BRISTOL, ENGLAND--(Marketwire - Jun 14, 2011) - Highlighting the ongoing development of mass metrology as the preferred technique for in-line monitoring of product wafers, semiconductor metrology equipment company Metryx, Limited announced its participation in the joint European Semiconductor Equipment Assessment Leveraging Innovation (SEAL) project. Under the program, Metryx will be working with IMEC and Intel to assess the use of high-resolution mass metrology at the 20 nm node and below.
"As we look towards the future generations of semiconductor manufacturing, funding from the SEAL project and the ability to leverage joint resources from industry-leading IC manufacturers and research institutes will give us a critical competitive advantage," said Dr. Adrian Kiermasz, president and CEO of Metryx. "Mass metrology has demonstrated its value on current-generation devices and we believe its value in the manufacturing chain appreciates considerably as devices shrink."
The applications chosen for assessment during this project are those that present, or are expected to present, a significant metrology challenge for next-generation technologies. For example, silicon loss, or substrate damage, as a result of high dose implant resist stripping leads to changes in device characteristics that affect wafer yield and device performance. A method that can quantify silicon loss at this early stage of device production would provide a strong return on investment in terms of improvements in fab yield and product quality.
SEAL is dedicated to accelerating the market maturity of innovative and production-ready equipment, and to fostering cost-efficient equipment development in strong cooperation with equipment users, materials manufacturers and IC manufacturers. SEAL supports networking and cooperation between equipment producers and users, as well as creates synergies between all partners to be successful in a global market. In total, 38 project partners, consisting of major European semiconductor equipment manufacturers, materials manufacturers, the major IC manufacturers, innovative start-ups and well-known research institutes, started the joint EC-funded project SEAL on semiconductor equipment development and assessment. SEAL is a 3-year-long project with a total budget of more than 14 million Euro and funding of 9 million Euro.
Mass Metrology
Metryx delivers innovative mass measurement technology that is able to measure any mass change resulting from a process change with atomic level accuracy. Its platforms monitor the mass of any wafer following a process step to quickly determine whether device manufacture process steps are operating consistently using passive data collection (PDC) and normal distribution analysis. The ability to quickly and accurately identify any process drift allows the process to be corrected or stopped immediately, saving scrap or preventing yield loss.
Metryx, Limited
Metryx is a semiconductor equipment manufacturer specializing in unique nanotechnology mass measurement techniques. Based in Bristol, England, Metryx's non-destructive 200 mm and 300 mm metrology tools offer atomic layer accuracy making them ideal for material characterization and device manufacture process control. For more information on the company and its products please visit www.metryx.net.