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US 8,150,242 B2Granted
Use of infrared camera for real-time temperature monitoring and control
AssigneeApplied Materials, Inc.
InventorsNir Merry, Stephen Moffatt, Kailash Patalay, David Keith Carlson
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Embodiments of the invention generally contemplate an apparatus and method for monitoring and controlling the temperature of a substrate during processing. One embodiment of the apparatus and method takes advantage of an infrared camera to obtain the temperature profile of multiple regions or the entire surface of the substrate and a system controller to calculate and coordinate in real time an optimized strategy for reducing any possible temperature non-uniformity found on the substrate during processing.
Claims16
An apparatus for processing a substrate, comprising:
- a chamber body having a processing volume;
- a substrate support that is disposed in the processing volume;
- a plurality of heat lamps positioned below the substrate support and configured to transfer an amount energy to a region of a surface of a substrate that is disposed on the substrate support;
- a lamp module controller configured to adjust and control a power level of one or more of the lamps;
- a temperature sensor assembly that is configured to measure a temperature profile of the region of the surface of the substrate, wherein the temperature sensor assembly comprises an infrared camera that is positioned above the substrate support;
- a substrate support controller having a position sensor assembly, wherein the substrate support controller is coupled to the substrate support and is configured to monitor and to control an angular position and a rotation speed of the substrate support;
- and
- a system controller that is in communication with the lamp module controller, the substrate support controller and the temperature sensor assembly wherein the system controller is configured to receive data from at least the substrate support controller and the temperature sensor assembly, to calculate appropriate power levels for the lamps and an appropriate rotation speed of the substrate support, to provide instructions to the lamp module controller to adjust the power levels of the lamps, and to provide instructions to the substrate support controller to adjust the angular position and the rotation speed of the substrate support.
5 more elements
A method for processing a substrate, comprising:
- placing a substrate on a substrate support;
- heating a first region of a surface of the substrate using a heat source positioned below the substrate support, wherein the heat source comprises a plurality of lamps that are grouped into independently controllable zones;
- forming a first thermal image of the first region of the surface of the substrate using an infrared camera and sending the first thermal image to a system controller, wherein the infrared camera is positioned above the substrate support;
- using the system controller to determine a location of a first area of temperature non-uniformity on the surface of the substrate using the first thermal image and to calculate appropriate power levels for the lamps and an appropriate rotation speed of the substrate support;
- providing instructions from the system controller to a lamp module controller to adjust the energy delivered by a first zone of heating elements to reduce the temperature non-uniformity, wherein the first zone of lamps is positioned closer to the first area of temperature non-uniformity than all other zones of heating elements;
- and
- providing instructions from the system controller to a substrate support controller to adjust the rotation speed of the substrate support to the appropriate rotation speed of the substrate support.
4 more elements
A method for processing a substrate, comprising:
- placing a substrate on a substrate support;
- heating a surface of the substrate using a heat source;
- measuring a first temperature profile of a region of the surface of the substrate using a first device, wherein the first device is an infrared camera;
- measuring a second temperature profile of the region of the surface of the substrate using a plurality of second devices;
- comparing an area of the second temperature profile with the corresponding area of the first temperature profile;
- and
- adjusting each of the plurality of second devices such that the second temperature profile matches the first temperature profile.
4 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.