US 12,236,573 B2
Optical end-pointing for integrated circuit delayering; systems and methods using the same
Jonathan Scholl, Oakwood, OH (US); Nicholas Darby, Columbus, OH (US); and Joshua Baur, Dublin, OH (US)
Assigned to Battelle Memorial Institute, Columbus, OH (US)
Filed by Battelle Memorial Institute, Columbus, OH (US)
Filed on Dec. 1, 2021, as Appl. No. 17/539,333.
Claims priority of provisional application 63/121,193, filed on Dec. 3, 2020.
Prior Publication US 2022/0180505 A1, Jun. 9, 2022
Int. Cl. G06T 7/00 (2017.01); G01N 1/32 (2006.01); G06T 7/90 (2017.01)
CPC G06T 7/0008 (2013.01) [G01N 1/32 (2013.01); G06T 7/90 (2017.01); G06T 2207/20081 (2013.01); G06T 2207/20084 (2013.01); G06T 2207/30148 (2013.01)] 20 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A system for delayering integrated circuits (ICs), comprising an optical sensor and a controller, the controller comprising a processor, a memory comprising an optical end-point (OE) module, and communications circuitry;
wherein:
the communications circuitry is configured to communicatively couple with delayering equipment that is configured to perform a delayering process on an IC;
the sensor is configured to image a surface of an IC during or after execution the delayering process by said delayering equipment, and to transmit a sensor signal indicative of a color of a surface layer of the IC to said controller;
in response to said sensor signal, the OE module is configured to cause the controller to:
determine the color of the surface layer of the IC;
determine a thickness of the surface layer of the IC based at least in part on the determined color; and
determine whether an end-point of said delayering process has been reached based at least in part on the determined thickness.