US 11,929,270 B2
Unconsumed precursor monitoring
Mohamed Buhary Rinzan, Manlius, NY (US); Chunhua Song, Jamesville, NY (US); and Steve James Lakeman, Newbury Park, CA (US)
Filed by INFICON, Inc., East Syracuse, NY (US)
Filed on May 16, 2022, as Appl. No. 17/744,856.
Application 17/744,856 is a continuation of application No. 16/633,025, granted, now 11,335,575, previously published as PCT/US2018/047903, filed on Aug. 24, 2018.
Claims priority of provisional application 62/550,194, filed on Aug. 25, 2017.
Claims priority of provisional application 62/550,226, filed on Aug. 25, 2017.
Prior Publication US 2022/0285184 A1, Sep. 8, 2022
Int. Cl. H01L 21/67 (2006.01); C23C 16/44 (2006.01); C23C 16/455 (2006.01); C23C 16/52 (2006.01); G01N 29/02 (2006.01); G01N 29/036 (2006.01); H01L 21/285 (2006.01); H01L 21/66 (2006.01)
CPC H01L 21/67253 (2013.01) [C23C 16/4401 (2013.01); C23C 16/4412 (2013.01); C23C 16/45544 (2013.01); C23C 16/52 (2013.01); G01N 29/022 (2013.01); G01N 29/036 (2013.01); H01L 21/28556 (2013.01); H01L 22/26 (2013.01); G01N 2291/0255 (2013.01); G01N 2291/0256 (2013.01)] 22 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A monitoring device for monitoring a fabrication process in a fabrication system, the fabrication system comprising a process chamber and a plurality of flow components, and the monitoring device comprising:
a quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) sensor for monitoring one flow component of the plurality of flow components of the fabrication system and configured for exposure to a process chemistry in the one flow component during the fabrication process, the QCM sensor comprising a material layer, the material layer being accumulated in situ on the QCM sensor during the fabrication process; and
a controller for:
measuring resonance frequency shifts of the QCM sensor due to interactions between the material layer of the QCM sensor and the process chemistry in the one flow component during the fabrication process; and
determining a parameter of the fabrication process in the process chamber as a function of the measured resonance frequency shifts of the QCM sensor within the one flow component;
wherein the fabrication process comprises accumulating a material layer on a substrate, wherein the material layer on the substrate is the same material as the material layer of the QCM sensor.