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Benefits of unifying process control in semiconductor manufacturing

Achieve better detection, decision making, and costs through unified process control

Often in the industry, we get preoccupied with buzzwords like big data, digital twin, AI, and ML and we misinterpret these topics as goals to achieve. The real goal is to enhance factory performance. Depending on the source of the issue, there are various KPIs to focus on that help drive improved factory performance. These include how much time does it take to detect a problem, how will a decision impact production quality (Figure 1), and what is the cost of these events?

The ease of improving these metrics, as well as the ceiling to expand them, is directly linked to the way systems are implemented at a foundational level.

Figure 1: Making an impact on performance means making quality decisions quickly

Siloed work environments

With that in mind, we need to first look at legacy practices for assessing equipment and process health in a factory. Often events are assessed in silos based on their domains, with equipment being the domain of the FDC engineer. When there is a FDC event, the FDC engineer analyzes tool data to recommend a resolution to the problem. The SPC engineer’s domain is the substrate. When there’s a SPC event, this person reviews metrology charts to prescribe action. Hopefully, they talk to each other, but that’s not typically the case. Being able to assess across domains requires a high cost which is realized through throughput, impact on product quality, and capital investment.

Unifying the SPC and FDC functions

Integration of these domains can drastically reduce that cost, and that requires creating a unified platform. For us, unification represents integration at a core level across all process control systems and requires:
  • A standardized data structure, which is critical for advanced analysis and AI/ML applications
  • Shared tools to help standardize our action and reaction to events
  • A consistent UI which provides the same look and feel across applications
  • Universal management to streamline the administration of the applications
  • A standardized knowledge base that enables us to reuse expertise and lower the overall investment
  • Architecture designed to scale as factories grow

Enabling process optimization

Integrating these systems to de-silo the process changes how equipment and process health is assessed. It enables a new practice through which an event would trigger a combined action plan with the ability to assess data across domains. This results not only in resolution of the event, but in the ability to optimize the process at the same time. A better analysis across domains enables faster detection of events—helping you migrate from a reactive to proactive approach.

Conclusion

A holistic view of the equipment and process health leads to better, first-time-right decisions, and streamlines the connectivity of systems, enabling engineers to make high-quality decisions faster. This mix of integrated systems and shared access among team members lowers the impact of events and costs associated with them. In this way, manufacturers can improve factory performance quickly without compromising quality.
Figure 2: A holistic view of equipment, process health, and team collaboration perpetuates success wide and deep.

FAQs

What is the primary goal of unifying process control in a factory?

The primary goal is to enhance factory performance, but the real question is how it achieves this goal.

KPIs include the time it takes to detect a problem, the impact of decisions on production quality, and the cost associated with events.

Buzzwords can be misleading, and it’s essential to focus on practical ways to improve performance.

Legacy practices often lead to assessments in isolated domains, creating challenges in communication and a high cost for assessing issues.

Domains include equipment (FDC engineer) and substrate (SPC engineer). Siloed assessment can hinder communication and increase costs.

Effective unification requires a standardized data structure, shared tools, a consistent UI, universal management, a standardized knowledge base, and scalable architecture.

Integration reduces costs by streamlining assessments and communication across domains, leading to better analysis, faster event detection, and proactive decision-making.

A holistic view enables better, first-time-right decisions and lowers the impact and costs associated with events.
Manufacturers can shift from a reactive to proactive approach by integrating systems, sharing access among team members, and assessing data across domains.
Unifying process control leads to improved factory performance without compromising quality, resulting in cost savings and more efficient operations.

About the Author

Picture of Christopher Reeves, Global Product Manager, E3
Christopher Reeves, Global Product Manager, E3
As the Global Product Manager for the Applied E3 automation platform, Chris is responsible for the product planning and execution throughout the product lifecycle. Prior to joining Applied Materials Automation Products Group, he was a senior engineer for process and equipment controls at GlobalFoundries. Chris earned his Bachelor of Arts in Physics and Master of Science in Secondary Education and Teaching from the State University of New York at Plattsburgh.