Abstract
The goal of this thesis is to understand the feasibility of Run-to-Run (R2R) process control in the back-end operations of a semiconductor company. To the best of our knowledge, our research to find literature on application of implementation of R2R in final test facility of semiconductors did not yield any result, thus suggesting this feasibility study to be an important step in the goal of implementing R2R control in the back-end operations of the semiconductor industry. The company is currently experiencing difficulty in controlling a parameter called the Die Temperature Setting (DTS) in its final test facility of semiconductor devices. There is a lack of manpower and increasing quality issues that have to be addressed with R2R control as a possible solution. The DTS parameter is used as a platform to evaluate the benefits that R2R control can deliver if it is implemented at a full scale level. The current setup of the test facility is studied, a design of experiment (DOE) study is carried out to find the factors that affect the DTS parameter, the main factors and its interaction with other factors are studied, identification of inputs to build the algorithm that suit the existing front-end operation software is performed and, an estimate of the cost savings and other benefits by implementing R2R in the final test facility is calculated. The aim is to use R2R control to automate the testing process of controlling various parameters. Cost savings of approximately $84k per package type is observed which will result in millions of dollars in savings as the company produces ten and thousands of package numbers. This thesis will help the companies in the semiconductor industry to understand the importance of R2R control in their back-end operations, steps that need to be taken and the results that can be achieved.