A method for indicating a probing target for a fabricated electronic circuit including: generating an electronic, three-dimensional model based on manufacturing layout information of a fabricated circuit; obtaining, with a vision system, visual environment information for the fabricated circuit; scaling and orienting the three-dimensional model by a scaler and mapper based on the visual environment information; overlaying the three-dimensional model with the visual environment information to produce a correlated image; obtaining an identification of a desired network node of the fabricated circuit; and indicating a probing target, the probing target corresponding to the desired network node of the fabricated circuit.

A micro camera is placed in an appropriate image capturing position therefor on the basis of a center-to-center distance depending on a rotational angle of a holding table. Even in the case where the center C0 of a holding surface and the center C1 of a wafer are displaced out of alignment with each other, allowing a position in X-axis directions of an outer circumference of the wafer to vary as the holding table rotates, a control unit can make an image capturing range of the micro camera follow the varying position of the outer circumference of the wafer. Therefore, the image capturing range of the micro camera can be determined with ease. Both a surface of the wafer and the outer circumference of the wafer can be inspected simply when two cameras are moved along the X-axis directions by a single X-axis moving mechanism.

In a method of optimizing a lithography model in a lithography simulation, a mask is formed in accordance with a given layout, a wafer is printed using the mask, a pattern formed on the printed wafer is measured, a wafer pattern is simulated using a wafer edge bias table and the given mask layout, a difference between the simulated wafer pattern and the measured pattern is obtained, and the wafer edge table is adjusted according to the difference.

A semiconductor apparatus includes a transfer chamber, an annealing station, a robot arm, an edge detector and a trigger device. The transfer chamber is configured to interface with an electroplating apparatus. The robot arm is arranged to transfer a wafer from the transfer chamber to the annealing station. The edge detector, disposed over a predetermined location between the transfer chamber and the annealing station, comprises a first charge-coupled device (CCD) sensor and a second CCD sensor. When the robot arm is carrying the wafer to pass through the predetermined location, the first CCD sensor and the second CCD sensor are located over a first portion and a second portion of the edge bevel removal area respectively, and the trigger device is configured to activate the first CCD sensor and the second CCD sensor to capture an image of the first portion and an image of the second portion respectively.

A processing method in one embodiment includes: a step that takes an image of the end face of a reference substrate, whose warp amount is known, over the whole periphery thereof using a camera to obtain shape data of the end face of the reference substrate; a step that takes an image of the end face of a substrate over the whole periphery thereof using a camera to obtain shape data of the end face of the substrate; a step that calculates warp amount of the substrate based on the obtained shape data; a step that forms a resist film on a surface of the substrate; a step that determines the supply position from which an organic solvent is to be supplied to a peripheral portion of the resist film and dissolves the peripheral portion by the solvent supplied from the supply position to remove the same from the substrate.

In a substrate processing apparatus according to the invention, a light source and an imager are arranged at a position distant from an object to be imaged such as a substrate, whereas a head unit is arranged at an imaging position. Diffused light is generated by diffusing and reflecting illumination light from the light source and illuminated a peripheral edge part of the object to be imaged. Further, reflected light from the peripheral edge part illuminated with the diffused light is guided to the imager, whereby the peripheral edge part is imaged by the imager.

There is provided an inspection device allowing surely measuring irregular-shaped parts such as a bevel of a wafer while saving space. An inspection device 100 is provided with outer periphery illuminating units 11, 111 for illuminating an outer peripheral region AP of a wafer WA being a target, and an outer periphery imaging unit that images the outer peripheral region AP of the wafer WA. The outer periphery illuminating units 11, 111 have arcuate illuminating units 11a, 111a that are arranged along a partial region of a circumference CI centered on a reference axis SA and illuminate a predetermined region A1 on the reference axis SA, and the reference axis SA of the arcuate illuminating units 11a, 111a extends in a direction crossing the tangent direction along which an outer peripheral part UA of the wafer WA extends.

Disclosed is a method for analyzing a shape of a wafer. The method includes measuring external shapes of a plurality of wafers, detecting a first point having a maximum curvature in an edge region of each wafer from measured values acquired in the measuring the external shapes of the wafers, detecting a second point spaced apart from the first point in a direction towards an apex of a corresponding one of the wafers, measuring a first angle formed between a first line configured to connect the first point and the second point and a front side of the corresponding one of the wafers, forming a thin film layer on a surface of each wafer, measuring a thickness profile of the thin film layer, and confirming a wafer in which a maximum value of the thickness profile of the thin film layer is the smallest among the wafers.

Embodiments described herein provide for a defect detection system and method suitable for detecting defects on an edge of a wafer. The method includes placing at least two wafers sequentially on a conveyor. Images of at least the edges of each wafer placed on the conveyor are captured and sent to a controller. A defect detection software combines the images to show the edges of the wafers in a virtual stack. The virtual stack allows for a pattern of defects to be identified. The pattern of defects in close proximity will allow for identification of the defects in the edges of the wafers.

An edge position detecting apparatus for detecting a position of an edge of a disk-shaped workpiece includes a chuck table having a holding surface for holding the workpiece thereon, a laser displacement gage having a laser applying unit including a light source, for applying a linear laser beam shaped into a linear shape perpendicular to a direction of travel from the light source toward the holding surface, across the edge of the workpiece, and a beam detecting unit including a plurality of photoelectric transducers arrayed at predetermined spaced intervals along a direction for detecting a reflection of the linear laser beam, a moving mechanism for moving the laser displacement gage and the chuck table relatively to each other along the longitudinal direction, and a calculating unit for calculating the position of the edge on the basis of information of a change in an amount of the detected reflection.