Vantage Technology Opens New Market for Continuous CMP Slurry Monitoring

Online, July 2, 2010 (Newswire.com) - (07/01/10 00:00 PM EDT)

SAN JOSE, Calif. - Expanding the market for CMP slurry particle measurement, Vantage Technology is delivering the first particle sizing unit capable of measuring full-strength production slurries, in real-time. In contrast to existing equipment in use by large IC manufacturers and foundries today which take small diluted samples of slurry, this new SlurryScope is designed to measure particles in slurry flow as delivered to the wafer processing tool.
Addressing the need in leading edge IC designs with shrinking device geometries, along with new process steps for CMP like upcoming TSV applications, creates increased concern over wafer defects and yield loss from scratches caused by Large Particles in the CMP slurry flow. Multiple studies produced on the impact of Large Particles to CMP processing yields have confirmed the defect and damage that can be caused by such particle excursions.
The new company Vantage Technology Corporation was founded in April 2010 by industry veterans from the semiconductor equipment space. CTO Rashid Mavliev, Ph.D. has been developing nanoparticle measurement capability for decades at many prominent technology companies. Bringing this new slurry particle measurement to market along with patents already approved both in US and internationally, Vantage has been making measurements of customer Ceria slurries, one of the most dense and difficult to measure.
Leading IC manufacturers have increased risk of wafer defect or loss due to changes in slurry abrasive particles, because the newer slurries are more densely packed with particles, making monitoring or measuring extremely difficult. In fact, even top-tier companies are compelled to measure highly diluted samples of Ceria or colloidal-silicas in order to collect any data on the particle size distribution.
The level of damaged or scrapped wafers caused by CMP slurry agglomeration is difficult to extract from industry data. However, CMP scratching and wafer damage is often found in the top-10 pareto of wafer processing plants among leading IC and foundry operations. Estimates of yield impact range from 2-3% to as much as 10% in newer designs. As TSV applications combine two or more finished wafers - the value at risk of loss becomes even greater if scratches or defects occur.
Vantage is now providing undiluted real-time measurements of industry standard production slurries with their SlurryScope particle measurement unit for select customers, and is also collaborating with slurry manufacturers, equipment providers as well as IC and foundry operations. The joint work is focused on developing a closed loop approach to slurry monitoring, so that wafers can be protected from large particles, and variations in slurry particle distribution can be tracked and correlated to wafer yields.
In July, at the upcoming Semicon West show in San Francisco, Vantage will be demonstrating their slurry measurement capability in booth #425 of the South Hall of the Moscone Expo Center.

Contact: Marty Mason, 408-431-1399, or email at [email protected] - Vantage Technology Corporation is also available on line at www.VantageTechCorp.com. Please contact us for further questions or to get more information on our particle measurement tools.