Plasma assisted particle contamination control: Plasma charging dependence on particle morphology

J.C.A. van Huijstee, B. van Minderhout, R.M.H. Rompelberg, P. Blom, T. Peijnenburg, J. Beckers

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference contributionAcademicpeer-review

2 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

With the introduction of EUV lithography, the control of contamination in advanced semiconductor processes has become increasingly critical. Our work is a joint effort (TU/e and VDL-ETG) and is aimed at the development of plasma-assisted contamination control strategies mainly focusing on airborne particles in a low pressure gas. We present experiments comparing the charge-to-mass ratio of single spherical micron-sized particles with that of non-spherical agglomerates thereof in the spatial plasma afterglow. It is shown that the charge-to-mass ratio of two-particle clusters deviates only 6% from that of singlets. This means that for the proposed mitigation strategy, of which the efficiency is based on the charge-to-mass ratio, it is acceptable to study the charging of spherical particles and to extrapolate the results towards non-spherical particles within a reasonable range.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationMetrology, Inspection, and Process Control for Semiconductor Manufacturing XXXV
EditorsOfer Adan, John C. Robinson
PublisherSPIE
Number of pages6
ISBN (Electronic)9781510640559
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2021
EventSPIE Advanced Lithography 2021 - Virtual, Online, United States
Duration: 22 Feb 202126 Feb 2021

Publication series

NameProceedings of SPIE - The International Society for Optical Engineering
Volume11611
ISSN (Print)0277-786X
ISSN (Electronic)1996-756X

Conference

ConferenceSPIE Advanced Lithography 2021
Country/TerritoryUnited States
CityVirtual, Online
Period22/02/2126/02/21

Keywords

  • Afterglow
  • Charge-to-mass ratio
  • Complex plasma
  • Contamination control
  • EUV Lithography
  • Microparticles
  • Non-spherical particles
  • Plasma

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