Apparatus and method for cleaning photomasks
US5634230A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventor
Key dates
| Filing date | May 9, 1996 |
| Grant date | Jun 3, 1997 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | May 9, 2016 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG03F1/82
- WIPO fieldOptics
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
An apparatus and associated method for removing microscopic particle contaminants from an object such as a photomask or a semiconductor wafer. The apparatus utilizes an inspection device to identify the position of any particle contaminants on the target object. Once the positions of the various particle contaminants has been identified, a probe is dispatched to the position of one of the particle contaminants. The probe removes the particle contaminant from the target object and moves to a cleaning compartment, wherein the particle contaminant is removed from the probe. The probe is then moved to the next subsequent particle contaminant until all the contaminants are removed from the target object. By removing particle contaminants one-by-one from the target object, the manufacturing yield of zero defect products is greatly increased.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.