world's largest supplier of wafer fabrication systems and
services to the global semiconductor industry. Applied Materials is
traded on the Nasdaq National Market System under the symbol "AMAT."
Applied Materials' web site is www.appliedmaterials.com.
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CONTACT: Applied Materials, Santa Clara
Betty Newboe, 408/563-0647 (Editorial/Media)
Carolyn Schwartz, 408/748-5227 (Financial Community)
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INDUSTRY KEYWORD: COMPUTERS/ELECTRONICS COMED PRODUCT