Failure analysis preparation: A system assessment

Failure analysis on packaged dies and wafers is extremely important for semiconductor manufacturers. Each new chip prototype is not always fully functional and may diverge from initial target specifications. Failure analysis locates specific sites and determines if a design mistake, process problem, material defect or some type of induced damage caused it. Feedback of this information to the design and process groups minimizes expensive design iterations, photo mask modifications and processing cycles - and reduced the time-to-market and improves production yields. Failure analysis is also used on field returns to access defects and allow for corrective actions to improve product lifetime. A recent European SEA (Semiconductor Equipment Assessment) project evaluated etch process capabilities of the Nextral 860 high-density plasma etcher, developed specifically for failure analysis sample preparation. The FANETA (Failure Analysis Plasma Etch Equipment Assessment) program was carried over 12 months at Alcatel Microelectronics on Oudenaarde, Belgium.