K-Space introduces new temperature profile tool
K-Space Associates, a company supplying thin-film metrology tools for the semiconductor, compound semiconductor and solar markets, has announced the kSA Scanning Pyro in-situ tool, designed to measure temperature variations across Veeco K465i wafer carriers.
MOCVD fabs generally perform spot temperature measurements on wafer carriers to help tune the heater zones in an attempt to achieve uniform temperature profiles, says the firm. Making use of the K465i's slit viewport, the kSA Scanning Pyro utilises a custom dual pyrometer to acquire a complete, high resolution carrier temperature map in a single scan. The tool can be adapted to other MOCVD tools, including the Aixtron G4 and G5, and the Veeco EPIK700.
"This tool is designed to quickly, easily, and accurately generate full carrier temperature maps on Veeco K465i and EPIK700 production MOCVD reactors. The kSA Scanning Pyro generates high-resolution, full carrier temperature maps to facilitate near real-time temperature adjustments and to identify hot/cold spots on carriers and wafers. MOCVD fabs with this tool can expect to have a competitive advantage in terms of yield, wafer uniformity and device performance," said Darryl Barlett, CEO of k-Space Associates.
The new tool uses technology that combines simultaneous temperature measurements from two scanning sensor heads to map the entire carrier, from centre through the outer edge, says the firm. Users can acquire either a full wafer carrier scan or a select sub-set of the full scan, and can then perform analysis with proprietary kSA software to identify problem areas. With this information, engineers can make process and/or hardware adjustments to improve their product.
