KR102518210B1 - Multi-Sensor Tiled Camera with Flexible Electronics for Wafer Inspection - Google Patents

Abstract

The sensor unit may be disposed on the support member. Each sensor unit may include a folded flex board having a plurality of laminates and apertures, and a sensor disposed on the folded flex board such that the sensor is positioned over the apertures. This system can be used in broadband plasma inspection tools for semiconductor wafers.

Description

Multi-Sensor Tiled Camera with Flexible Electronics for Wafer Inspection

The present disclosure is directed to a wafer inspection system.

The evolution of the semiconductor manufacturing industry places greater demands on yield management and, in particular, on metrology and inspection systems. Critical dimensions continue to shrink, but the industry must reduce the time to achieve high-yield, high-value production. Minimizing the total time it takes to detect and correct yield problems determines a semiconductor manufacturer's return-on-investment (ROI).

Manufacturing semiconductor devices, such as, for example, logic and memory devices, typically involves processing a semiconductor wafer using multiple fabrication processes to form various features and multiple levels of the semiconductor devices. do. For example, lithography is a semiconductor manufacturing process that involves transferring a pattern from a reticle to a photoresist disposed on a semiconductor wafer. Additional examples of semiconductor fabrication processes include, but are not limited to, chemical-mechanical polishing (CMP), etching, deposition, and ion implantation. A plurality of semiconductor devices separated into individual semiconductor devices can be fabricated in an arrangement on a single semiconductor wafer.

Inspection processes are used at various stages during semiconductor manufacturing to detect defects on wafers to promote higher yields and thus higher profits in the manufacturing process. Inspection has always been an important part of manufacturing semiconductor devices such as integrated circuits (ICs). However, as the dimensions of semiconductor devices decrease, inspection becomes more and more important to the successful manufacture of acceptable semiconductor devices because smaller defects can cause the device to fail. For example, as the dimensions of semiconductor devices decrease, the detection of defects of decreasing size becomes necessary because more relatively small defects can cause undesirable anomalies in semiconductor devices.

However, as design rules shrink, semiconductor fabrication processes may operate closer to limits on the process' ability to perform. Smaller defects can also affect the device's electrical parameters as design rules shrink, leading to more sensitive inspections. As design rules shrink, the number of potential yield-related defects detected by inspection increases dramatically and the number of nuisance defects detected by inspection also increases significantly. Thus, more defects can be detected on the wafer, and modifying the process to remove all defects can be difficult and costly. Determining which defects actually affect the device's electrical parameters and yield allows the process control method to focus on those defects and largely ignore the others. Also, with smaller design rules, failures due to the process tend to be systematic in some cases. That is, failures due to processes tend to fail in predetermined design patterns that are frequently repeated within a design. Eliminating spatially systematic and electrically related defects can affect yield.

Each new generation of wafer inspection tools offers higher sensitivity and higher throughput. Higher throughput requires faster cameras, but also brighter light sources that can place more photons on the wafer in less time. Although brighter light sources can be produced, these brighter light sources may have reliability or cost disadvantages. Cameras can help with this by increasing the number of time delay integration (TDI) steps (eg, pixels used to integrate light for a given image) in the sensor. Once the number of TDI steps is reached, multiple sensors can be tiled to better utilize the available field of view.

Previously, single carrier electronics supporting multiple sensors were used. The common carrier approach does not allow flexible integration of each sensor. Also, since the camera cannot operate during alignment, alignment is performed without live feedback. This makes the operation difficult. There are also size limitations on the number of sensors that can be supported using a common carrier.

Previously, isolated sensor solutions providing pig-tails or flexible media have also been used. This cabling solution allows independent sensor mechanical manipulation, but does not provide a high-speed solution capable of supporting high-throughput camera requirements (eg, greater than 3 million lines per second). The number of connectors that need to be used can lead to larger volume implementations and stability issues with the connectors.

Therefore, there is a need for improved cameras for inspection of semiconductor wafers.

In a first embodiment, a camera system is provided. The camera system includes a support member and a plurality of sensor units disposed on the support member. Each sensor unit includes a folded flex board having a plurality of laminations, a sensor disposed on the folded flex board, a high-density digitizer disposed on the folded flex board, and a field programmable gate disposed on the folded flex board. contains an array The folded flexible substrate defines an aperture. The sensor is placed on a folded flexible substrate such that the sensor is positioned over the aperture.

A system may include, for example, 3 sensor units or 6 sensor units.

The sensor may be a time delay integral sensor.

The sensor can image 1536 pixels.

Two of the sensor units may be spaced apart by a distance of 5 mm to 7 mm.

A land grid array for the sensor may have a pitch of 1 mm.

The camera system may further include a processor in electronic communication with the sensor unit. The processor may be configured to stitch images from the sensor.

A broadband plasma inspection tool may include the system of the first embodiment.

In a second embodiment a method is provided. The method includes imaging a wafer with a plurality of sensor units disposed on a support member. Each sensor unit includes a folded flexible substrate having a plurality of stacks, a sensor disposed on the folded flexible substrate, a high-density digitizer disposed on the folded flexible substrate, and a field programmable gate array disposed on the folded flexible substrate. The folded flexible substrate defines an aperture. The sensor is placed on a folded flexible substrate such that the sensor is positioned over the aperture.

The method may further include stitching the image from the sensor using a processor in electronic communication with the sensor unit.

For example, 3 or 6 sensor units may be arranged on the support member.

For a more complete understanding of the nature and purpose of this disclosure, reference should be made to the following detailed description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
1 shows a perspective view of an embodiment of a camera system according to the present disclosure.
2 shows an embodiment of a flex board according to the present disclosure.
Figure 3 shows an embodiment when the flexible substrate of Figure 2 is folded.
4 is an optical representation of a field of view.
5 is a block diagram of a system including the camera system of FIG. 1;
6 is a flow diagram of an embodiment of a method according to the present disclosure.

Although claimed subject matter will be described in terms of specific embodiments, other embodiments are also within the scope of this disclosure, including embodiments that do not provide all of the benefits and features set forth in this disclosure. Various structural and logical process steps and electronic modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. Accordingly, the scope of the present disclosure is defined only by reference to the appended claims.

Embodiments disclosed herein relate to camera architectures that support multiple sensor integration in a single camera system with flexible electronics to allow for optimal field of view utilization. This can maximize the light produced by the tool. Each sensor requires many degrees of freedom to support mechanical integration and individual alignment for optimal optical performance. Flexible electronics can provide mechanical independence for the individual sensors of a tiled camera while providing a high-quality substrate for high-speed electronics, chips, and interconnects. In the modular approach disclosed herein, every tile is considered a standalone camera. All of the electronic circuitry needed to operate each individual sensor is included in the tile block. The architecture separates the opto-mechanical aspects of the design from the electronics needed to operate the sensor. This allows full camera motion during the individual alignment process.

1 shows a perspective view of an embodiment of a camera system 100 . 2 shows an embodiment of flexible substrate 103 . Figure 3 shows an embodiment of the flexible substrate of Figure 2 when folded. As shown in FIG. 1 , the camera system 100 includes a plurality of sensor units 101 on a support member 102 . Each sensor unit 101 includes a folded flexible substrate 103 having a laminate 104 as shown in FIG. 2 . Laminate 104 may extend into or into rigid sections of folded flexible substrate 103 . Laminate 104 may be an inner layer of flexible substrate 103 laminated with a rigid core from a rigid section of flexible substrate 103 . For example, the stack 104 may be folded along the dotted line in FIG. 2 or elsewhere on the stack 104 . Flexible substrate 103 also defines an aperture 105 .

As shown in FIG. 1 , sensor 106 is disposed on a flexible substrate 103 folded such that sensor 106 is disposed over aperture 105 . Sensor 106 may be secured to aperture 105 using a mechanical interposer between the sensor package and a rigid section of folded flexible substrate 103 (eg, a land grid array (LGA) interface). can In an example, a mechanical interposer may include about 2000 spring based contacts to bridge across two LGA patterns. This assembly may be held in compression by screws from the front plate and an opposite back plate or pressure plate.

Sensor 106 may be a TDI sensor or another type of sensor. The LGA for sensor 106 may have a pitch of 1 mm or other value.

In an example, sensor 106 may image 1536 pixels. Sensor 106 may be configured to image a different range of pixels, and this is just one example.

Each of the sensor units 101 may also include a high density digitizer 107 and a field programmable gate array 108 disposed on a folded flexible substrate 103 . In the example, high-density digitizer 107 is part of sensor 106 . Accordingly, all of the electronics for operating the sensor 106 may be included in the folded flexible substrate 103. All sensor control (eg, timing, gate drive) and processing (eg, image calibration) electronics may be included in or around aperture 105, so that individual sensor 106 operation is performed in a single sensor unit 101 ) are included in

A rigid flex technology with a high layer count can be used for the folded flexible substrate 103 enabling a compact form. For example, the flexible core of the folded flexible board 103 is made from DuPont's PYRALUX AP, a flexible circuit material that includes an all-polyimide, double-sided, copper-clad laminate, and the rigid core is standard 370HR board material. Other materials for the soft core or the hard core are also possible. All cores can be laminated together and parts containing only flexible cores can be flexible. For example, soft cores are not glued together in what is commonly known as an “open book” design to allow for smaller bend radii and better flexibility. The number of layers, the number of vias, and the size of the vias can increase the complexity of manufacturing the folded flexible substrate 103 .

As shown in FIG. 1 , three sensor units 101 may be included in the camera system 100 . In another example, camera system 100 may include six sensor units 101 . Other numbers of sensor units 101 are possible. For example, four or five sensor units 101 may be used.

Although shown as adjacent, the sensor units 101 may be spaced apart by a distance of 5 mm to 7 mm.

4 is an optical representation of a field of view. Previously, two cameras were used. This is illustrated by two vertical rectangles 109 . The spacing of the sensor units was constrained by the second camera (ie the second vertical rectangle 109 ) since all parts of the field of view of FIG. 4 need to be imaged. Six sensors 106 can now be used. For example, a two camera system with three sensors 106 each may be used, but other numbers of sensors 106 are possible provided there is no scanning gap. The sensors 106 disclosed herein have overlap (e.g., an image is detected by two or more sensors) to stitch images together. This provides better light utilization because with six sensors 106 more than twice the amount of light is imaged in the outer circle of FIG. 4 during the swath.

Tiles (eg, sensors) can be accurately placed to optimize image performance. This layout can create demanding electromechanical requirements for the tile (eg, discrete sensor) package design and tile carrier substrate (eg, flexible substrate). This design minimizes wasted (eg, not collected) light and has no gaps in the swathing of the TDI sensor. There may be overlap between tiles to put the image back together.

There may only be about 6 mm of space between the sensor packages. Smaller sensors such as 1024 pixel sensors may be used. For example, a 512 pixel sensor may be used and more sensors may be included. These smaller sensors can be configured to fit into the camera system 100 with a package or routing space overhead.

It can be difficult to implement a larger sensor because the larger the sensor, the larger the space between the sensor packages. As the sensor size increases, the sensor yield decreases, affecting the wafer occupancy on the wafer used to produce the sensor.

The modular implementation disclosed herein allows individual mechanical manipulation while using the camera to acquire real-time images. The sensor can be connected to the motherboard by a single connector on a flexible circuit. This allows image collection during tile alignment. Embodiments disclosed herein can provide high reliability because multiple connectors are avoided when using a rigid flexible circuit board approach. In general, many connectors present a point of failure.

Embodiments disclosed herein also provide a high quality substrate in the form of a flexible substrate 103 to sustain high speed operation. Connectors or signal breaks in the flexible substrate 103 between the various rigid sections may be reduced or eliminated.

A 10 Gbps link can operate on this board. A tile carrier board stack-up can combine laser-drilled micro-vias and flexible cores allowing high-quality designs for 10 Gbps links. Micro vias can enable 10G routing without via stubs.

By eliminating connectors, the embodiments disclosed herein are compact. When a cable connector solution is used, there may be problems with the connector not taking up a lot of space and reducing pin count (eg, more than 2000 connections per sensor).

5 is a block diagram of a system including the camera system of FIG. 1; System 200 includes an optics-based subsystem 201 . In general, the optics-based subsystem 201 directs light onto a specimen 202 (or scans the light over the specimen 202) and detects light from the specimen 202 to obtain information about the specimen 202. configured to generate an optical-based output for In one embodiment, specimen 202 includes a wafer. The wafer may include any wafer known in the art. In another embodiment, the specimen includes a reticle. The reticle may include any reticle known in the art.

In the embodiment of system 200 shown in FIG. 5 , optics-based subsystem 201 includes an illumination subsystem configured to direct light onto specimen 202 . The lighting subsystem includes at least one light source. For example, as shown in FIG. 5 , the lighting subsystem includes a light source 203 . In one embodiment, the illumination subsystem is configured to direct light onto specimen 202 at one or more angles of incidence, which may include one or more oblique angles and/or one or more vertical angles. For example, as shown in FIG. 5 , light from light source 203 passes through optical element 204 and then through lens 205 and is directed to specimen 202 at an oblique angle of incidence. The oblique angle of incidence may include any suitable oblique incidence angle, which may vary depending on, for example, the characteristics of the specimen 202 .

The optics-based subsystem 201 can be configured to direct light to the specimen 202 at different times and at different angles of incidence. For example, optics-based subsystem 201 may be configured to change one or more characteristics of one or more elements of the illumination subsystem such that light may be directed to specimen 202 at a different angle of incidence than shown in FIG. 5 . can In one such example, the optics-based subsystem 201 includes a light source 203, an optical element 204, and a lens ( 205) may be configured to move.

In some examples, optics-based subsystem 201 can be configured to direct light to specimen 202 at more than one angle of incidence at the same time. For example, an illumination subsystem may include more than one illumination channel, and one of the illumination channels may include light source 203, optical element 204 and lens 205 as shown in FIG. and another one of the illumination channels (not shown) may include similar elements that may be configured differently or identically, or may include at least one light source and possibly as described further herein. may contain one or more other components, such as If this light is directed to the specimen at the same time as other light, one or more properties (eg, wavelength, polarization, etc.) of the light directed to the specimen 202 at different angles of incidence will be different from illumination of the specimen 202 at the different angles of incidence. The light generated can be different so that the detector(s) can be distinguished from each other.

In another example, the lighting subsystem may include only one light source (eg, light source 203 shown in FIG. 5 ), and light from the light source may be directed to one or more optical elements (shown in FIG. 5 ) of the lighting subsystem. (e.g., based on wavelength, polarization, etc.) into different optical paths. Light from each of the different optical paths can then be directed to specimen 202 . Multiple illumination channels may be configured to direct light to specimen 202 at the same time or at different times (eg, when different illumination channels are used to sequentially illuminate a specimen). In another example, the same illumination channel can be configured to direct light with different characteristics to specimen 202 at different times. For example, in some examples, optical element 204 can be configured as a spectral filter, the properties of which can be configured in a variety of different ways (eg, different wavelengths of light can be directed to specimen 202 at different times). eg by exchanging spectral filters). The illumination subsystem may have any other suitable configuration known in the art for directing light having different or identical characteristics to specimen 202 sequentially or simultaneously at different or equal angles of incidence.

In one embodiment, light source 203 may include a broadband plasma (BBP) source, and system 200 is a BBP inspection tool. In this way, the light generated by light source 203 and directed to specimen 202 may include broadband light. However, the light source may include any other suitable light source such as a laser. The laser may include any suitable laser known in the art and may be configured to produce light at any suitable wavelength or wavelengths known in the art. Also, the laser can be configured to produce monochromatic or nearly monochromatic light. In this way, the laser may be a narrowband laser. Light source 203 may also include a multi-color light source that produces light at multiple discrete wavelengths or wavelength bands.

Light from optical element 204 may be focused onto specimen 202 by lens 205 . Although lens 205 is shown in FIG. 5 as a single refractive optical element, it should be understood that in practice lens 205 may include multiple refractive and/or reflective optical elements that, when coupled, focus light from the optical element onto the specimen. do. The illumination subsystem shown in FIG. 5 and described herein may include any other suitable optical elements (not shown). Examples of such optical elements include polarization component(s), spectral filter(s), spatial filter(s), reflective optical element(s), apodizers, which may include any such suitable optical elements known in the art. (s), beam splitter(s) (eg, beam splitter 213), aperture(s), and the like. Additionally, the optics-based subsystem 201 may be configured to change one or more elements of the lighting subsystem based on the type of lighting to be used to generate the optics-based output.

The optics-based subsystem 201 may also include a scanning subsystem configured to cause light to be scanned over the specimen 202 . For example, optical-based subsystem 201 may include stage 206 upon which specimen 202 is placed during optical-based output generation. The scanning subsystem can be any suitable mechanical and/or robotic assembly (including stage 206) that can be configured to move specimen 202 such that light can be scanned over specimen 202. can include Additionally or alternatively, optics based subsystem 201 may be configured such that one or more optical elements of optics based subsystem 201 perform some scanning of light over specimen 202 . The light may be scanned over the specimen 202 in any suitable manner, such as in a serpentine-like path or in a helical path.

Optical based subsystem 201 further includes one or more detection channels. At least one of the one or more detection channels includes a detector configured to detect light from specimen 202 due to illumination of specimen 202 by the subsystem and to generate an output in response to the detected light. For example, optical-based subsystem 201 shown in FIG. 5 includes two detection channels, one detection channel being formed by collector 207, element 208, and detector 209; Another detection channel is formed by the collector 210 , the device 211 , and the camera system 100 . As shown in Figure 5, the two detection channels are configured to collect and detect light at different collection angles. In some examples, both detection channels are configured to detect scattered light, and the detection channels are configured to detect light scattered at different angles from specimen 202 . However, one or more detection channels may be configured to detect another type of light (eg, reflected light) from specimen 202 .

As further shown in Figure 5, both detection channels are shown positioned in the plane of the paper and the illumination subsystem is also shown positioned in the plane of the paper. Thus, in this embodiment, both detection channels are located in the plane of incidence (eg, centered). However, one or more detection channels may be located outside the plane of incidence. For example, the detection channel formed by collector 210, element 211 and camera system 100 may be configured to collect and detect light scattered out of the plane of incidence. Accordingly, such a detection channel may be generally referred to as a "side" channel, and such a side channel may be centered in a plane substantially perpendicular to the plane of incidence.

Although FIG. 5 shows an embodiment of optical-based subsystem 201 that includes two detection channels, optical-based subsystem 201 may have a different number of detection channels (e.g., only one detection channel). channel or two or more detection channels). In one such example, the detection channel formed by the collector 210, the device 211, and the camera system 100 may form one side channel as described above, and the optics-based subsystem 201 may It may include an additional detection channel (not shown) formed as another side channel located on the opposite side of the plane of incidence. Thus, the optics-based subsystem 201 includes a collector 207, a device 208, and a detector 209 centered in the plane of incidence and at a scattering angle(s) normal to or close to the surface of the specimen 202. It is configured to collect and detect light. Accordingly, this detection channel may be generically referred to as a “top” channel, and the optics-based subsystem 201 may also include two or more side channels configured as described above. As such, the optics-based subsystem 201 may include at least three channels (ie, one top channel and two side channels), each having its own collector, each of the other collectors. configured to collect light at different scattering angles than each other.

As discussed above, each of the detection channels included in the optics-based subsystem 201 may be configured to detect scattered light. Accordingly, the optics-based subsystem 201 shown in FIG. 5 may be configured for dark field (DF) output generation for a specimen 202 . However, the optics-based subsystem 201 may also or alternatively include detection channel(s) configured for bright field (BF) output generation for the specimen 202 . In other words, the optics-based subsystem 201 may include at least one detection channel configured to detect light specularly reflected from the specimen 202 . Thus, the optical-based subsystem 201 described herein may be configured for DF only, BF only, or both DF and BF imaging. Although each of the collectors is shown in FIG. 5 as a single refractive optical element, it should be understood that each of the collectors may include one or more refractive optical die(s) and/or one or more reflective optical element(s).

The one or more detection channels may include any suitable detectors known in the art. For example, the detector may include a photo-multiplier tube (PMT), a charge coupled device (CCD), a TDI camera (eg, cameras included in the camera system 100 of FIG. 1), and any other suitable detector known in the art. Detectors may include non-imaging detectors or imaging detectors. In this way, if the detectors are non-imaging detectors, each detector may be configured to detect certain characteristics of the scattered light, such as intensity, but may not be configured to detect such characteristics, such as a function of position within the imaging plane. . As such, the output produced by each of the detectors included in each of the detection channels of the optical-based subsystem may be a signal or data, but not an image signal or image data. In such an example, a processor such as processor 214 may be configured to generate an image of specimen 202 from the non-imaging output of the detector. However, in other examples, the detectors may be configured as imaging detectors configured to generate imaging signals or image data. Accordingly, the optical-based subsystem may be configured to generate optical images or other optical-based outputs described herein in a variety of ways.

FIG. 5 is intended to generally illustrate the configuration of an optical-based subsystem 201 that may be included in a system embodiment described herein or capable of generating an optical-based output used by a system embodiment described herein. It is noted that provided herein. The configuration of the optics-based subsystem 201 described herein may be modified to optimize the performance of the optics-based subsystem 201, as is commonly done when designing commercial power acquisition systems. In addition, the systems described herein may be implemented using existing systems (eg, by adding functionality described herein to an existing system). For some such systems, the methods described herein may be provided as optional functionality of the system (eg, in addition to other functionality of the system). Alternatively, the system described herein may be designed as an entirely new system.

Processor 214 may transmit system 200 in any suitable manner (eg, over one or more transmission media, which may include wired and/or wireless transmission media) so that processor 214 may receive output. ) can be combined with the components of Processor 214 may be configured to perform a number of functions using this output. System 200 may receive instructions or other information from processor 214 . Processor 214 and/or electronic data storage unit 215 may optionally be in electronic communication with a wafer inspection tool, wafer metrology tool, or wafer review tool (not shown) to receive additional information or send instructions. For example, processor 214 and/or electronic data storage unit 215 may be in electronic communication with a scanning electron microscope (SEM).

The processor 214, other system(s), or other subsystem(s) described herein may be used for personal computer systems, image computers, mainframe computer systems, workstations, network devices, Internet devices, or other devices. It may be part of a variety of systems, including The subsystem(s) or system(s) may also include any suitable processor known in the art, such as a parallel processor. Further, the subsystem(s) or system(s) may include platforms with high-speed processing and software as stand-alone or networked tools.

Processor 214 and electronic data storage unit 215 may be located in or otherwise part of system 200 or another device. In an example, processor 214 and electronic data storage unit 215 may be part of a stand-alone control unit or may be within a centralized quality control unit. Multiple processors 214 or electronic data storage units 215 may be used.

Processor 214 may be implemented by virtually any combination of hardware, software, and firmware. Also, the functions as described herein may be performed by one unit, or may be divided into different components, each component eventually implemented by any combination of hardware, software, and firmware. It can be. Program codes or instructions for processor 214 to implement various methods and functions may be stored in a readable storage medium, such as, for example, the memory of electronic data storage unit 215 or other memory.

If system 200 includes more than one processor 214, different subsystems may be coupled together so that images, data, information, instructions, etc. may be transmitted between subsystems. For example, one subsystem may be coupled to additional subsystem(s) by any suitable transmission medium, which may include any suitable wired and/or wireless transmission medium known in the art. Two or more of these subsystems may also be effectively coupled by a shared computer readable storage medium (not shown).

Processor 214 may be configured to perform a number of functions using outputs of system 200 or other outputs. For example, processor 214 may be configured to transmit output to electronic data storage unit 215 or another storage medium. Processor 214 may be further configured as described in this disclosure.

Processor 214 may be configured according to any of the embodiments described herein. Processor 214 may also be configured to perform other functions or additional steps using the output of system 200 or using images or data from other sources.

The various steps, functions, and/or operations of the systems 200 and methods disclosed herein may include one or more of electronic circuits, logic gates, multiplexers, programmable logic devices, ASICs, analog or digital controls/switches, microcontrollers, or computing systems. is performed by Program instructions implementing methods such as those described herein may be transmitted over or stored on carrier media. The carrier medium may include a storage medium such as read only memory, random access memory, magnetic or optical disk, non-volatile memory, solid state memory, magnetic tape, and the like. A carrier medium may include a transmission medium such as a wire, cable, or wireless transmission link. For example, the various steps described throughout this disclosure may be performed by a single processor 214 or, alternatively, multiple processors 214. Additionally, the different subsystems of system 200 may include one or more computing or logic systems. Therefore, the foregoing description should be construed as merely illustrative and not limiting of the present disclosure.

In the example, processor 214 communicates with system 200 . Processor 214 may be configured to stitch images from a sensor of camera system 100 .

Additional embodiments relate to a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing program instructions executable on a controller for performing a computer-implemented method for determining the height of an illuminated area on a surface of a specimen, as disclosed herein. do. In particular, as shown in FIG. 5 , electronic data storage unit 215 or other storage medium may include a non-transitory computer readable medium containing program instructions executable on processor 214 . A computer-implemented method may include any step(s) of any method(s) described herein, including method 300 .

Program instructions implementing methods such as those described herein may be stored on computer readable media, such as, for example, electronic data storage unit 215 or other storage media. A computer readable medium may be a storage medium such as a magnetic or optical disk, magnetic tape, or any other suitable non-transitory computer readable medium known in the art.

Program instructions may be implemented in any of a variety of ways, including procedure-based techniques, component-based techniques, and/or object-oriented techniques. For example, program instructions can be ActiveX controls, C++ objects, JavaBeans, Microsoft Foundation Classes (MFC), Streaming SIMD Extensions (SSE), as desired. , or other techniques or methodologies.

6 is a flow diagram of an embodiment of a method 300 . At 301 the wafer is imaged with a sensor unit. Each sensor unit includes a folded flexible substrate having a laminate and defining an aperture; a sensor disposed on the flexible substrate folded such that the sensor is disposed over the aperture; a high-density digitizer disposed on the folded flexible substrate; and a field programmable gate array disposed on the folded flexible substrate. For example, 3 or 6 sensor units may be arranged on the support member.

At 302, the images from the sensor are stitched together using a processor in electronic communication with the sensor unit.

Each step of the method may be performed as described herein. The method may also include any other step(s) that may be performed by the processor and/or computer subsystem(s) or system(s) described herein. The steps may be performed by one or more computer systems that may be configured in accordance with any of the embodiments described herein. Further, the method described above may be performed by any of the system embodiments described herein.

Although the present disclosure has been described in terms of one or more specific embodiments, it will be understood that other embodiments of the present disclosure may be made without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. Accordingly, it is assumed that this disclosure is limited only by the appended claims and their reasonable interpretation.

Claims (13)

In the camera system,
support member; and
A plurality of sensor units disposed on the support member
Including, each of the sensor units:
a folded flex board having a plurality of laminations, the folded flex board defining an aperture;
the sensor disposed on the folded flexible substrate such that the sensor is positioned over the aperture;
a digitizer disposed on the folded flexible substrate; and
A field programmable gate array disposed on the folded flexible substrate
To include, the camera system. According to claim 1,
wherein the system includes three of the sensor units. According to claim 1,
The camera system of claim 1, wherein the system includes six of the sensor units. According to claim 1,
The camera system, wherein the sensor is a time delay integration sensor. According to claim 1,
The camera system of claim 1, wherein the sensor images 1536 pixels. According to claim 1,
The camera system, wherein the two sensor units are spaced apart by a distance of 5 mm to 7 mm. According to claim 1,
A camera system, wherein a land grid array for the sensor has a pitch of 1 mm. According to claim 1,
and a processor in electronic communication with the sensor units, wherein the processor is configured to stitch images from the sensors. A broadband plasma inspection tool comprising the camera system of claim 1 . in the method,
Imaging a wafer using a plurality of sensor units disposed on a support member.
Including, each of the sensor units:
a folded flexible substrate having a plurality of stacks, the folded flexible substrate defining an aperture;
the sensor disposed on the folded flexible substrate such that the sensor is positioned over the aperture;
a digitizer disposed on the folded flexible substrate; and
A field programmable gate array disposed on the folded flexible substrate
To include, the method. According to claim 10,
stitching images from the sensors using a processor in electronic communication with the sensor units. According to claim 10,
wherein three of the sensor units are disposed on the support member. According to claim 10,
and wherein six of the sensor units are disposed on the support member.

Images