Analyzing trends in automated reticle manufacturing, transport, and handling

摘要

Increasing emphasis is being placed on reticles and their importance in advanced semiconductor manufacturing. Most reticle patterns are sized for 4x reduction. This means that the patterns on a mask are four times larger than the patterns imaged onto an integrated circuit. Defects considered critical on reticles are now as small as those that were considered critical on semiconductor devices only a few years ago. Moreover, the reticle area affected by such small defects is much larger than that of a semiconductor die. Because these factors increase the requirements and cost of ownership of reticle manufacturing, methods of manufacturing and handling reticles must be advanced. This article discusses how existing standards and technology are being leveraged to meet this need.