Heuristic tabu search scheduling algorithm for wet-etching systems in semiconductor wafer fabrications

To improve overall equipment efficiency(OEE) of a semiconductor wafer wet-etching system,a heuristic tabu search scheduling algorithm is proposed for the wet-etching process in the paper,with material handling robot capacity and wafer processing time constraints of the process modules considered.Firstly,scheduling problem domains of the wet-etching system(WES) are assumed and defined,and a non-linear programming model is built to maximize the throughput with no defective wafers.On the basis of the model,a scheduling algorithm based on tabu search is presented in this paper.An improved Nawaz,Enscore,and Ham(NEH) heuristic algorithm is used as the initial feasible solution of the proposed heuristic algorithm.Finally,performances of the proposed algorithm are analyzed and evaluated by simulation experiments.The results indicate that the proposed algorithm is valid and practical to generate satisfied scheduling solutions.

Modeling of photolithography process in semiconductor wafer fabrication systems using extended hybrid Petri nets

To describe a semiconductor wafer fabrication flow availably, a new modeling method of extended hybrid Petri nets （EHPNs） was proposed. To model the discrete part and continuous part of a complex photolithography process, hybrid Petri nets （HPNs） were introduced. To cope with the complexity of a photolithography process, object-oriented methods such as encapsulation and classifications were integrated with HPN models. EHPN definitions were presented on the basis of HPN models and object-oriented methods. Object-oriented hybrid Petri subnet models were developed for each typical physical object and an EHPN modeling procedure steps were structured. To demonstrate the feasibility and validity of the proposed modeling method, a real wafer photolithography case was used to illustrate the modeling procedure. dynamic modeling of a complex photolithography process effectively The modeling results indicate that the EHPNs can deal with the dynamic modeling of a complex photolithography process effectively.

A modeling method of semiconductor fabrication flows with extended knowledge hybrid Petri nets

A modeling method of extended knowledge hybrid Petri nets （EKHPNs）, incorporating object-oriented methods into hybrid Petri nets （HPNs）, was presented and used for the representation ~d modeling of semiconductor wafer fabrication flows. To model the discrete and continuous parts of a complex semiconductor wafer fabrication flow, the HPNs were introduced into the EKHPNs. Object-oriented methods were combined into the EKHPNs for coping with the complexity of the fabrication flow. Knowledge anno- tations were introduced to solve input and output conflicts of the EKHPNs. Finally, to demonstrate the validity of the EKHPN method, a real semiconductor wafer fabrication case was used to illustrate the model- ing procedure. The modeling results indicate that the proposed method can be used to model a complex semiconductor wafer fabrication flow expediently.

Machine Allocation in Semiconductor Wafer Fabrication Systems:A Simulation-Based Approach

The problem of maximizing the throughput of Semiconductor Wafer Fabrication Systems is addressed.We model the fabrication systems as a Stochastic Timed Automata and design a discrete-event simulation scheme.The simulation scheme is explicit,fast and achieves high fidelity which captures the feature of reentrant process flow and is flexible to accommodate diversified wafer lot scheduling policies.A series of Marginal Machine Allocation Algorithms are proposed to sequentially allocate machines.Numerical experiments suggest the designed methods are efficient to find good allocation solutions.