Solutions for polymer defects at plasma metal etch.

The article discusses the method developed by Equipment Engineers at Texas Instruments GFAB facility in Greenock, Scotland, for polymer defect reduction in plasma metal etch systems. It is noted that the method increases the preventive maintenance interval and decreases associated Preventive Maintenance (PM) costs. It is noted that Fab Yield (PY), Tool Availability (Ao) and Cost of Ownership (CoO) were hampered by the problem of polymer flaking on plasma metal etch systems.