Semiconductor equipment corporations Applied Materials unveiled a lineup of 3D chip manufacturing tools for artificial intelligence (AI) semiconductors. The focus is on expanding planarization, deposition and metrology tools needed for advanced packaging processes such as high bandwidth memory (HBM), chiplets and hybrid bonding.
As AI computing grows in model size and data throughput, it faces the challenge of simultaneously increasing memory bandwidth and capacity, as well as power efficiency. The industry calls this the "memory wall." In response, adoption is rising of HBM, which stacks DRAM vertically to boost bandwidth, and of 3D stacking technologies that bundle multiple chips into a single package.
Applied showcased chemical mechanical polishing (CMP), electrochemical deposition (ECD) and plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) tools for advanced packaging. CMP is a process that planarizes the wafer surface, ECD is a process that deposits metal by electrochemical means, and PECVD is a process that forms thin films using plasma.
The Opta Quad, a CMP tool for advanced packaging, monitors wafer conditions during polishing and controls the process in real time. Applied said this improves within-wafer uniformity and total thickness variation (TTV) control. Surface flatness directly affects hybrid bonding Production yield. Hybrid bonding is a technology that directly bonds chip-to-chip or chip-to-wafer down to the copper interconnects and dielectric.
Nokota Vmax 2 is an ECD tool used for silicon through via (TSV) fill and microbump formation. TSVs are electrodes formed by penetrating the silicon substrate to vertically connect chips. The tool applies adaptive pattern tuning (APT) technology that compensates for plating variation by layout, improving copper plating uniformity across the wafer.
Producer Avila 2 is a PECVD tool to reduce die warpage and deformation that occur during HBM stacking. HBM dies are processed much thinner than standard wafers for high stacking, and deformation during this step can lead to bonding defects and lower Production yield. The tool deposits a stress-balanced dielectric around TSVs to enhance stacking stability for 12-high, 16-high and higher HBM.
Electron-beam-based process control tools were also added. VeritySEM 7AP measures fine structures on thick or warped substrates and on substrates with mixed materials in HBM and chiplet architectures. Applied said it offers measurement sensitivity of 10 nanometers (nm) or less, higher than conventional optical tools.
SEMVision G7AP is an electron-beam defect review tool. It provides high-resolution defect inspection and automatic classification on silicon, organic and glass substrates. In advanced packaging, a single small particle or bonding defect can spoil an entire HBM stack, making accuracy in defect detection and classification critical.
Epitaxy tools for DRAM processing were also strengthened. The upgraded Centura Prime epi system selectively grows silicon germanium (SiGe) and silicon phosphide (SiP) in the source and drain regions. Applied said this increases transistor drive current and efficiency, enabling it to meet bandwidth demand for HBM and next-generation double data rate (DDR) DRAM. The tool footprint was reduced by 20% compared with the previous model.
Prabu Raja, president of the semiconductor products group at Applied Materials, said, "Advanced packaging has become a key factor that determines system performance," and noted, "As 3D stacked architectures grow more complex, greater precision is required across processes."