A pin lifting device is disclosed and configured for moving and positioning a substrate to be processed in an atmosphere region provided by a vacuum process chamber. The pin lifting device includes a coupling part having a coupling adapted to receive a support pin adapted to contact and support the substrate, and a drive part having a drive unit adapted to cooperate with the coupling by means of an adjusting member such that the coupling is controllably adjustable from a lowered normal position to an extended support position and back. The pin lifting device also has an insulating component located between the drive part and the coupling part and providing complete galvanic isolation between the drive part and the coupling part.

Systems and apparatus for a reduced mass substrate support are disclosed, according to certain embodiments. A front side pocket is provided for support of a substrate, while a backside pocket is provided that reduces the mass of the substrate support. By providing the backside pocket, the mass of the overall substrate support is reduced, providing faster thermal cycling times for the substrate support and reducing the weight of the substrate support for transport. Lift pin systems, according to disclosed embodiments, are compatible with existing pedestal systems by providing a hollow extension from each lift pin hole that extends from a bottom of the backside pocket to provide support for lift pin insertion and operation.

A mounting table is provided. The mounting table includes a base having a first flow path, a recess, and a second flow path connected to the recess, and a variable control mechanism configured to variably control a contact area between a target object disposed on the base and a mounting surface for mounting thereon the target object by filling and discharging fluid into and from the recess through the second flow path.

Methods and systems for improving fusion bonding are disclosed. Plasma treatment is performed on a substrate prior to the fusion bonding, which leaves residual charge on the substrate to be fusion bonded. The residual charge is usually dissipated through an electrically conductive silicone cushion on a loading pin. In the methods, the amount of residual voltage on a test silicon wafer is measured. If the residual voltage is too high, this indicates the usable lifetime of the silicone cushion has passed, and the electrically conductive silicone cushion is replaced. This ensures the continued dissipation of residual charge during use in production, improving the quality of fusion bonds between substrates.

An apparatus for securing a wafer includes a chuck, at least one O-ring disposed on the chuck, a vacuum system connected to the chuck, such that the vacuum system comprises a plurality of vacuum holes through the chuck connected to one or more vacuum pumps, and a controller configured to control the height of the at least one O-ring relative to the top surface of the chuck. The controller is connected to pressure sensors capable of detecting a vacuum. The at least one O-ring may include a plurality of O-rings.

A wafer processing method includes a polyolefin sheet providing step of positioning a wafer in an inside opening of a ring frame and providing a polyolefin sheet on a back side or a front side of the wafer and on a back side of the ring frame, a uniting step of heating the polyolefin sheet as applying a pressure to the polyolefin sheet to thereby unite the wafer and the ring frame through the polyolefin sheet by thermocompression bonding, a dividing step of applying a laser beam to the wafer to form shield tunnels in the wafer, thereby dividing the wafer into individual device chips, and a pickup step of applying an ultrasonic wave to the polyolefin sheet, pushing up each device chip through the polyolefin sheet, and picking up each device chip from the polyolefin sheet.

Methods and systems for reducing substrate particle scratching using machine learning are provided. A machine learning model is trained to predict process recipe settings for a substrate temperature control process to be performed for a current substrate at a manufacturing system. First training data and second training data are generated for the machine learning model. The first training data includes historical data associated with prior process recipe settings for a prior substrate temperature control process performed for a prior substrate at a prior process chamber. The second training data is associated with a historical scratch profile of one or more surfaces of the prior substrate after performance of the prior substrate temperature control process according to the prior process recipe settings. The first training data and the second training data are provided to train the machine learning model to predict which process recipe settings for the substrate temperature control process to be performed for the current substrate correspond to a target scratch profile for one or more surfaces of the current substrate.

Embodiments described herein relate to a precision dynamic leveling mechanism for repeatedly positioning the pedestal within a process. The precision dynamic leveling mechanism includes bearing assemblies. Bearing assemblies having inner races forced against a pedestal assembly carrier and outer races forced against a guide adaptor provide nominal clearance between the inner races and outer races to allow the inner races and the outer races to slide on each other with minimal or no radial motion.

A mounting table includes a wafer mounting surface mounting a wafer, a ring mounting surface disposed at a radially outer side of the wafer mounting surface and mounting a first ring having a first engaging portion and a second ring having a second engaging portion to be engaged with the first engaging portion, a lifter pin, and a driving mechanism. The second ring has a through-hole extends to reach a bottom surface of the first engaging portion, and the ring mounting surface has a hole at a position corresponding to the through-hole. A lifter pin has a first holding part that fits into the through-hole and a second holding part that extends from the first holding part and has a part protruding from the first holding part. The lifter pin is accommodated in the hole, and a driving mechanism vertically moves the lifter pin.

A substrate processing apparatus includes a process chamber having a substrate input port, a support disposed in the process chamber and on which a substrate is mounted, an inner edge ring disposed adjacent to the support and having a smaller width than that of the substrate input port, and an outer edge ring disposed adjacent to the inner edge ring and having a greater width than that of the substrate input port.