KLA-Tencor has announced a new electron-beam inspection system, the eS805, which is already shipped to leading logic and chip manufacturers.
The new KLA-Tencor eS805 offers capability in detection of small defects and defects that cause electrical problems in the integrated circuit, such as opens, shorts or reliability issues, the firm noted.
The eS805 is also designed to provide supplementary information to the fab's optical inspection systems, with the goal of boosting the ability of the optical inspectors to preferentially capture defects that matter, the firm indicated.
"As our customers move toward single-digit nanometer design rules, they will need unprecedented sensitivity to defects of interest - while sampling enough of the wafer to catch a defect excursion," said Bobby Bell, executive VP of KLA-Tencor's wafer inspection group. "We believe that optical inspection will continue as the dominant defect inspection approach; its speed is essential for adequate wafer coverage, and our engineers have demonstrated some impressive ideas for stretching optical sensitivity to meet our customers' anticipated requirements. Electron-beam inspection will continue to complement optical inspection as needed."
"The new eS805 represents a significant step forward in KLA-Tencor's continually evolving e-beam/optical defect solution," Bell continued.
The eS805 is upgradeable from any previous eS3x or eS8xx-series e-beam inspection system, an approach that helps protect a fab's capital investment, KLA-Tencor said.
Article translated by Jessie Shen
