Evaluation techniques for 300mm equipment

As the semiconductor industry begins its transition to its next wafer size threshold of 300mm, several key factors are becoming significant. Solving the problems surrounding these factors is critical to achieving a 30-40% cost savings over 200mm wafer integrated circuit manufacturing. These problematic areas involve automation, equipment readiness, and process performance. 300mm factories will differ from 200mm versions due to the automation level, lot size choices, and factory sizing targets in terms of wafer starts. This paper discusses these areas from data acquired at SEMICONDUCTOR300 in processing a 0.25μm 64Mb DRAM device. Current performance is discussed for each semiconductor manufacturing tool functional group. These data include performance cost of ownership (CoO), on automation and computer integrated manufacturing (CIM), and process capability (as in Cpk).