Capacity Analysis of Automated Material Handling Systems in Semiconductor Fabs

A critical aspect of semiconductor manufacturing is the design and analysis of material handling and production control polices to optimize fab performance. As wafer sizes have increased, semiconductor fabs have moved to-ward the use of automated material handling systems (AMHS). However, the behavior of AMHS and the effects of AMHS on fab productivity is not well understood. This research involves the development of a design and analysis methodology for evaluating the throughput capacity of AMHS. A set of simulation experiments is used to evaluate the throughput capacity of an AMHS and the effects on fab performance measures. The analysis uses SEMATECH fab data for full semiconductor fabs to evaluate the AMHS throughput capacity

A Simulation Study of Automated Material Handling Systems in Semiconductor Fabs

A critical aspect of semiconductor manufacturing is the design and analysis of material handling and production control polices to optimize fab performance. As wafer sizes have increased, semiconductor fabs have moved toward the use of automated material handling systems (AMHS). However, the behavior of AMHS and the effects of AMHS on fab productivity are not well understood. The first aspect of the research involves the development of a design and analysis methodology for evaluating the throughput capacity of AMHS. A set of simulation experiments is used to evaluate the throughput capacity of an AMHS and the effects on fab performance measures. This research utilizes two simulations of SEMATECH fab data of actual production fabs. The AMHS vehicle utilization point at which fab performance is degraded is studied. Results show a large increase in lot cycle time at a vehicle utilization of 75%, far below the maximum 100% utilization. These results stress the importance of using a performance indicator that takes into account the performance of the entire fab and not only the AMHS. The second aspect of this research involves the study of AMHS and tool dispatching rules. The hypothesis of this study is that fab performance is affected by both the choice of AMHS and tool dispatching rules as well as their interaction. A full factorial design experiment is conducted to test this hypothesis. Results show that for each fab tested the vehicle rules, machine rules, and their interactions are significant using an ANOVA test on average lot cycle time and other fab performance measures. Additional analyses are conducted to identify robust combinations of AMHS and tool dispatching rules among those tested. The overall results of this study indicate that AMHS and tool dispatching rules effect fab performance and must be considered together when trying to optimize fab performance

Semiconductor Manufacturing Basics, Comparison Between Agent Based and Discrete Event Simulation

El trabajo consta de dos partes principales, la descripción detallada y caracterización de la industria de los semiconductores entendida en el contexto del transporte de materiales, donde los procesos de fabricación requeridos para conseguir el producto final son tan numerosos que hacen obligatorio el uso de tecnologías de simulación con el fin de optimizar la eficiencia en tanto la fabricación como el almacenamiento. Posteriormente se centra en el dilema creado en los últimos años debido a la utilización de diferentes técnicas y enfoques de simulación, teniendo como objeto de estudio los enfoques Agent Based y Discrete Event realiza una detallada comparativa donde se exponen argumentos a favor y en contra de la utilización de cada uno de estos enfoques dependiendo del modelado que se deba realizar siendo finalmente el usuario quien toma la decisión última según el tipo de sistema que desee modelar.Departamento de Ingeniería Energética y FluidomecánicaGrado en Ingeniería Mecánic

Cycle Time Analysis For Photolithography Tools In Semiconductor Manufacturing Industry With Simulation Model : A Case Study [TR940. S618 2008 f rb].

Perkembangan industri semikonduktor dalam bidang fabrikasi biasanya melibatkan kos pelaburan yang tinggi terutamanya dalam alatan photolithography. The industry of semiconductor wafer fabrication (“fab”) has invested a huge amount of capital on the manufacturing equipments particular in photolithograph

Development and Simulation Assessment of Semiconductor Production System Enhancements for Fast Cycle Times

Long cycle times in semiconductor manufacturing represent an increasing challenge for the industry and lead to a growing need of break-through approaches to reduce it. Small lot sizes and the conversion of batch processes to mini-batch or single-wafer processes are widely regarded as a promising means for a step-wise cycle time reduction. Our analysis with discrete-event simulation and queueing theory shows that small lot size and the replacement of batch tools with mini-batch or single wafer tools are beneficial but lot size reduction lacks persuasive effectiveness if reduced by more than half. Because the results are not completely convincing, we develop a new semiconductor tool type that further reduces cycle time by lot streaming leveraging the lot size reduction efforts. We show that this combined approach can lead to a cycle time reduction of more than 80%

A Distributed-Ledger, Edge-Computing Architecture for Automation and Computer Integration in Semiconductor Manufacturing

Contemporary 300mm semiconductor manufacturing systems have highly automated and digitalized cyber-physical integration. They suffer from the profound problems of integrating large, centralized legacy systems with small islands of automation. With the recent advances in disruptive technologies, semiconductor manufacturing has faced dramatic pressures to reengineer its automation and computer integrated systems. This paper proposes a Distributed- Ledger, Edge-Computing Architecture (DLECA) for automation and computer integration in semiconductor manufacturing. Based on distributed ledger and edge computing technologies, DLECA establishes a decentralized software framework where manufacturing data are stored in distributed ledgers and processed locally by executing smart contracts at the edge nodes. We adopt an important topic of automation and computer integration for semiconductor research & development (R&D) operations as the study vehicle to illustrate the operational structure and functionality, applications, and feasibility of the proposed DLECA software framewor

Simulation in der Computer-Chip-Produktion – Möglichkeiten und Grenzen

Der Beitrag führt zuerst in die Halbleiterfertigung und die damit verbundene innerbetriebliche Logistik, dabei vor allem das Transport- und Handhabungssystem, ein. Bei der Planung und Steuerung solcher Anlagen stellen sich sehr anspruchsvolle Aufgaben, die nur mithilfe der Simulation zu lösen sind. Hierzu wird dargestellt, wie sich der Simulationseinsatz in der Halbleiterproduktion und -logistik gestaltet. Mit der Komplexität der Prozesse und Systeme wächst natürlich auch die Komplexität der eingesetzten Simulationsmodelle – auf die Frage nach einem angemessenen Abstraktionsgrad gibt es bislang jedoch keine befriedigende Antwort. Der Beitrag stellt dazu Lösungsansätze vor und zeigt, worauf künftige Forschungsarbeiten fokussieren sollten

Cycle Time Analysis For Photolithography Tools In Semiconductor Manufacturing Industry With Simulation Model: A Case Study

Perkembangan industri semikonduktor dalam bidang fabrikasi biasanya melibatkan kos pelaburan yang tinggi terutamanya dalam alatan photolithography. Perkembangan pesat dalam bidang industri semikonduktor kini telah memerangsangkan teknik untuk mengoptimumkan penggunaan mesin-mesin dengan efektif setelah membelanjakan beribu juta dalam perlaburan. Tanpa penggunaan perisian komputer yang canggih dalam analisis, adalah sukar untuk menggunakan teknik purba dalam analisis pengiraan apabila menghadapi perkembangan produk yang semakin tinggi teknologinya. Dalam kajian ini, satu model simulasi telah dibina untuk menganalisis masa mendulu dalam alatan photolithography melalui teknik yang lebih sistematik dan efektif. Model simulasi ini telah dibina berasaskan perisian computer yang memerlukan informasi yang teliti seperti mas a memproses dan juga aliran proses dalam alatan photolithography. The industry of semiconductor wafer fabrication ("fab") has invested a huge amount of capital on the manufacturing equipments particular in photolithography area which has driven the needs to re-look at the most profitable way of utilizing and operating them efficiently. Traditional industrial engineering analysis techniques through mathematical models or static models for the studies of photolithography process are simply not adequate to analyze these complex environments. In this research, a more realistic representation of photolithography tools that can give a better prediction results and a more systematic methodology for minimizing photolithography cycle time is presented. The proposed method is to reduce waiting time and increase utilization of the photolithography process, which would result in an overall equipment cycle time reduction

Improving reuse of semiconductor equipment through benchmarking, standardization, and automation

Thesis (M.B.A.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Sloan School of Management; and, (S.M.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering; in conjunction with the Leaders for Manufacturing Program at MIT, 2006.Includes bibliographical references (p. 91-92).The 6D program at Intel® Corporation was set up to improve operations around capital equipment reuse, primarily in their semiconductor manufacturing facilities. The company was faced with a number of challenges, including differing work flows across multiple locations, lack of centralized work flow management, discontinuous inventory information, and other opportunities for cost reduction. The internship was set up to benchmark and explore potential for integration of best known methods, accumulated both inside and outside the company. Based on interviews, research and quantitative analysis, opportunities were identified for reuse of equipment shipping crates, improvement in warehouse inventory management, and changes in labor models to facilitate better knowledge capture and dissemination. As a result of this study Intel® Corporation may realize significant improvement in the areas mentioned in terms of cost reduction, process improvement and knowledge management. By using a flexible approach to problem identification and generating organizational interest in the improvements, recommendations were well received and should lead to eventual adoption.by Jacob Silber.S.M.M.B.A