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As Moore’s Law predicted, the semiconductor manufacturing process continues to advance rapidly, with each new generation of technology reducing the size and spacing of features and layers on the integrated circuits (ICs).

Image Credit: Superior Sensor Technology

This greater density of circuitry on a wafer necessitates greater precision and an increasingly delicate and sophisticated fabrication process.

A number of the newer, more complex ICs today are comprised of a dozen or more layers produced in 300+ sequenced processing steps. Then, once the wafers have been fabricated, there is post-processing, succeeded by IC packaging and testing.

Below is a summary of some of the conventional steps in the IC manufacturing process:

Figure 1. Image of Silicon Wafer with Etched Circuitry. Image Credit: Superior Sensor Technology

Today, the manufacturing of semiconductors places exceptionally high demands on pressure measurement technology to guarantee a high-quality process. All fabrication steps, including cleaning, etching and polishing, must be extra precise as the finished product uniformity is measured in microns.  

Consequently, testing and inspection are conducted to measure variances during all aspects of semiconductor manufacturing. 

Pressure sensors are utilized throughout IC manufacturing to conduct real-time pressure measurements throughout the different stages of the semiconductor process. Some of the common uses include: 

Figure 2. Image of Wafers in Fabrication. Image Credit: Superior Sensor Technology

With an extremely low noise floor, the NimbleSense architecture is ideal for the precise pressure measurements that are demanded by semiconductor equipment to enhance long-term stability, optimize accuracy and boost overall IC production yields.  

However, the benefits of NimbleSense extend well beyond the low noise floor. Some of its application-specific building blocks offer extra value add for semiconductor manufacturing. 

Multi-Range technology means that just one pressure sensor is able to operate at maximum performance over numerous pressure ranges. As wafer lots possess various numbers of layers, and bonding/packaging can differ, the pressure requirements will vary. 

Multi-Range allows one sensor to be adjusted without any degradation in performance to meet the pressure demands for different fabrication processes. 

Semiconductor manufacturing demands precision, and external factors, including noise from air conditioning or other equipment, building vibrations, etc., can severely influence the accuracy of pressure sensors.  

Utilizing Superior’s integrated advanced digital filtering technology, these pressure sensors cancel out the noise these factors create before they reach the sensor sub-system. Thus, the noise is removed before it becomes an error signal that can generate inaccurate readings. 

Semiconductor manufacturing is advancing at a rapid pace, with each new generation of technology reducing the size and spacing of features and layers on ICs.  

This increased density of circuitry on a wafer places extremely high demands on pressure measurement technology to guarantee a high-quality process. Each step in the fabrication process must be executed to the highest degree of accuracy as the finished product uniformity is measured in microns. 

Superior Sensor’s specialized pressure sensor technology, predicated on proprietary NimbleSense architecture, offers a number of benefits for semiconductor equipment, including exceptional long-term stability, greater accuracy, state-of-the-art digital filtering and Multi-Range technology. 

To learn more about the NimbleSense architecture, visit Superior’s technology page, or contact Superior Sensor to discuss a semiconductor-related project.

This information has been sourced, reviewed and adapted from materials provided by Superior Sensor Technology.

For more information on this source, please visit Superior Sensor Technology.

Please use one of the following formats to cite this article in your essay, paper or report:

Superior Sensor Technology. (2022, February 10). Improving Semiconductor Manufacturing through the Use of Pressure Sensors. AZoSensors. Retrieved on July 30, 2022 from https://www.azosensors.com/article.aspx?ArticleID=2433.

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Superior Sensor Technology. 2022. Improving Semiconductor Manufacturing through the Use of Pressure Sensors. AZoSensors, viewed 30 July 2022, https://www.azosensors.com/article.aspx?ArticleID=2433.

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