JPH10275753A - Manufacture of semiconductor substrate - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To efficiently manufacture a substrate by ensuring its quality, by estimating the thickness of the substrate formed in a film forming step, and monitoring an operating state of a predetermined etching facility based on the estimated thickness and an etching ending time obtained from the etching equipment. SOLUTION: The method for manufacturing a semiconductor substrate comprises a film forming step 102, a formed film thickness measuring step, and a lithography step having an etching step 107. Further, a film thickness of one substrate 1 or a unit of a plurality of the substrates formed in the step 102 is estimated by using a desired predictive algorithm indicating an change in the lapse of time from discrete film thickness measurement data for the substrate obtained in the measuring step. The substrate is manufactured with an etching equipment monitoring step for monitoring an operating state of the equipment based on the thickness at each estimated unit of the substrate and an etching finishing time obtained from the equipment in the step 107.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method of manufacturing a semiconductor substrate for manufacturing a thin film product such as a semiconductor device by using a group of manufacturing facilities such as a film forming facility and an etching facility constituting a production line.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in semiconductor manufacturing, in particular, in an etching facility for performing fine processing, an exposure facility for printing a pattern to be etched, or a film forming facility for forming a film, a fluctuation in apparatus performance directly affects the quality of a product. . For this reason, it is usual to adjust the set operation parameters of the equipment based on the inspection result of the workpiece. In the inspection here, for example, in the exposure step, the dimension inspection of the resist pattern after development, before the etching step, the preliminary inspection of the target film thickness, the amount of over-etching, In the case of an inspection or a film forming process, an inspection of a film thickness or the like is performed. However, in these inspection processes, various quantities may be grasped as distributions within the wafer. In particular, in the etching step, the processing quality depends on a certain set operation parameter. As a matter of course, the fluctuation of the film thickness of the film to be etched and the fluctuation of the performance of the etching equipment secondly naturally occur. It is determined with great involvement. In recent years, in the etching process, stricter quality control has been required with the miniaturization of elements.

In the current film forming process, a standard value for paying out as a film forming process is set. In other words, within the setting range of the standard value, the product is passed as a non-defective product in the subsequent steps, that is, the exposure step and the etching step. In order to improve the accuracy of the etching process, before performing the etching in the etching process, the thickness of the target film is inspected, and the remaining film amount or over-etching amount of the base film as a finished quality is inspected. Confirm the quality and confirm that the etching equipment performance is stable. Such an inspection is
Normally, such inspection is performed as frequently as possible within a range in which productivity is not significantly deteriorated because the flow of the wafer is stopped once.

[0004]

In order to maintain high product quality through a film forming process and an etching process, and to accurately manufacture a semiconductor device to be miniaturized, it is necessary to use (1-
1) Keeping the film thickness formed in the film forming process constant, and with the assurance of that, (1-2) Diagnose the operating state of the etching equipment and optimize the operating parameters according to the fluctuation of the etching rate. A method of setting for each wafer,
(2-1) The film thickness formed in the film forming step is measured for each wafer, and (2-2) the operating parameter of the etching equipment corresponding to the film thickness is determined in consideration of the operation state of the etching equipment. Method.

In practice, in the film forming process, the film thickness usually fluctuates on the order of 10%, and when a plurality of devices are used in the film forming process, a difference in characteristics between the devices (hereinafter referred to as a machine difference). ) Exists, and considering the operator's operation mistakes and sudden irregularities in the equipment, the quality of the film thickness process is far from being considered to be constant, and the former method is not feasible and the latter concept Is common. However, the operation and management of conventional processes are basically performed indirectly by dummy wafers, which are not product wafers. Therefore, quality cannot be effectively controlled, and a large management width is required. I have to admit. For this reason, it was not possible to design products so as to obtain better product performance.

[0006] Another problem in further improving the accuracy of the process is that if there is a change that deteriorates the quality in the film forming step and the etching step, the problem occurs.
It is necessary to adjust operating parameters promptly and reflect them so that product quality is constant. However, at present, quality inspections in both processes are performed as infrequently as possible, so a large number of defective products or products with a wide range of quality fluctuations must be collected before detecting any irregularities or the like. The risk of manufacturing is high. In addition, if an attempt is made to improve the quality accuracy from an abnormal state, a high quality inspection frequency is required, so that the productivity is reduced. Also, if productivity is emphasized, quality accuracy cannot be improved. Of course, with the advancement of miniaturization and advanced functions of semiconductor devices, high quality accuracy is required for the process, and there is no mistake that this will lead to the improvement of the performance of film formation, exposure, etching equipment, etc. Since the semiconductor production has been performed assuming a performance one step higher than the quality accuracy that can be realized by the apparatus itself, the circumstances described above are always correct. That is, if the frequency of the film thickness (distribution) inspection in the film forming process and the film thickness inspection before the etching are increased, the productivity is greatly impaired.

By the way, the first step in improving the quality accuracy as described above is to recognize the operating state of the manufacturing apparatus correctly, since the fluctuation of the operating state of the manufacturing apparatus is greatly involved. However, the quality of etching greatly depends on the film thickness determined in the previous step as well as the operation state of the apparatus, and thus the operation state has not been correctly recognized. In order to correctly grasp the operating state of the etching equipment, the ion density, electron density,
Observation of both energies and emission spectra has been proposed, but the reality is that there is no definitive monitor. Therefore, the only practical method is to measure the thickness of the target film before etching and measure the remaining film of the base film or the amount of overetch after the etching is completed. Is not necessarily inspected, and it is very rare that the inspection is performed for each cassette, since the productivity is greatly impaired.

For this reason, it is almost impossible in most cases to immediately change the set operating parameters of the etching equipment to optimal conditions so as to suppress fluctuations in quality. As described above, the frequency of the quality inspection is limited in consideration of the productivity, so that the control range of the quality of the etching process is inevitably increased as in the film forming process. In other words, ensuring the quality of the etching process is in a trade-off relationship with ensuring certain productivity. Naturally, the fact that the quality control range of the etching process is wide, that is, the process margin of the etching process is widened, imposes a process margin or a design margin of another process. For example, in order to establish electrical continuity through an oxide film in a transistor region formed on a silicon substrate, in an etching step of forming a conductive hole in this oxide film, a large process margin of over-etching is set, that is, a large process margin is set. In order to allow the over-etching amount, the thickness in the depth direction of the junction region of the transistor must be designed to be large,
It becomes difficult to miniaturize and improve the performance of the transistor, and the process margin of the diffusion process must be set to be very narrow. This may reduce the productivity of the diffusion step.

As described above, in the manufacturing process of the current semiconductor, particularly, an IC (integrated circuit) having a high degree of integration, the quality variation of the etching equipment and the film formation equipment due to mutual or individual performance variation is suppressed. Alternatively, there is a problem in that a large process margin must be set for each process because mass absorption cannot be achieved because absorption cannot be performed. At the same time, the inspection frequency for quality assurance is in a trade-off relationship with mass productivity.
Each one is not ideal. In addition, there is a problem that it is not possible to suppress the fluctuation of the process to a small extent, so that the design of the device is squeezed and it is not possible to mass-produce a device with higher performance.

[0010] An object of the present invention is to solve the above problems.
There is provided a method of manufacturing a semiconductor substrate capable of efficiently manufacturing a semiconductor substrate for obtaining a semiconductor product such as an IC (integrated circuit) having a high degree of integration while ensuring quality. Another object of the present invention is to provide a semiconductor substrate manufacturing system that manages the operation of a group of manufacturing equipment such as a film forming equipment and an etching equipment that constitute a manufacturing line for manufacturing a semiconductor substrate.

[0011]

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a film forming step for forming a thin film on a semiconductor substrate, and a method for forming the thin film on the semiconductor substrate by the film forming step. A film thickness measuring step of measuring a film thickness of a thin film formed by discretely taking out a film at intervals, and a semiconductor substrate on which the thin film is formed in the film forming step is put and a pattern is formed on the thin film. A lithography step having an etching step for forming, and a desired prediction algorithm showing a change over time from discrete film thickness measurement data for the semiconductor substrate obtained from the film thickness measurement step. Estimating the film thickness of the semiconductor substrate to be formed in the film process in one or a plurality of units, and estimating the film thickness of the semiconductor substrate in units of the unit and the etching obtained from predetermined etching equipment in the etching process. Based on the ring end time is a semiconductor substrate manufacturing method, characterized by producing a semiconductor substrate and a etching equipment monitoring step for monitoring the operation state of the predetermined etching equipment. The present invention also provides a film forming step of forming a thin film on a semiconductor substrate, and discretely taking out the semiconductor substrate on which the thin film has been formed by the film forming step at appropriate intervals to form a film having a thin film thickness. A film thickness measuring step for measuring, a lithography step including an etching step of loading a semiconductor substrate on which a thin film is formed in the film forming step and forming a pattern on the thin film, and the film thickness measuring A unit of one or more semiconductor substrates formed in the film forming step using a desired prediction algorithm showing a change with time from discrete film thickness measurement data for the semiconductor substrate obtained from the process Estimate the film thickness including the distribution within the substrate in each case, and estimate the estimated film thickness including the distribution within the substrate for each unit of the semiconductor substrate and the etching end obtained from predetermined etching equipment in the etching process. And time and based on a method for manufacturing a semiconductor substrate, which comprises producing a semiconductor substrate and a etching equipment monitoring step for monitoring the operation state of the predetermined etching equipment.

Further, in the present invention, in the etching facility monitoring step in the method of manufacturing a semiconductor substrate, the desired prediction algorithm is an extrapolation algorithm. Further, the invention is characterized in that the film forming step in the method for manufacturing a semiconductor substrate includes a sputter film forming step. Further, the present invention is characterized in that the film forming step in the method for manufacturing a semiconductor substrate includes a collimation sputtering film forming step. Also, in the present invention, the film forming step in the method for manufacturing a semiconductor substrate may include a CV
It is characterized by having a D film forming step. The present invention also provides
A collimation sputtering film forming step of forming a thin film on a semiconductor substrate, and discretely taking out the semiconductor substrate on which the thin film has been formed by sputtering in the film forming step, at appropriate intervals,
A film thickness measuring step of measuring a film thickness of a thin film formed on the semiconductor substrate taken out discretely; and a semiconductor substrate on which the thin film is formed in the film forming step is loaded and A lithography step including an etching step of forming a pattern by sputtering, and a sputtering method obtained from the film forming step with respect to discrete film thickness measurement data for a semiconductor substrate obtained from the film thickness measuring step. In the unit of one or more semiconductor substrates to be formed in the film forming step by performing a correction based on a change over time of a film forming characteristic by a collimator estimated based on an integrated value of required power and time. The film thickness is estimated, and the predetermined etching setting is determined based on the estimated film thickness of each unit of the semiconductor substrate and the etching end time obtained from predetermined etching equipment in the etching process. And a etching equipment monitoring step for monitoring the operation state of a semiconductor substrate manufacturing method, characterized by producing a semiconductor substrate.

Further, in the present invention, in the etching equipment monitoring step in the method of manufacturing a semiconductor substrate, a film thickness measuring step is repeated at appropriate intervals (irregularly or periodically at intervals of a plurality of wafers or more). From the film thickness of the product wafer or non-product wafer for quality control measured by measuring, the film thickness formed on the product wafer during the above measurement interval is estimated and obtained using an extrapolation algorithm. It is characterized in that the performance fluctuation of the etching equipment is grasped or diagnosed based on the obtained estimated film thickness.

Further, in the present invention, in the etching equipment monitoring step in the method of manufacturing a semiconductor substrate, when the film formation step is a sputtering step, the power required for sputtering obtained from the sputtering film formation equipment in the film formation step is provided. By predicting the decrease in the deposition rate caused by the sputtered substance adhering to the collimator by tracking based on the integrated value of the time and the time, the film at an appropriate interval obtained and stored from the film thickness measurement process is estimated. The thickness is corrected based on the expected time-dependent change in the film forming rate in the same step, and the unit of one or more semiconductor substrates formed in the film forming step during the measurement interval. Is characterized by estimating the film thickness at.

Further, the present invention is characterized in that in the etching equipment monitoring step in the method of manufacturing a semiconductor substrate, an operation state of a predetermined etching equipment is monitored by an etching rate. Further, according to the present invention, in the etching equipment monitoring step in the method for manufacturing a semiconductor substrate, an operation state of a predetermined etching equipment is monitored by standardizing an etching rate by an integrated value of power and time used in the etching. It is characterized by the following. Further, in the present invention, in the etching equipment monitoring step in the method for manufacturing a semiconductor substrate, the operation state of a predetermined etching equipment is monitored, and when it is determined that the operation state of the equipment exceeds a management standard, another operation is performed. It is characterized by instructing the etching equipment to switch production. Further, the present invention is characterized in that, in the etching equipment monitoring step in the method for manufacturing a semiconductor substrate, an operation state of a predetermined etching equipment is monitored, and a time when the operation state of the equipment exceeds a management standard is predicted. The present invention also provides
In the etching facility monitoring step of the method of manufacturing a semiconductor substrate, an operation state of a predetermined etching facility is monitored, and an instruction is given as to whether it is necessary to change an operation parameter of the facility. Further, in the present invention, in the etching equipment monitoring step in the method for manufacturing a semiconductor substrate, an operation state of a predetermined etching equipment is monitored, and a time when the operation state of the equipment exceeds a management standard is predicted. In accordance with a change in the production amount in the etching process caused by the maintenance of the etching equipment, a change in the load in a process subsequent to the etching process is predicted.

Further, the present invention provides a method of manufacturing a semiconductor substrate according to the above, wherein in the monitoring step of the etching equipment, it is determined that the estimated film thickness exceeds a limit value at which an operating parameter in the etching equipment is not changed. The operating parameters of the etching equipment are calculated and the operating parameters are changed and controlled in accordance with the introduction of the semiconductor substrate on which the estimated film thickness is deposited. Further, in the present invention, in the etching equipment monitoring step in the method for manufacturing a semiconductor substrate, when the estimated film thickness is found to exceed a limit value that does not change the operating parameters in the etching equipment, the film The operating parameters of the film forming equipment in the film forming process are calculated so that the thickness falls within the control value, and the setting is controlled for the film forming equipment. Is used as the film thickness of the semiconductor substrate to be supplied to the etching equipment.

As described above, according to the above configuration,
The state of the equipment of the etching equipment can be accurately grasped, high quality can be maintained through the film forming step and the etching step, and the quality of the semiconductor product can be improved without impairing the productivity. According to the above configuration, observation of ion density, electron density, dual energy state, emission spectrum, and the like have been proposed in order to correctly grasp the operating state of the etching equipment. Despite the fact that it does not exist, the operating state of the etching equipment can always be correctly grasped, and as a result, it becomes possible to determine whether or not it is necessary to reset the operating parameters, If it is determined that resetting is necessary, an optimum etching time or power can be set for a certain film thickness.

[0018]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of a method for manufacturing a semiconductor device according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. First,
A first embodiment of the semiconductor device manufacturing process according to the present invention in which a film forming process of a metal wiring film forming process on a substrate to be processed (semiconductor substrate), which is a preceding process, includes a sputtering process will be described. FIG. 1 shows a first embodiment of a process of forming a metal wiring film on a substrate to be processed (semiconductor substrate), which is a preceding process in the process of manufacturing a semiconductor element.

The metal wiring film forming step includes a pre-cleaning step 101 for cleaning a product wafer (product semiconductor substrate),
The product wafer (product semiconductor substrate) cleaned in the pre-cleaning step is subjected to sputtering by a film forming equipment (not shown).
It comprises a sputtering film forming step 102 for forming a metal thin film of 1, Cr, W, Mo, etc., and a lithography step for forming a metal wiring film on the metal thin film formed in the sputtering film forming step 102. As shown in FIG. 6, the sputter film forming process 102 includes a sputter film forming facility (apparatus) having a manufacturing facility controller 613 and a sputter power monitor 614, a film thickness measuring apparatus having an inspection facility controller 615, and a transport facility. A transport facility for transporting product wafers and dummy wafers having a controller 612, a manufacturing facility controller 613, an inspection facility controller 61
5, and a facility group controller 611 that controls the transport facility controller 612 and is connected to the network 601.
Is installed. The film thickness measuring step 103 is performed at an appropriate interval (a lot unit or a plurality of lot units or a unit managed by a sputtering apparatus, ie, the number of product wafers subjected to the film forming process) from the sputter film forming step 102 as indicated by a chain line. One product wafer or a dummy wafer is extracted in units of tens to several hundreds), and the film thickness of the metal thin film formed on the product wafer or the dummy wafer is measured by using a film thickness measuring device. This is a process in which the measurement is performed as quality control of the film forming process itself, and the measured product wafer or dummy wafer is returned to the lithography process as indicated by a chain line. That is, in the film thickness measuring step 103, the film thickness data of the metal thin film for each extracted product wafer or dummy wafer measured by the film thickness measuring device (indicated by the inspection equipment controller 615 in FIG. 6) is shown in FIG. As shown, the facility group controller 611 and the network 60
1 is stored as film thickness inspection result data in a storage unit 656 provided in the film formation process monitoring unit 651 via Then, the film forming process monitoring means 651 constituted by the CPU reads out the film thickness data of the metal thin film for each product wafer or dummy wafer measured in the film thickness measuring step 103 and stored in the storage means 656, and reads this. The quality of the metal thin film formed in the sputter film formation process is determined by comparing the thickness data of the formed metal thin film with the quality determination data stored in the storage unit 652 (step 11).
0).

The lithography step includes a resist coating step 104 for first applying a photoresist on the metal film formed in the sputtering film forming step 102, and a mask formed on the resist applied in the resist coating step 104. Exposure step 105 for exposing and transferring the circuit pattern by an exposure apparatus having a projection optical system, developing step 106 for developing the resist exposed in the exposure step 105 to form a resist pattern, and resist pattern in the developing step 106 An etching process 107 for etching a metal film thereunder using a resist pattern as a mask on a product wafer (product semiconductor substrate) on which a resist pattern is formed, and after the etching is completed in the etching process 107, the resist pattern is removed. Resist stripper to remove by ashing Is composed of a 109, finally the metal film wiring pattern is formed. Etching step 107
As shown in FIG.
A plurality of etching equipment (equipment) having the reference numerals 3 and 625 and the etching end point monitors 624 and 624 ′, a measuring apparatus for measuring an etched remaining film thickness, and a transfer for transferring a product wafer or a dummy wafer having the transfer equipment controller 622. Equipment and these manufacturing equipment controllers 623 and 6
25, and the equipment group controller 62 that controls the transport equipment controller 622 and is connected to the network 601.
1 is installed. In the remaining film thickness measuring step 108, one product wafer or dummy wafer is extracted at an appropriate interval (lot unit or a plurality of lot units or each unit managed by a sputtering apparatus) from the etching step 107 as shown by a chain line. The quality control of the etching process itself including the distribution in the wafer using an optical measuring device or a measuring device using an electron beam is performed on the remaining film thickness etched on the metal thin film formed on the product wafer or the dummy wafer. And the measured product wafer or dummy wafer is returned to the resist stripping step 109. That is, as shown in FIG. 6, the data of the remaining film thickness of each extracted product wafer or dummy wafer measured by the measuring device (not shown) in the remaining film thickness measuring step 108 is, as shown in FIG. 60
1 and stored in the storage means 667 provided in the etching process monitoring means 661 as residual film thickness inspection result data. Then, the etching process monitoring means 661 constituted by the CPU reads the remaining film thickness data for each product wafer or dummy wafer measured in the remaining film thickness measuring step 108 and stored in the storage means 667, and this readout is performed. The remaining film thickness data is compared with the quality determination data stored in the storage unit 662 to determine whether the metal thin film etched in the etching process is acceptable (step 1).
11).

In the film thickness measuring step 103, the film thickness of the metal film formed by the sputtering apparatus using the product wafer or the quality control dummy wafer in the sputter film forming step 102 is measured in lot units or a plurality of lot units. For each unit managed by the sputtering apparatus, one product wafer or dummy wafer is extracted, and the film forming process itself is extracted using a film thickness measuring apparatus (in FIG. 6, having an inspection equipment controller 615 and the like). As quality control, inspection (measurement) including distribution within a wafer is performed. In other words, the inspection (measurement) of the thickness of the metal film impairs the productivity if it is performed on all the product wafers. Therefore, the inspection (measurement) at irregular or regular intervals (lot units or a plurality of lot units or a sputtering apparatus) is required. (A unit of several tens to several hundreds in terms of the number of product wafers to be subjected to film formation). The product wafer or dummy wafer extracted from the sputter film forming step 102 as indicated by the dashed line and having the thickness of the metal film inspected in the film thickness measuring step 103 is returned to the lithography step as indicated by the dashed line. become. Sputter film forming equipment (sputter equipment 61) in the sputter film forming process 102
3, 614 and the like. In ()), as the film forming process is repeated, the film forming speed changes even under the same film forming condition.
The most common reason for this variation is that, with the consumption of the sputtering target, the magnetic field at the discharge place is strengthened, the discharge voltage is reduced, and the discharge power is also reduced. There is. Further, even if the discharge power is kept constant, the sputter yield decreases due to the decrease in the discharge voltage, and eventually, the deposition rate decreases with the consumption of the target. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the relationship between the standardized usage (%) of the target and the collimator and the reduction (%) of the sputter deposition rate, which are normalized to the total life of the target and the collimator. In the case of the ordinary sputtering method, the temporal change in the sputter deposition rate is reduced by several tens% with respect to the entire life of the target as shown by 201 in FIG. Therefore, it is shown that the condition adjustment of the sputter deposition rate is necessary even in the ordinary sputtering.

Incidentally, formation of a metal film in a fine conductive hole connecting between wirings on an LSI is disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. 6-6039.
A film forming method called collimation sputtering is used as described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 0-205. In this method, a directional filter called a collimator is used so that sputtered particles from the sputtered target enter the wafer as vertically as possible. Sputter particles that do not enter the wafer vertically are attached to this filter. Therefore, as the use progresses, the filter gradually becomes clogged, and a phenomenon occurs in which the film formation rate on the wafer decreases over time. That is, in the case of the collimated sputtering method, the temporal change in the sputter deposition rate is significantly reduced as indicated by 202 in FIG. The decrease in the deposition rate is extremely large because the decrease in the deposition rate due to clogging of the collimator is superimposed on the decrease in the deposition rate due to the consumption of the target described above. Therefore, in the collimation sputtering, the condition adjustment amount of the sputter deposition rate is further increased and the adjustment frequency is also increased.

Accordingly, in actual production, a film thickness measuring device (FIG. 6) for executing the film thickness measuring step 103 as described above.
The inspection equipment controller 615 shown in FIG. ) Indicates a product wafer or a dummy wafer extracted at a desired interval from a sputtering apparatus (including a manufacturing equipment controller 613 and a sputter power monitor 614 shown in FIG. 6) for executing the sputtering film forming step 102. The thickness of the formed metal film is measured and inspected, and the thickness data of the metal thin film for each of the measured and inspected product wafers or dummy wafers is formed via the equipment group controller 611 and the network 601 as shown in FIG. The result is stored as film thickness inspection result data in a storage unit 656 provided in the film process monitoring unit 651. The sputter film forming equipment for executing the sputter film forming step 102 stores the result of the film thickness data of the metal thin film for each product wafer or dummy wafer directly from the film thickness measuring apparatus or the film forming process monitoring means 651 stores the result in the storage means 656.
And obtains (receives feedback) via the network 601 and the facility group controller 611, and controls (adjusts) the conditions for determining the film thickness based on the result of the obtained film thickness data, for example, the film formation time. By doing so, it is possible to make the change of the film thickness of the payout repeat up and down movement as shown by 301 in FIG. FIG.
FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a relationship between a film thickness (%) of a product wafer formed and paid out by sputtering film forming equipment and an integrated power value (%) consumed by the target corresponding to a consumption rate of the target. In this way, even when the sputter film forming equipment is operating normally, a finite number of conditions are controlled based on a finite number of film thickness inspection results. The film thickness varies, and as a result, the film thickness of the product wafer sent to the etching process also varies within a certain range.

As described above, each of the etching apparatuses (including the manufacturing equipment controller 623 and the etching end point monitor 624 shown in FIG. 6) for executing the etching step 107 inputs a product wafer whose film thickness varies within a certain range. Therefore, a product wafer having an etching process variation factor is processed from the beginning. As a result, even if each etching apparatus simply monitors, for example, the etching end point time, the change in the film thickness and the change in the capability of the etching equipment are superimposed and observed, so that the operating state of the etching equipment is known. It is not possible.

Further, the film thickness measuring apparatus for executing the film thickness measuring step 103 is provided with a product wafer or a dummy wafer from the sputter film forming equipment at an appropriate interval (frequency of several tens to several hundreds of film formations). The film thickness data obtained by extracting at step S1 and the discrete underlayer data obtained by extracting product wafers or dummy wafers from the etching apparatus at appropriate intervals by a measuring apparatus that executes the remaining film thickness measuring step 108. It is rare that the remaining film thickness inspection is performed on the same wafer. Therefore, such a method for acquiring discrete data is not useful for monitoring the operating state of the etching equipment (apparatus) with time and constantly.

Therefore, the film forming step 102 is configured as shown in FIG. That is, in the film forming process (sputter film forming process in the example of FIG. 6) 102, the film forming equipment is operated under predetermined manufacturing conditions by the manufacturing equipment controller 611. The manufacturing conditions are the sputtering film formation process monitoring system 651
Acquired from the manufacturing condition file 654 managed by. Information on the film thickness inspection at discrete timing is obtained from the inspection equipment controller 615, and this information is transmitted to the sputtering film formation process monitoring system 65 via the equipment group controller 611.
1 is stored in the film thickness inspection result data file 656.
The inspection results are stored in the equipment status / quality judgment data file 652.
The sputter film formation process monitoring system 651 determines whether the data is normal or not by referring to the data stored in the system. The film thickness data stored in the film thickness inspection result data file 656 has a frequency of several tenths to one hundredth of the number of wafers processed in the film forming process. The processing results such as the processing time and the number of processed sheets in the film forming process are stored in the manufacturing processing result data file 65.
5, and the exchange of the target and the exchange of the collimator are stored in the manufacturing maintenance history data file 653. Data from the sputter power monitor 614 is also stored in the manufacturing maintenance history data file 653. These two
By referencing one data file, the target,
It is possible to know how much the collimator has been consumed.

The single-wafer film thickness data generation system 657 includes a production process result data file 655, a production condition file 6
54, a wafer I obtained from the film thickness inspection result data file 656 and the manufacturing maintenance history data file 653
D, based on the process conditions of each wafer, the processing time, the maintenance information at that time, and the discrete inspection data, generate the most probable film thickness data for each wafer, and link it to the wafer ID to Store it in the film thickness data file. Regardless of the wafer ID described here, a group of wafers loaded in the cassette is usually a cassette ID (number).
Is identified for each group. This method has a lower tracking resolution and is slightly inferior to the wafer ID in terms of quality control and equipment management, but may be easily put to practical use in some cases.

More specifically, the ID of a product wafer to be sputter-deposited is read by reading means provided in the sputter deposition equipment, and the sputter gas pressure and the sputter electrode in the sputter deposition equipment are corresponded to the ID of the product wafer. Process conditions such as magnetic field distribution and film formation time are obtained from the manufacturing equipment controller 613 and stored as manufacturing condition data in the storage means 654 provided in the film formation process monitoring means 651 via the equipment group controller 611 and the network 601. Have been. Further, the processing time in the sputtering film forming equipment corresponding to the ID of the product wafer,
The processing results such as the number of processed sheets are also obtained from the manufacturing equipment controller 613 and stored in the storage means 655 provided in the film forming process monitoring means 651 via the equipment group controller 611 and the network 601 as manufacturing processing result data. Further, it can be obtained from the target replacement time in the sputter film forming equipment, the collimator replacement time in collimation sputtering, the cleaning time of the processing chamber, and the sputter power monitor 614 provided in the sputter film forming equipment in accordance with the ID of the product wafer. The history of manufacturing maintenance such as sputtering power is also obtained from the manufacturing equipment controller 613, and the film forming process monitoring means 65 is provided via the equipment group controller 611 and the network 601.
1 is stored as manufacturing maintenance history data in storage means 653.

Therefore, the single-wafer film thickness data generating means 657 composed of a CPU operates at a desired interval stored in the storage means 656 (frequency of several tens to several hundreds of film formation processing sheets). The thickness data of the metal thin film for each product wafer or dummy wafer extracted in the above, and the manufacturing condition data (process condition data such as sputter gas pressure, sputter electrode magnetic field distribution and film formation time) stored in the storage means 654.
And manufacturing process result data such as the processing time and the number of sheets stored in the storage unit 655, the target replacement time, the collimator replacement time, the processing chamber cleaning time, and the sputter power stored in the storage unit 653. Based on manufacturing maintenance history data such as, a model of the film thickness change that is formed on the product wafer by sputtering film forming equipment between a certain film thickness measurement and the next film thickness measurement,
Based on the created model of the film thickness change and the film thickness data of the metal thin film for each product wafer or dummy wafer extracted at a desired interval, one or two product wafers are measured between film thickness measurements. The film thickness is estimated including the distribution within the product wafer, and is stored in the storage means 658 as single-wafer film thickness data. As described above, the single-wafer film thickness data generating means 657 particularly calculates the processing time from the target replacement time obtained by referring to the manufacturing processing result data and the manufacturing maintenance history data × the number of processed sheets or the integrated value of the sputtering power ( Estimate the degree of target consumption and the degree of clogging of the collimator in collimation sputtering based on the power required for sputtering for each product wafer and the integral value of the film formation time). A model of the film thickness change formed on the product wafer is created based on the degree of clogging, and the created model of the film thickness change is used for each product wafer or dummy wafer extracted at a desired interval. Based on the film thickness data of the metal thin film, the film was formed including the distribution in the product wafer for each product wafer during the film thickness measurement. The thickness seek accurate estimate of stores as the storage unit 658 two HamakuAtsu data. Thereby, the film forming process monitoring means 651
By reading out the estimated film thickness data for each product wafer from the storage unit 658 via the single wafer film thickness data generation unit 657, equipment management and quality control in the sputtering film formation process can be performed, and the etching process can be performed. Monitoring means 6
Reference numeral 61 denotes a storage unit 658 which stores the sheet thickness data generation unit 6
By reading out the estimated film thickness data for each product wafer via 57, it is possible to perform equipment management and quality control in the etching film forming process which is a process after the sputtering film forming process.

That is, the sheet thickness data generating means 657 is
Product wafers 1 are periodically or periodically repeated at intervals of a plurality of product wafers or non-product wafers for quality control (dummy wafers), and product wafers 1 are sampled during a measurement interval measured by a film thickness measuring device. The film thickness formed for each sheet is extracted from the product wafer or the non-product wafer for quality control (dummy wafer) at the above-described measurement interval, and is measured based on the film thickness inspection result data 656 stored by the film thickness measuring device. Then, it is estimated and obtained by using a desired prediction algorithm based on the prediction of the performance fluctuation of the sputter film forming equipment over time, and is stored in the storage means 658 as single-wafer film thickness data. In addition, the single-wafer film thickness data generation means 657
During the measurement interval, the film thickness formed for each of the product wafers 1 or 2 is extracted from the product wafer or the quality control non-product wafer (dummy wafer) at the measurement interval, and the film thickness is measured by a film thickness measurement device. Based on the data of the film thickness inspection result twice (the value of the film thickness measurement result) at the same time from the measured and stored film thickness inspection result data 656, it is based on the prediction of the performance fluctuation of the sputter film forming equipment over time. The information may be obtained by estimation using an extrapolation algorithm, which is a desired prediction algorithm, and stored in the storage unit 658 as single-wafer film thickness data.

Next, a description will be given of a model of a change in the film thickness formed by the single-wafer film thickness data generating means 657 when the sputter film formation equipment is a collimation sputter film formation equipment. The causes of the change in the film thickness are abrasion of the target and clogging of the collimator. The collimator passes only those particles having a velocity component perpendicular to the wafer among the sputtered particles emitted from the target. Other sputtered particles hit the inner wall of the hole of the collimator, so that a film is deposited on the inner wall of the collimator. As a result, the size of the holes gradually decreases, the amount of sputtered particles passing therethrough decreases, and the film forming speed decreases.
Therefore, the film forming speed can be obtained by estimating the change in the size of the hole of the collimator.

The size of the hole of the collimator is obtained from the total amount of sputter particles passing therethrough and the angular distribution of the velocity vector. The hole shape of the collimator is described as a function of the elapsed use time in order to narrow according to the use time obtained by multiplying the processing time from the time of exchanging the collimator by the number of processed sheets. As the hole becomes narrower, the rate at which all sputtered particles adhere to the inner wall of the hole increases at an accelerating rate, and the film formation speed becomes smaller and faster. The model of the change in the film thickness in the collimation sputtering is determined by the model of the change in the film formation speed when the film formation time is fixed.
In the single-wafer film thickness data generating means 657, in order to create a model of a film forming rate change in collimation sputtering, a shape that changes due to clogging of the collimator, a distance from the sputtering target to the collimator, a sputter gas pressure, and a target are consumed. The shape of the target, the magnetic field distribution at the sputter electrode related to the consumption of the target, and the like must be described in detail. However, a model of the change in the film forming rate under the limited conditions can be determined by almost experiments. Therefore, a model of a change in film forming rate under limited conditions determined by experiments is input to the single-wafer thickness data generating means 657 by using the input means 659a including a keyboard and a recording medium. Thus, the single-wafer-film-thickness data generation unit 657 can easily create a model of a film-forming speed change according to target consumption and collimator clogging. Then, the single-wafer film thickness data generation means 657 applies the film thickness inspection result data 656 to the created model of the film formation speed change.
The parameter correction in real time is performed by comparing the discrete film thickness data obtained during the actual use obtained from the above with the accumulated use time power product obtained from the manufacturing maintenance history data 653 at that time. Thus, it is possible to accurately estimate the film thickness of each wafer, and furthermore, the film thickness distribution in real time by absorbing collimator machine differences and the like.

Actually, a standardized film forming speed of collimation sputtering as shown by 202 in FIG. 2 is obtained by an experiment, and a curve of the film forming speed obtained by the experiment is inputted by using the input means 659a, and the number of sheets is calculated. The leaf thickness data generation means 657 makes a table or rewrites it as an approximate function, creates a model of the deposition rate standardized according to the usage amount, and calculates the actually required film thickness obtained from the manufacturing condition data 655. Compared with the manufacturing conditions such as the film formation time set to obtain the
The estimated film thickness of each sheet can be obtained and stored in the storage unit 658 as sheet thickness data. In order to make the above-described film thickness estimation more accurate in the single-wafer film thickness data generation means 657, discrete film thickness inspection result data 656, the above-described model of film thickness change, The change of the film thickness change obtained based on the model of the film thickness change described above based on the discrete film thickness inspection result data 656,
This can be realized by displaying the information on a display unit 659b composed of a display and continuously checking it, and making a slight modification to the model of the film thickness change using the input unit 659a. As described above, the storage unit 658 stores the single-wafer film thickness data in which the film thickness estimation for each product wafer is made more accurate in accordance with the ID number of the product wafer.

The film formation process monitoring unit 651 stores the product wafer data obtained and estimated by the film thickness inspection result data stored in the storage unit 656 and the single wafer thickness data generation unit 657 and stored in the storage unit 658. By reading the film thickness data for each sheet and comparing the read film thickness data with the equipment state / quality judgment data stored in the storage means 652, the equipment state of the sputter film formation equipment and the film formation are obtained. Judgment about the quality of the metal thin film is performed,
The result is stored in the storage means 672 as film formation process monitoring data. In particular, film thickness inspection result data and product wafer 1
The sheet thickness data for each sheet is stored in association with the ID number given to the product wafer or the dummy wafer, and
The manufacturing process performance data 655 stores the route and progress data of which sputter film forming equipment and when sputter film was formed corresponding to the ID number given to the product wafer or the dummy wafer. Even when the film forming process monitoring unit 651 determines that the film thickness data including the distribution in the wafer does not satisfy the manufacturing specifications in the sputter film forming process, the film forming process monitoring data 65 It is possible to identify the sputter film forming equipment (apparatus) that is causing the failure. Therefore,
The film forming process monitoring unit 651 determines that the film thickness data including the distribution within one wafer does not satisfy the manufacturing specification in the sputter film forming process. By displaying the abnormality determination on the display unit 650b including a display or the like,
By notifying the administrator in the film forming process, maintenance is performed on the sputter film forming equipment (apparatus) that is causing the cause of the defect, or the sputter film forming equipment having excellent film forming ability is used instead of the sputter film forming equipment. By controlling the transfer equipment controller 612 to use the equipment, the transfer path of the product wafer by the transfer equipment can be changed, and the cause of the defect can be eliminated. When the film formation process monitoring unit 651 determines that the determination result is abnormal, the film formation process monitoring unit 651 transmits the abnormality determination to the equipment group controller 611 or the subsequent manufacturing equipment controller 613 via the network 601. Send feedback and output it to output means such as display means installed there to notify the user and perform maintenance on the sputter film forming equipment (apparatus) that is causing the cause of failure,
By controlling the transfer equipment controller 612 so as to use a sputter film formation equipment having excellent film forming ability instead of the sputter film formation equipment, the transfer path of the product wafer by the transfer equipment is changed to remove the cause of the defect. be able to. Note that 650 provided in the film formation process monitoring means 651 is provided.
Reference numeral a denotes an input unit including a coboard, a recording medium, and the like for inputting data that cannot be obtained from the equipment group controller 611 in the film forming process via the network 601 and a program for monitoring the sputtering film forming process.

In the above embodiment, the case where the film forming process monitoring means 651 and the single-wafer thickness data generating means 657 are constituted by separate CPUs has been described, but may be constituted by one CPU. It is clear.
Further, in the above-described embodiment, the case of sputtering film formation has been described, but it is apparent that the present invention is also applicable to the case of forming an insulating film or the like by LP (low pressure) CVD. That is, in the case where the film forming step is sputtering, the method of estimating the film thickness has been described in detail with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3, but unlike the sputtering equipment, a batch equipment in which many sheets are processed at once. In the case of a low-pressure CVD facility using the method, the creation of film thickness data for each wafer will be described with reference to FIGS. In a batch type LP (low pressure) CVD device,
For example, a method of processing 125 product wafers at a time. FIG. 4 is a view showing a loading state of a product wafer in the batch type LP (low pressure) CVD apparatus. As indicated by the arrow in the figure, product wafers are loaded in 25 sheets, that is, in units of cassettes, and dummy wafers are loaded between the groups of 25 sheets. Six dummies are used for 125 product wafers, and these are usually used to collect equipment management and QC management data.

As described above, in the batch apparatus, a large number of wafers are processed at one time. Therefore, the film thickness of the dummy wafer is not simultaneously known with the dummy wafer but is determined by a single film formation. There is a difference that the thickness comes out. A curve 401 shown in FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the state of the film thickness in accordance with the state of loading of the wafer in the LPCVD apparatus. It is. Therefore, the film thickness value to be used when the wafer reaches the etching step is not determined. However, the film thickness distribution depending on the wafer loading position in the LPCVD apparatus is almost fixed as an individuality of the LPCVD apparatus.

Therefore, the normality of the film forming process by the LPCVD equipment performed by the film forming process monitoring means 651 is checked by the film thickness measuring device and the film thickness inspection result data 65.
The thickness of the six dummy wafers indicated by arrows in FIG. 4 stored as 6 is within a specified value, usually ± 5 of the specified value.
It is performed by determining whether the value falls within the range of about%. Further, in the batch equipment, since there is the distribution described above, the film formation process monitoring means 651 uses the dummy film thickness information stored as the film thickness inspection result data to determine the device interior loading position obtained from the batch equipment manufacturing equipment controller 613. Observing the shape of the distribution depending on the device interior loading position based on the information of
If the shape has shifted significantly, it is determined that there is an abnormality in the equipment, and the information is stored in the storage means 672.
Then, the single-wafer film thickness data generation unit 657 determines that the dummy film thickness itself and the confirmation information that the distribution according to the loading position is normal are obtained from the film formation process monitoring unit 651.
The storage unit 65 estimates the film thickness of each product wafer from the dummy film thickness stored as the film thickness inspection result data 656 and stores it.
8 is stored as single-wafer film thickness data. The film thickness is estimated by the single-wafer film thickness data generation means 657 from the film thickness distribution at the loading position of the dummy wafer shown in FIG. 5 stored as the film thickness inspection result data. It can be obtained by inserting. Then, the loading position of the wafer, the wafer ID, and the estimated film thickness value are linked to each other and stored in the storage unit 658 as single-wafer film thickness data.

More specifically, the film thicknesses are allocated to the 25 product wafers between the dummy film thickness X1 and the dummy film thickness X2 by a simple proportional distribution as shown by the expression 501 in FIG.

Calculating the film thickness of each product wafer in this manner is a function of the single wafer film thickness data generation system 657 shown in FIG. The film forming process monitoring means 651 and the single-wafer thickness data generating means 657 may be constituted by one CPU. Further, the function of the film forming process monitoring means 651 may be provided in the manufacturing equipment controller 613 or the equipment group controller 611 provided in each film forming equipment. As described above, a product wafer having a certain range of film thickness change is supplied from the film forming process 102 to the lithography process.

Next, the operation state of the etching equipment (etching apparatus) in the etching process is monitored based on the sheet thickness data created by the sheet thickness data generation means 657 and stored in the storage means 658. Will be described. First, the cause of the process variation in the etching equipment (etching apparatus) will be briefly described. In the etching equipment, an etching gas that chemically reacts with a film to be etched (a film formed by a sputtering equipment or the like) is activated by plasma, and is reacted with the film on the wafer surface and removed. At that time, reaction products are released from the wafer and adhere and deposit on the inner wall of the etching chamber. This deposited film affects the state of the plasma, resulting in a change in the etching performance. That is, the characteristics of the etching equipment change with time, similarly to the sputtering equipment.

Next, an etching end point monitor of the etching equipment will be described. As shown in FIG. 6, each of the etching equipment includes manufacturing equipment controllers 623 and 625 and etching end point monitors 624 and 6 for detecting the end of the etching.
24 '. The etching end point monitors 624 and 624 ′ provided in each etching facility (apparatus) detect the end of the etching from the state of release of the reaction products of the etching. In particular, an etching end point monitor of a type of observing light emission of a specific wavelength in a plasma of a reaction product is often used. From the etching end point monitors 624 and 624 ′, it is possible to know the time from the start of etching (plasma power ON) to the point of time when the target film is removed, that is, the etching end point time for the processing of each product wafer. Since the etching time is such that overetching is normally performed after the end point of the etching comes out and the etching is continued for a while, the etching time set in the etching equipment is different from the etching end point time detected by the etching end point monitor. Is usually the case.

As described above, the film thickness (film thickness) of the product wafer supplied to the etching equipment is stored in the storage unit 6.
Since the film thickness data is stored in the memory 58 and is known (estimated value) for each wafer, the etching speed calculating means 670 connected to the etching process monitoring means 661 converts the wafer thickness data into a corresponding value. The etching rate for the target film of the etching equipment (one index indicating the operation state of the etching equipment) is obtained by dividing by the etching end time detected by the etching end point monitors 624 and 624 'provided in the etching equipment. Is stored in the storage unit 668 as single wafer etching rate data. The etching process monitoring means 661 constituted by the CPU in this way can correctly monitor the fluctuation of the performance characteristics of each etching equipment based on the change in the etching rate calculated by the etching rate calculating means 670. Then, the monitoring result corresponding to each etching facility is displayed on the display means 660b composed of a display or the like connected to the etching process monitoring means 661, so that it can be presented to the manager of the etching process. The monitoring result corresponding to each etching facility is fed back from the etching process monitoring means 661 via the network 601 to the facility group controller 621 in the etching process 107 or the manufacturing facility controllers 623 and 625 of the preceding etching facility. Then, the user can be notified by outputting the data to an output unit such as a display unit installed there. If the capacity of the etching equipment is abnormal, the monitoring result is output in the form where the etching equipment is specified.
By performing maintenance on an etching facility having an abnormal capacity or using an etching facility having an excellent capacity in place of the etching facility, normal etching can always be performed on a product wafer.

Again, if the change in film thickness is not accurately known, the change in the etching end time always overlaps with the change in the film thickness. However, it was possible to capture only when the variation was significantly greater than the change in film thickness. Therefore, for the purpose of improving the quality accuracy of the etching process, it is only possible to detect large irregularities in the etching equipment, which is not a problem at all.
However, since the film thickness of the product wafer put into the etching equipment can be accurately grasped, the etching process monitoring means 661 uses the etching rate calculated by the etching rate calculation means 670 to calculate the variation in the performance characteristics of each etching equipment. , The sensitivity can be sufficiently increased and monitoring can be performed correctly, and as a result, a semiconductor device manufacturing process with improved quality accuracy can be realized.

Further, even if it is considered to detect a large upset in the etching equipment, if there is a change in the film thickness, the upset can be detected only after processing more product wafers. However, since the etching process monitoring means 661 is in a form in which a change in the film thickness is removed, it is possible to immediately detect irregularities in the etching equipment, and to inevitably reduce the number of products having inferior quality. Has a remarkable effect. If the conditions of the etching equipment are adjusted so that a predetermined etching end time can be obtained from the apparent etching rate simply obtained from the etching end time without knowing the film thickness, the film thickness is actually thick. In such a case, when a product wafer having a small film thickness comes, the quality is rather deteriorated only by performing the adjustment. The etching process monitoring means 661 monitors the fluctuation of the performance characteristic of each etching equipment properly with sufficiently high sensitivity by the change of the etching rate calculated by the etching rate calculating means 670, and based on the monitoring result, the etching equipment. Are adjusted (controlled), so that a semiconductor can be manufactured without deteriorating quality. Further, management in the etching step 107 will be described with reference to FIG.

In the etching step 107, an etching process is performed for each wafer, and at this time, the etching end point time is detected by the etching end point monitors 624 and 624 '.

The etching end point time, which is the monitored value of these processing results, is determined for each wafer identified by the wafer ID.
The etching rate calculating means 67 tied to one wafer and controlled by the etching process monitoring means 661
Sent to 0. In the etching rate calculating means 670,
From the wafer ID of the wafer, the film thickness of this wafer deposited in the film forming process or an accurate estimated value thereof is stored in a single-wafer thickness data file 6 of the single-wafer thickness data generation system 657.
58 and referenced against the end time of the etch. Then, the etching rate calculating unit 670 calculates
The etching rate can be obtained by dividing the film thickness by the etching end point time. Further, the etching process monitoring means 661 refers to and compares the value with the value from the equipment state / quality determination data file 662 to identify the etching equipment and determine whether the etching equipment is operating properly or whether the equipment state has changed. If it is determined that the operation parameters need to be corrected, the storage unit 6 determines
73 is stored as etching process monitoring data, is displayed on a display unit 660 b connected to the etching process monitoring unit 661, and is presented to a manager of the etching process. The information is output to an output means such as a display connected to the manufacturing equipment controllers 623 and 625 of the respective etching equipment. When determining that the state is abnormal, a procedure for requesting confirmation or determination by a human is stored in advance in the etching process monitoring unit 661. That is, in the etching rate calculating means 670, the etching end time for the wafer obtained in the etching step is compared with the film thickness value to obtain an etching rate which is one index of the operation state of the etching equipment,
The etching process monitoring means 661 determines whether the adjustment is normal, does not require adjustment, is normal and requires adjustment, or is abnormal. These data (information) are stored in the storage means 673 as etching process monitoring data. The information is displayed on the display means 660b connected to the etching process monitoring means 661 and presented to the manager of the etching process, and the equipment group controller 621 of the etching process or the manufacturing equipment controller 623 of each etching equipment ahead thereof via the network 601. , 625 to output means such as display means to notify the user. If it is determined that the etching facility is not operating properly, the transport facility controller 622 is controlled to change the transport route of the product wafer by the transport facility so as to switch to the etching facility that can operate properly. If it is determined that the operation parameters need to be corrected, and the flow of the product wafer cannot be stopped, the transport equipment controller 6 is switched to an etching equipment having a normal capacity.
The control unit 22 changes the transfer route of the product wafer by the transfer equipment, and also performs maintenance on the etching equipment that requires correction of the operation parameters to correct the operation parameters. When the operation parameters can be automatically corrected, the etching process monitoring unit 661 calculates the correction amount of the operation parameters from the current manufacturing condition data stored in the storage unit 664, and calculates the correction amount of the calculated operation parameters. By transmitting the correction amount to the specified manufacturing equipment controller of the etching equipment via the network 601 and the equipment group controller 621, the manufacturing equipment controller can control the manufacturing process conditions, which are operating parameters.

The storage means 663 stores manufacturing maintenance history data such as the cleaning time which can be obtained from each etching equipment, and the storage means 665 stores the etching time and the etching process detected from the etching end point monitor in each etching equipment. Since the number of wafers and the like are stored, the etching process monitoring means 661 stores the etching time and the number of etched wafers and the storage means 668 according to the grade of the etching quality required for the product wafer to be loaded. The cleaning time is calculated in consideration of the single wafer etching rate data and the like, and an alarm can be issued to the etching equipment whose time has passed. Further, since the storage means 664 stores manufacturing process conditions such as gas pressures obtainable from each etching facility and high-frequency power applied to the electrodes, the etching process monitoring means 661 requests the product wafer to be loaded. It is possible to determine whether the manufacturing process conditions are appropriate by referring to the single wafer etching rate data stored in the storage unit 668 according to the grade of the quality of the etching to be performed,
If it is not appropriate, the etching equipment can be fed back through the network 601 and the equipment group controller 621 so that the etching can be performed under the control of appropriate manufacturing process conditions. Also, regarding the remaining film thickness inspection result data 667,
The etching process monitoring means 661 determines whether the manufacturing process conditions are appropriate according to the grade of the etching quality required for the product wafer to be input, and if not, the etching equipment is controlled. By applying feedback via the network 601 and the facility group controller 621, it is necessary to control the manufacturing process conditions to be appropriate.

Some etching equipment is not provided with an etching end point monitor. In this case, in the etching equipment, the etching time is set according to the manufacturing process conditions set according to the type of the product wafer to be put in and the remaining film thickness inspection result data measured by the measuring device. The etching rate calculating means 670 obtains the set etching time obtained by the manufacturing equipment controllers 623 and 625 of the etching equipment via the equipment group controller 621 and the network 601, and calculates the film thickness with respect to the obtained etching time. Based on the inspection result data 656, an etching rate corresponding to the film thickness of the product wafer put into the etching equipment is calculated and stored as single wafer etching rate data in the storage means 668, and the etching time is calculated from the calculated etching rate. The calculated etching time is fed back to the manufacturing equipment controllers 623 and 625 of the etching equipment via the network 601 and the equipment group controller 621. As a result, the etching process monitoring means 661 compares the equipment state determination data 662 with reference to the remaining film thickness inspection result data 667 from the single wafer etching rate data 668 even for an etching equipment without an etching end point monitor. , The performance of the etching equipment is monitored, the monitoring result is stored as etching process monitoring data in the storage device 673, and the display device 660b provided in the etching process monitoring device 661 is provided.
And output to an output unit installed in the equipment group controller 621 or the etching equipment, and high-quality etching can be ensured.

Next, the contents executed by the etching process monitoring means 661 will be described more specifically. That is, in the diagnosis of the etching equipment in the etching process monitoring means 661, the single wafer etching rate data indicating one index of the operating state of the etching equipment calculated by the etching rate calculating means 670 is used in the etching which is the etching manufacturing process condition. By standardizing and evaluating by the integrated value of the power and the etching time,
It is possible to predict when the operation state of the etching equipment exceeds the management reference value, and it is possible to predict the maintenance time. The diagnosis or control of the progress of the process in the etching process monitoring means 661 is performed when the fluctuation value of the etching rate calculated by the etching rate calculating means 670 exceeds a predetermined management reference value (management width). The operation state is determined to be defective,
By giving an instruction to switch the production to another etching facility promptly from the judgment point, the etching process can be continuously performed on the product wafer by the other etching facility. Also, the etching process monitoring means 661
In the diagnosis or the control of the process progress, the etching rate deviates from a predetermined management reference value (management width) from the extrapolation of the temporal variation tendency of the etching rate calculated by the etching rate calculation means 670. Forecast the timing and switch production to another etching equipment in accordance with the timing, or prepare for the operation of the other etching equipment, or secure equipment and personnel for maintenance of the equipment in advance, so that By giving the instruction, the etching process can be continuously performed without largely stopping the product wafer to be put in.

The diagnosis or the control of the progress of the process in the etching process monitoring means 661 is performed based on the extrapolation of the time-varying tendency of the etching rate calculated by the etching rate calculating means 670, and the same as the predetermined management width. Predicting the time when the etching rate deviates, and the load of the process following the etching process fluctuates according to the change (decrease) in the production amount of the etching process due to the maintenance of the facility at the time. And product wafers can be efficiently produced including the process following the etching process. In addition, the etching process monitoring means 661 determines whether or not the film thickness obtained from the single wafer thickness data 658 is within a range that does not require changing the operating parameters of the etching equipment, and stores the result in the storage means 673. The data is stored as monitoring data, output to the display means 660b provided in the etching process monitoring means 661, or fed back to the manufacturing equipment controllers 623 and 625 of the etching equipment via the network 601 and the equipment group controller 621 for control. Can be. In addition, in the etching process monitoring means 661, whether or not the operation parameters of the etching equipment need to be changed is determined by judging from the thickness of the product wafer and the value of the etching rate at the time of processing immediately before processing the product wafer. In addition, an optimum etching can be performed on a product wafer to be supplied.

If the etching process monitoring means 661 finds that the film thickness obtained from the single-wafer film thickness data 658 exceeds a limit value at which the operating parameters of the etching equipment are not changed, the process is performed in advance. Calculate the operating parameters of the etching equipment, and control the changes according to the arrival of the product wafer whose film thickness exceeds the limit value that does not change the etching equipment parameters to the etching process. Optimum etching can be performed. When the etching process monitoring means 661 finds that the film thickness obtained from the single-wafer film thickness data 658 exceeds the limit value at which the operating parameters of the etching equipment are not changed, the film forming process monitoring means 651 The operation parameters of the film forming equipment in the film forming process are calculated so that the film thickness becomes a certain value within the management value by the film forming process monitoring means 651, and the network 601 and the equipment group controller 61
The operation parameters are set by providing the control to the manufacturing equipment controller 613 of the film formation equipment via the control unit 1. The single-wafer film thickness data generation unit 657 or the film formation process monitoring unit 651 calculates an expected value of the film thickness formed by the new operation parameter and provides the calculated value to the etching rate calculation unit 670. The etching rate calculating means 670 calculates
Single wafer etching rate data is created from the provided estimated film thickness, and the etching process monitoring means 661 is provided.
Can be monitored based on the single wafer etching rate. In addition, the etching process monitoring means 661 determines whether or not the estimated value of the provided film thickness exceeds a limit value at which the operating parameter of the etching equipment is not changed, and determines a limit value at which the operating parameter of the etching equipment is not changed. If it exceeds, the film forming process monitoring means 651
The operation parameters of the film forming equipment in the film forming process are calculated by the film forming process monitoring means 651 so that the film thickness becomes a certain value that falls within the control value.
The operating parameters can be set by providing and controlling the manufacturing equipment controller 613 of the film forming equipment through the equipment group controller 01 and the equipment group controller 611.

[0052]

According to the present invention, the equipment state of the etching equipment can be accurately grasped, high quality can be maintained throughout the film forming step and the etching step, and the productivity is not impaired. This has the effect of improving the quality of semiconductor products. Further, according to the present invention, the operation state of the etching equipment can be correctly grasped, and as a result, it is possible to determine whether or not the operation parameters need to be reset, and it is determined that the operation parameters need to be set. If this is done, there is an effect that the optimum etching time or power can be set for a certain film thickness.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a view showing a process flow for manufacturing a semiconductor substrate according to the present invention by forming a metal wiring film on the semiconductor substrate.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a change in a film forming speed in a sputtering film forming facility used in a sputtering film forming step according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a change in film thickness in a sputtering film forming facility used in a sputtering film forming step according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a view showing acquisition of single-wafer film thickness data in a batch processing film forming apparatus used in a film forming process according to the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a view showing a detailed method of acquiring single-wafer data in a batch processing film forming apparatus used in a film forming process according to the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a functional configuration of a system for integrally managing a film forming process and an etching process according to the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

101: Cleaning process, 102: Sputter film forming process, 1
03: film thickness measuring step, 104: resist coating step, 1
05: Exposure step, 106: Development step, 107: Etching step, 108: Remaining film thickness measurement step, 109: Resist stripping step, 110: Quality determination step of film formation step, 111: Quality determination step of etching step, 601: Network connecting each system 611: Deposition equipment group controller 612: Transport equipment controller 613: Manufacturing equipment controller 614: Sputter power monitor 615: Inspection equipment controller 621: Etching equipment group controller, 622 ... Transfer equipment controller, 623 ... Manufacturing equipment controller, 624, 624 '... Etching end point monitor, 625 ... Manufacturing equipment controller, 65
0a, 659a, 660a ... input means, 650b, 6
59b, 660b display means, 651 film formation process monitoring means, 652 equipment condition / quality judgment data file,
653: Manufacturing maintenance history data file, 654: Manufacturing condition data file, 655: Manufacturing processing result data file, 656: Film thickness inspection result data file,
657: Single wafer film thickness data generating means, 658: Single wafer film thickness data file, 661: Etching process monitoring means,
662: Equipment status / quality judgment data file, 66
3: Manufacturing maintenance history data file, 664: Manufacturing condition data file, 665: Manufacturing processing result data, 6
67 ... residual film thickness inspection result data file, 670 ... etching speed calculating means, 668 ... single wafer etching speed data file, 672 ... film forming process monitoring data file, 673 ... etching process monitoring data

Claims (12)

[Claims] 1. A film forming step of forming a thin film on a semiconductor substrate, and a film forming step of discretely taking out the semiconductor substrate on which the thin film has been formed in the film forming step and measuring the film thickness of the formed thin film. A film thickness measurement step, a lithography step including an etching step in which a semiconductor substrate on which a thin film is formed in the film formation step is formed and a pattern is formed on the thin film, and a film thickness measurement step obtained from the film thickness measurement step. The film thickness in units of one or a plurality of semiconductor substrates formed in the film forming step using a desired prediction algorithm indicating a change with time from discrete film thickness measurement data for the semiconductor substrate. And monitoring the operating state of the predetermined etching equipment based on the estimated film thickness of each unit of the semiconductor substrate and the etching end time obtained from the predetermined etching equipment in the etching step. Method of manufacturing a semiconductor substrate and a etching facility monitoring step, characterized in that to manufacture a semiconductor substrate that. 2. A film forming step of forming a thin film on a semiconductor substrate, and a film forming step of discretely taking out the semiconductor substrate on which the thin film has been formed in the film forming step and measuring the film thickness of the formed thin film. A film thickness measurement step, a lithography step including an etching step in which a semiconductor substrate on which a thin film is formed in the film formation step is formed and a pattern is formed on the thin film, and a film thickness measurement step obtained from the film thickness measurement step. Using a desired prediction algorithm indicating a change with time from discrete film thickness measurement data for a semiconductor substrate to be formed in the substrate in one or more semiconductor substrates formed in the film forming step. The film thickness including the distribution of the semiconductor substrate is estimated, and the estimated film thickness including the distribution within the substrate for each unit of the semiconductor substrate and the etching end time obtained from predetermined etching equipment in the etching step are used. To The method of manufacturing a semiconductor substrate, characterized by producing a semiconductor substrate and a etching equipment monitoring step for monitoring the operation state of the predetermined etching equipment Te. 3. The method of manufacturing a semiconductor substrate according to claim 1, wherein in the etching facility monitoring step, the desired prediction algorithm is an extrapolation algorithm. 4. A collimation sputtering film forming step of forming a thin film on a semiconductor substrate, and a semiconductor substrate on which the thin film is formed by sputtering in the film forming step is discretely taken out.
A film thickness measuring step of measuring a film thickness of a thin film formed on the semiconductor substrate taken out discretely; and a semiconductor substrate on which the thin film is formed in the film forming step is loaded and A lithography step having an etching step of forming a pattern by sputtering, and sputtering obtained from the film forming step with respect to discrete film thickness measurement data for a semiconductor substrate obtained from the film thickness measuring step. For each unit of one or more semiconductor substrates to be formed in the film forming process by performing a correction based on a temporal change in film forming characteristics by a collimator estimated based on an integrated value of power and time required for And the predetermined etching is performed based on the estimated film thickness of each unit of the semiconductor substrate and the etching end time obtained from predetermined etching equipment in the etching process. The method of manufacturing a semiconductor substrate, characterized by producing a semiconductor substrate and a etching equipment monitoring step of monitoring the operating state of Bei. 5. The method of manufacturing a semiconductor substrate according to claim 1, wherein in the etching equipment monitoring step, an operation state of a predetermined etching equipment is monitored by an etching rate. 6. In the etching equipment monitoring step, an operation state of a predetermined etching equipment is determined by an etching rate,
5. The method of manufacturing a semiconductor substrate according to claim 1, wherein the monitoring is standardized by an integrated value of power and time used in the etching. 7. In the etching equipment monitoring step, an operation state of a predetermined etching equipment is monitored, and when it is determined that the operation state of the equipment exceeds a management standard, production is switched to another etching equipment. 5. The method for manufacturing a semiconductor substrate according to claim 1, wherein the instruction is given in the following. 8. The etching equipment monitoring step, wherein an operation state of a predetermined etching equipment is monitored, and a time when the operation state of the equipment exceeds a management standard is predicted. Of manufacturing a semiconductor substrate. 9. The etching equipment monitoring step, wherein an operation state of a predetermined etching equipment is monitored and an instruction is given as to whether or not it is necessary to change an operation parameter of the equipment. Or the method of manufacturing a semiconductor substrate according to 4. 10. In the etching equipment monitoring step,
Monitoring the operating state of a given etching facility, anticipating when the operating state of the facility will exceed the management standard, and adjusting to the fluctuations in the production volume in the etching process caused by performing maintenance on the etching facility in accordance with this predicted time. 5. The method of manufacturing a semiconductor substrate according to claim 1, wherein a change in a load in a step following the etching step is estimated. 11. In the etching equipment monitoring step,
If it is found that the estimated film thickness exceeds the limit value at which the operating parameter in the etching equipment is not changed, the operating parameter of the etching equipment is calculated, and the semiconductor film having the estimated film thickness is formed. 5. The method of manufacturing a semiconductor substrate according to claim 1, wherein the calculated operation parameters are changed and controlled in accordance with the loading of the substrate. 12. In the etching equipment monitoring step,
If it is found that the estimated film thickness exceeds the limit value at which the operating parameter in the etching equipment is not changed, the operating parameter of the film forming equipment in the film forming process is adjusted so that the film thickness falls within the control value. Calculating and setting and controlling the film forming equipment, and using the expected value of the film thickness formed by the operating parameters of the new film forming equipment as the film thickness of the semiconductor substrate to be introduced into the etching equipment. The method for manufacturing a semiconductor substrate according to claim 1, wherein