# US 12,180,580 B2 · Film forming position misalignment correction method and film forming system > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 12,180,580 B2 - Document ID: US12180580B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 18/339,920 - Filed: 2023-06-22 - Published: 2024-01-11 - Granted: 2024-12-31 - Earliest claimed: 2022-07-05 - Assignees: Tokyo Electron Limited - Applicants: Tokyo Electron Limited - Inventors: Atsushi Takeuchi; Kazunaga Ono; Kanto Nakamura; Atsushi Gomi - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US12180580B2 ## CPC - C23C 14/547: {using optical methods} - C23C 16/52: Controlling or regulating the coating process {(C23C16/45557, C23C16/279 take precedence)} - C23C 14/042: {using masks} - C23C 14/34: Sputtering - H01J 37/3476: {Testing and control} - H01J 37/32935: {Monitoring and controlling tubes by information coming from the object and/or discharge} - H01J 37/3441: {Dark space shields} - H01J 37/3447: {Collimators, shutters, apertures} - C23C: COATING METALLIC MATERIAL; COATING MATERIAL WITH METALLIC MATERIAL; SURFACE TREATMENT OF METALLIC MATERIAL BY DIFFUSION INTO THE SURFACE, BY CHEMICAL CONVERSION OR SUBSTITUTION; COATING BY VACUUM EVAPORATION, BY SPUTTERING, BY ION IMPLANTATION OR BY CHEMICAL VAPOUR DEPOSITION, IN GENERAL (making metal-coated products by extrusion B21C23/22; covering with metal by connecting pre-existing layers to articles, see the relevant places, e.g. B21D39/00, B23K; metallising of glass C03C; metallising mortars, concrete, artificial stone, ceramics or natural stone C04B41/00; enamelling of, or applying a vitreous layer to, metals C23D; treating metal surfaces or coating of metals by electrolysis or electrophoresis C25D; single-crystal film growth C30B; by metallising textiles D06M11/83; decorating textiles by locally metallising D06Q1/04) - H01J: ELECTRIC DISCHARGE TUBES OR DISCHARGE LAMPS (spark-gaps H01T; electric arc lamps H05B31/00; particle accelerators H05H) ## Abstract There is provided a film forming position misalignment correction method comprising: replacing a shielding member; loading a substrate into a film forming module by a transfer mechanism and forming a film on the substrate; detecting an amount of film forming position misalignment by transferring the substrate on which the film has been formed to a film thickness measuring device; correcting a transfer position of the substrate for the transfer mechanism; and checking the correction by transferring the substrate used for measuring the amount of film forming position misalignment to the film forming module by the transfer mechanism for which the transfer position has been corrected to form a film and determining the amount of film forming position misalignment by measuring a film thickness of the formed film by the film thickness measuring device in the same manner. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A film forming position misalignment correction method comprising: replacing a shielding member in a film forming system including a film forming module having a substrate placing table on which a substrate is placed and the shielding member detachably provided so as to cover an edge portion of the substrate placed on the substrate placing table and forming a film on the substrate, a film thickness measuring device for in-situ measuring a film thickness of the film formed in the film forming module, and a transfer mechanism for transferring the substrate to the film forming module and the film thickness measuring device; loading the substrate into the film forming module by the transfer mechanism and forming a film on the substrate; detecting an amount of film forming position misalignment by transferring the substrate on which the film has been formed to the film thickness measuring device and measuring the film thickness at an edge of the substrate; correcting a transfer position of the substrate for the transfer mechanism to eliminate the film forming position misalignment; and checking the correction by transferring the substrate used for measuring the amount of film forming position misalignment to the film forming module by the transfer mechanism for which the transfer position has been corrected to form a film and determining the amount of film forming position misalignment by measuring a film thickness of the formed film at the end of the substrate by the film thickness measuring device. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The film forming position misalignment correction method of claim 1, wherein when it is confirmed in said checking the correction that the amount of film forming position misalignment is not within an allowable range, said correcting the transfer position and said checking the correction are performed again. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The film forming position misalignment correction method of claim 1, wherein in said detecting the amount of film forming position misalignment, a position of a boundary portion between a region where the film is formed and a region where the film is not formed at the edge of the substrate is obtained by the film thickness measuring device, a length of the region where the film is not formed at the edge of the substrate is obtained from the position of the boundary portion, and the amount of film forming position misalignment is detected from a deviation of the length of the region where the film is not formed. ### Claim 4 (depends on 3) The film forming position misalignment correction method of claim 3, wherein in said detecting the amount of film forming position misalignment, the length of the region where the film is not formed at the edge of the substrate is obtained in two directions perpendicular to each other, and the amount of film forming position misalignment is detected from the deviation of the length of the region where the film is not formed. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The film forming position misalignment correction method of claim 1, wherein an actual film thickness profile of the film formed on the substrate is obtained by taking a difference between a film thickness measurement result in said checking the correction and a film thickness measurement result in said detecting the amount of film forming position misalignment, and the amount of film forming position misalignment in said checking the correction is obtained from the actual film thickness profile. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The film forming position misalignment correction method of claim 1, wherein said correcting the transfer position is performed by correcting coordinates of the transfer mechanism stored in a controller of the film forming system. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The film forming position misalignment correction method of claim 1, wherein when performing said detecting the amount of film forming position misalignment, a film forming rate is simultaneously derived based on a film thickness measurement result by the film thickness measuring device. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) The film forming position misalignment correction method of claim 1, wherein the film thickness measuring device measures reflected light spectrum of the substrate and obtains the film thickness of the film by spectroscopic interferometry. ### Claim 9 A film forming system comprising: a film forming module having a substrate placing table on which a substrate is placed and a shielding member detachably provided so as to cover an edge portion of the substrate placed on the substrate placing table and forming a film on the substrate; a film thickness measuring device for in-situ measuring a film thickness of the film formed in the film forming module; a transfer mechanism for transferring the substrate to the film forming module and the film thickness measuring device; and a controller, wherein the controller performs control to execute: replacing the shielding member; loading the substrate into the film forming module by the transfer mechanism and forming a film on the substrate; detecting an amount of film forming position misalignment by transferring the substrate on which the film has been formed to the film thickness measuring device and measuring the film thickness at an edge of the substrate; correcting a transfer position of the substrate for the transfer mechanism to eliminate the film forming position misalignment; and checking the correction by transferring the substrate used for measuring the amount of film forming position misalignment to the film forming module by the transfer mechanism for which the transfer position has been corrected to form a film and determining the amount of film forming position misalignment by measuring a film thickness of the formed film at the edge of the substrate by the film thickness measuring device. ### Claim 10 (depends on 9) The film forming system of claim 9, wherein when it is confirmed in said checking the correction that the amount of film forming position misalignment is not within an allowable range, the controller controls to perform said correcting the transfer position and said checking the correction again. ### Claim 11 (depends on 9) The film forming system of claim 9, wherein the controller corrects the transfer position by correcting coordinates of the transfer mechanism stored in the controller of the film forming system. ### Claim 12 (depends on 9) The film forming system of claim 9, wherein when said detecting the amount of film forming position misalignment is performed, the controller simultaneously derives a film forming rate based on a film thickness measurement result by the film thickness measuring device. ### Claim 13 (depends on 9) The film forming system of claim 9, wherein the film thickness measuring device measures reflected light spectrum of the substrate and obtains the film thickness of the film by spectroscopic interferometry.