Statistical Methods for Semiconductor Manufacturing

In this thesis techniques for non-parametric modeling, machine learning, filtering and prediction and run-to-run control for semiconductor manufacturing are described. In particular, algorithms have been developed for two major applications area: - Virtual Metrology (VM) systems; - Predictive Maintenance (PdM) systems. Both technologies have proliferated in the past recent years in the semiconductor industries, called fabs, in order to increment productivity and decrease costs. VM systems aim of predicting quantities on the wafer, the main and basic product of the semiconductor industry, that may be physically measurable or not. These quantities are usually ’costly’ to be measured in economic or temporal terms: the prediction is based on process variables and/or logistic information on the production that, instead, are always available and that can be used for modeling without further costs. PdM systems, on the other hand, aim at predicting when a maintenance action has to be performed. This approach to maintenance management, based like VM on statistical methods and on the availability of process/logistic data, is in contrast with other classical approaches: - Run-to-Failure (R2F), where there are no interventions performed on the machine/process until a new breaking or specification violation happens in the production; - Preventive Maintenance (PvM), where the maintenances are scheduled in advance based on temporal intervals or on production iterations. Both aforementioned approaches are not optimal, because they do not assure that breakings and wasting of wafers will not happen and, in the case of PvM, they may lead to unnecessary maintenances without completely exploiting the lifetime of the machine or of the process. The main goal of this thesis is to prove through several applications and feasibility studies that the use of statistical modeling algorithms and control systems can improve the efficiency, yield and profits of a manufacturing environment like the semiconductor one, where lots of data are recorded and can be employed to build mathematical models. We present several original contributions, both in the form of applications and methods. The introduction of this thesis will be an overview on the semiconductor fabrication process: the most common practices on Advanced Process Control (APC) systems and the major issues for engineers and statisticians working in this area will be presented. Furthermore we will illustrate the methods and mathematical models used in the applications. We will then discuss in details the following applications: - A VM system for the estimation of the thickness deposited on the wafer by the Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD) process, that exploits Fault Detection and Classification (FDC) data is presented. In this tool a new clustering algorithm based on Information Theory (IT) elements have been proposed. In addition, the Least Angle Regression (LARS) algorithm has been applied for the first time to VM problems. - A new VM module for multi-step (CVD, Etching and Litography) line is proposed, where Multi-Task Learning techniques have been employed. - A new Machine Learning algorithm based on Kernel Methods for the estimation of scalar outputs from time series inputs is illustrated. - Run-to-Run control algorithms that employ both the presence of physical measures and statistical ones (coming from a VM system) is shown; this tool is based on IT elements. - A PdM module based on filtering and prediction techniques (Kalman Filter, Monte Carlo methods) is developed for the prediction of maintenance interventions in the Epitaxy process. - A PdM system based on Elastic Nets for the maintenance predictions in Ion Implantation tool is described. Several of the aforementioned works have been developed in collaborations with major European semiconductor companies in the framework of the European project UE FP7 IMPROVE (Implementing Manufacturing science solutions to increase equiPment pROductiVity and fab pErformance); such collaborations will be specified during the thesis, underlying the practical aspects of the implementation of the proposed technologies in a real industrial environment

Gestion dynamique des connaissances de maintenance pour des environnements de production de haute technologie à fort mix produit

The constant progress in electronic technology, the short commercial life of products, and the increasing diversity of customer demand are making the semiconductor industry a production environment constrained by the continuous change of product mix and technologies. In such environment, success depends on the ability to develop and industrialize new products in required competitive time while keeping a good level of cost, yield and cycle time criteria. These criteria can be ensured by high and sustainable availability of production capacity which needs appropriate maintenance policies in terms of diagnosis, supervision, planning and operating protocols. At the start of this study, the FMEA approach (analysis of failure modes, effects and criticality) was only mobilized to capitalize the expert’s knowledge for maintenance policies management. However, the evolving nature of the industrial context requires knowledge updating at appropriate frequencies in order to adapt the operational procedures to equipment and processes behavior changes.This thesis aims to show that the knowledge update can be organized by setting up an operational methodology combine both Bayesian networks and FMEA method. In this approach, existing knowledge and know-how skills are initially capitalized in terms of cause to effect links using the FMEA method in order to prioritize maintenance actions and prevent their consequences on the equipment, the product quality and personal safety. This knowledge and expertise are then used to develop unified operating procedures for expert’s knowledge and know-how sharing. The causal links stored in the FMEA are modeled in an operational Bayesian network (BN-O), in order to enable the assessment of maintenance actions effectiveness and, hence, the relevance of existing capitalized knowledge. In an uncertain and highly variable environment, the proper execution of procedures is measured using standards maintenance performance measurement indicators (MPM). Otherwise, the accuracy of existing knowledge can be assessed as a function of the O-BN model accuracy. Any drift of these criteria leads to learning a new unsupervised Bayesian network (U-BN) to discover new causal relations from historical data. The structural difference between O-BN (built using experts judgments) and U-BN (learned from data) highlights potential new knowledge that need to be analyzed and validated by experts to modify the existing FMEA and update associated maintenance procedures.The proposed methodology has been tested in a production workshop constrained by high product mix to demonstrate its ability to dynamically renew expert knowledge and improve the efficiency of maintenance actions. This experiment led to 30% decrease in failure occurrence due to inappropriate maintenance actions. This is certifying a better quality of knowledge modeled in the tools provided by this thesis.Le progrès constant des technologies électroniques, la courte durée de vie commerciale des produits, et la diversité croissante de la demande client font de l’industrie du semi-conducteur un environnement de production contraint par le changement continu des mix produits et des technologies. Dans un tel environnement, le succès dépend de la capacité à concevoir et à industrialiser de nouveaux produits rapidement tout en gardant un bon niveau de critères de coût, rendement et temps de cycle. Une haute disponibilité des capacités de production est assurée par des politiques de maintenance appropriées en termes de diagnostic, de supervision, de planification et des protocoles opératoires. Au démarrage de cette étude, l’approche AMDEC (analyse des modes de défaillance, leurs effets et de leur criticité) était seule mobilisée pour héberger les connaissances et le savoir-faire des experts. Néanmoins, la nature évolutive du contexte industriel requiert la mise à jour à des fréquences appropriées de ces connaissances pour adapter les procédures opérationnelles aux changements de comportements des équipements et des procédés. Cette thèse entend montrer que la mise à jour des connaissances peut être organisée en mettant en place une méthodologie opérationnelle basée sur les réseaux bayésiens et la méthode AMDEC. Dans cette approche, les connaissances et les savoir-faire existants sont tout d’abord capitalisés en termes des liens de cause à effet à l’aide de la méthode d’AMDEC pour prioriser les actions de maintenance et prévenir leurs conséquences sur l’équipement, le produit et la sécurité des personnels. Ces connaissances et savoir-faire sont ensuite utilisés pour concevoir des procédures opérationnelles standardisées permettant le partage des savoirs et savoir-faire des experts. Les liens causaux stockés dans l’AMDEC sont modélisés dans un réseau bayésien opérationnel (O-BN), afin de permettre l’évaluation d’efficacité des actions de maintenance et, par là même, la pertinence des connaissances existantes capitalisées. Dans un contexte incertain et très variable, l’exécution appropriée des procédures est mesurée à l’aide des indicateurs standards de performance de maintenance (MPM) et la précision des connaissances existantes en évaluant la précision de l’O-BN. Toute dérive de ces critères conduit à l'apprentissage d'un nouveau réseau bayésien non-supervisé (U-BN) pour découvrir de nouvelles relations causales à partir de données historiques. La différence structurelle entre O-BN et U-BN met en évidence de nouvelles connaissances potentielles qui sont validées par les experts afin de modifier l’AMDEC existante ainsi que les procédures de maintenance associées. La méthodologie proposée a été testée dans un des ateliers de production contraint par un haut mix de produits pour démontrer sa capacité à renouveler dynamiquement les connaissances d’experts et d'améliorer l'efficacité des actions de maintenance. Cette expérimentation a conduit à une diminution de 30% des reprises d’opérations de maintenance attestant une meilleure qualité des connaissances modélisées dans les outils fournis par cette thèse