Maxwell, I got this post from Mr. Sam on the SFAM thread. His is very knowlegeable about the subject. I hope he does not mind since I did not ask him.
To: +Bhag Karamchandani (1962 )
From: +Mr. Sam
Sep 23 1997 11:50AM EST
Reply #1965 of 1976
<<Mr. Sam : Does the IBM Cu development affect Cymer's laser business? I know
this is slightly off topic but your observations are very helpful to those of us who are by
no means fab experts.>>
No, the use of copper does not dramatically affect Cymer. Copper changes the
process flow in the following ways:
1. Metal etchers are not needed for all layers that are copper. Additional oxide etchers
may be required.
2. CMP must be used.
3. Copper plating or CVD must be used. (Semitool has the only copper dep plater that
I'm aware of for volume semiconductor applications.)
4. Low-dielectric-constant materials may be used instead of CVD and PECVD oxide
for dielectics. This is not essential, but is under investigation at Sematech and in at least
several companies.
DUV photolithograpy and Cymer lasers will still be used to define the lines. The
photoresist will sit on oxide instead of aluminum, but that's actually an easier surface for
the photo process/equipment to deal with. The only potential effect for Cymer might be
an acceleration of the move to smaller linewidths. This would positively impact Cymer
a bit. As I've said for months though, the move to DUV has been progressing faster
than previously forecast by Dataquest, VLSI Research, Sematech, and others for a
while.
If you believe copper will take off and you want a way to play it, Semitool (copper
plating) and the CMP makers (SFAM included) seem to me to be the best ways.
Profitable investing,
Mr. Sam
(Just for full disclosure, 30% of my money is in SFAM, 3% in SFAM call options, 6%
in CYMI, and 3% in SMTL.) |
