Feature Article Pressure-Based Mass Flow Control Module CRITERION D507 Series Pressure-Based Mass Flow Control Module CRITERION D507 Series Kentaro NAGAI Recently, with the increase of IoT applications for semiconductor devices, it is important to minimize process system downtime at front-edge device factories. Therefore parameters are increasing and criteria are tightening in their process line control, to detect system or component failures before their process execution. In order to satisfy these criteria, not only higher process gas flow control accuracy, minimal instrumental error, and pressure resistant flow control, but also high speed control communication and early anomaly detection are required for recent mass flow control modules. D507 series is newly lined up on D500 series to meet these strict specifications at recent semiconductor factories. Introduction With an increase in the applications of semiconductor device, minimizing the down-time of semiconductor manufacturing equipment is an important issue at stateofthe-art semiconductor plants. Therefore, in order to detect failures of manufacturing equipment and its com-ponent units in advance, semiconductor process control parameters are increasing and its specification is getting tighter in the sites of semiconductor plants. In such a situation, mass flow controllers and mass flow control modules*1 (hereinafter referred to as “MFC”) are required to have the ability of high speed communication and the function to detect its failure before occurrence recently as well as flow rate accuracy and small individual differences for process the gas, better pressure insensitive performance, to satisfy required specification. In such a situation, mass flow controllers and mass flow control modules*1 (hereinafter referred to as “MFC”) are required to have the ability of high speed communication and the function to detect its failure before occurrence recently as well as flow rate accuracy and small individual differences for process the gas, better pressure insensitive performance, to satisfy required specification. These performances and functions can also meet to severe semiconductor process control specification with the vertical structuration of memory devices. This article introduces mass flow control module of CRITERION D500series accepted at state-of-the-art semiconductor plants, the trend of of component devices control of manufacturing equipments in semiconductor plants, and EtherCAT communication model of D507-series which was developed to meet these trends. English Edition No.47 June 2017 *1: ‌ Mass flow control module consists of mass flow controllers with other necessary functions beyond flow rate control. Pressure-control MFCs realized faster response and better accuracy than conventional thermal-control MFCs by high-speed response and better stability of pressure sensor. The D500, which are HORIBA STEC’s secondgeneration Pressure-based MFCs following D200-series, have been used mainly in etching process equipment. Figure 1 shows the external appearance of a D500-series. The external dimensions of D500 MFCs are compliant with the SEMI F82 international standard on semiconductor manufacturing equipment, as is the case with our conventional MFCs. Figure 2 shows the structure of a D500. It consists of a pressure sensor for monitoring the gas line supply pressure, a gas filter for protecting the main body gas line from foreign materials, a control valve, t

Display · Pressure · Temperature · Flow Rate · Downstream pressure Connector for Digital/Analog communication Connector for Digital communication Piezoelectric Valve 32 Bit CPU Pressure sensor Pressure sensor Flow restrictor Temperature sensor Figure 2 D500 Internal structure 3D map Down Stream pressure torr P2 D/P Torr ∆P Figure 3 Flow rate and pressure property of restrictor sensors and laminar flow element restrictors (hereinafter referred to as “flow restrictor”), and a temperature sensor. The control valve is driven by a piezo-actuator with superior high-speed drive and low-power consumption...

Pressure-Based Mass Flow Control Module CRITERION D507 Series Traditional general communication Transmission image Node 1 Reception image EtherCAT communication Transmission image Node 1 Reception image Query to all node Master Master Response from all Node Figure 5 Transmission and reception of traditional communication and EtherCAT communication the control, the number of control parameters is increasing, and also their specifications are getting stricter. Since MFCs are important control devices that may affect the quality of product semiconductor devices, the specifications of the control...