Industry News, Trends and Technology, and Standards Updates

Background

The North America Information & Control Committee (I&CC or NA I&CC) is comprised of several task forces including GEM 300, Diagnostic Data Acquisition (DDA), Advanced Backend Factory Integration (ABFI), Fab & Equipment Computer and Device Security (CDS), and Graphical User Interfaces (GUI). These task forces and the committee all met during the week of SEMICON West, July 11-13, 202. Not long ago, SEMI regulations were modified to allow TC Chapter (Committee) voting in virtual meetings; therefore, the standards activities continue to move forward. In-person task force participation was much higher than the last meetings, but remote participation also remains strong. This blog is a summary of the activities in each task force.

GEM 300 Task Force

Here is a summary of worldwide activities related to the GEM 300 task force as of the start of the GEM 300 task force meeting.

Three ballots were adjudicated during the GEM 300 task force meeting. The term “adjudication” means we review the voting and recommend handling of all negative votes and comments received to ultimately accept the ballot for publication or reject the ballot for rework. The recommendations by the task force are then finalized at the committee meeting. Usually, the task force recommendation is accepted by the committee, as was the case in all three ballots.

6916 E5

This ballot proposes to modify the E5 SECS-II standard and included the following minor changes:

• Allow data variable OperatorCommand to be type ASCII.
• Correct various typographical errors
• Remove the dependency between variables MDLN (equipment model number) and EqpSerialNum (equipment serial number).

This ballot passed after the only negative was withdrawn by the voter.

6572B E30

This ballot proposes to modify the GEM (E30) standard. It is a revision ballot, meaning the entire E30 standard is subject to review. This is the third time the ballot has been submitted. It is a major update to the GEM standard and includes the following changes:

• Process Program Management changes
  • The terms “recipe” and “process program” are currently used nearly interchangeably. The proposal is to use the term “process program” exclusively.
  • References to E42, large formatted and large process programs are moved out of the main standard and into the appendix.
  • Stream 21 messages are introduced for process program management, including both the single and multiple message techniques. This provides a simplified way for GEM interfaces to upload and download large process programs.
  • The entire process program management section is vastly reorganized to help implementers understand the available alternatives and the scenarios for each available alternative. New tables were introduced to compare and summarize implementation alternatives.
  • Collection event ‘Process Program Error’ is specifically listed as required, rather than just as an implied requirement.
• A series of new SECS-II messages are introduced including S2F51-S2F64. These are new capabilities to make a GEM interface more transparent.
• S5F7/F8 is added to the alarm management capability for similar reasons.
• Two new GEM documentation features are added and made available through the GEM interface using Stream 21 messages including PDF documentation and SEDD (see SEMI E172) documentation. This should make it easier to distribute GEM documentation and ensure that the right documentation is referenced.
• Two new equipment identification features are added, one to identify the equipment supplier and one to uniquely identify each individual equipment. This should make it easier to identify and track specific equipment on the factory floor.
• Some changes related to terminology are included. SEMI regulations recently were updated with a list of restricted bias terminology which are not allowed in any SEMI standards and a list of terms to avoid when possible.

This ballot failed due to a disagreement regarding a proposed change to the GEM control state model collection on transition 10 related to the host off-line state. The task force remains evenly divided on this issue; therefore, this change will be withdrawn from the next revision of this ballot.

I am optimistic that the 6572C revision of this ballot will pass voting with little controversy. This ballot has already been distributed to the task force for final review. Little controversy remains unless some voter raises a new issue.

6859 E116

Originally ballot 6859 intended to add significant new features to the E116 standard. However, the aggressive changes have been abandoned. Instead, this ballot is focused on making one change to E116. Currently the E116 specification implements collection events in a manner inconsistent with E30, E40, E87, E90, E94, E109, and E157. This E116 ballot failed. After further discussion in the task force, consensus on the proposed changes seems possible in the next voting cycle. The updated ballot 6859A has already been submitted for review by the task force.

DDA Task Force

The DDA task force has been and continues to update the Equipment Data Acquisition (EDA a.k.a. Interface A) standards with the goal to approve an EDA Freeze 3 set of standards based on gRPC technology. To date the following ballots have been completed:

During these meetings, three DDA task force ballots failed adjudication, 6927 (E125, E125.2), 6928 (E132, E132.2) and 6929 (E134, E134.2) due to procedural errors which violated SEMI regulations. This is primarily due to a long backlog of publications on previously approved specifications. Discussions were held in several meetings in an attempt to find ways to help SEMI get caught up on publications. The delay in publication is partly due to the several large ballots that were backlogged when COVID activity prevented the committee from completing adjudication in remote or hybrid meetings.

Test Session #1

The most important activity for the DDA task force was “vender test session #1” held on Thursday, July 14. An open invitation was made to all task force members to participate in an E132 test session. Anyone could submit a client and/or equipment server implemented with the current E132 and E179 specifications. Four companies came together and ran tests against each other’s software. Each participant will provide the task force with a list of issues in E132 and E179. This was a great opportunity to try the gRPC technology together and get a sense of what issues still need to be resolved before EDA Freeze 3 is complete.

DDA Freeze 3 Plans

The DDA Task force plans an update to E125, E132, and E134 including changes from the recently failed ballots as well as topics raised in the test session. Due to the expanded scope, new ballot numbers will be issued. Additionally plans to update E164 are also moving forward. The biggest challenge for E164 will be converting the XML files into JSON files. Either JSON5 or JSONC will likely be used since comments are mandatory in the E164 complementary files which show how to create GEM 300 capable EDA equipment models.

ABFI Task Force

The Advanced Backend Factory Integration task force is actively working on two ballots.
One ballot is a minor update to the E142, the substrate mapping specification which facilitates traceability and other application where substrate, tray, feeder, and other information can be shared between a factory and equipment. The minor update will add additional substrate types so E142 substrate maps can be used in more applications.

Additionally, the task force is working on ballots 6924 and 6925. The 6924 specifications will define the management of Consumable and Durables on manufacturing equipment. Features include allowing the host to accept or reject newly mounted consumables and durables. Additionally, the equipment will be able to report on consumable and durable usage. While technically both can already be done, the specification establishes a standard way for the features to be implemented. The 6925 ballot maps 6924 for usage in a GEM interface. The plan is to submit the ballot for the next voting cycle.

GUI Task Force

The GUI task force continues to work on a major revision of the E95 specification for Human Interfaces for Semiconductor Equipment. In addition to updating the specification with changes in software development, this revision will establish requirements for the usage of human interfaces on equipment using devices with small screens. The task force seems to be gaining consensus of many topics and getting ready to submit the ballot for voting.

Getting Involved

For those interested in participating, it is easy to join SEMI standards activities. Anyone can register at www.semi.org/standardsmembership.

All SEMI task force ballot activities are logged here.

After joining the standards activities, anyone can get involved. The task forces post everything on the connected @ SEMI website https://connect.semi.org/home. Here are the community names for the task forces covered in this blog:

• GEM 300 Task Force - North America
• Diagnostic Data Acquisition Task Force - North America
• Fab & Equipment Computer and Device Security (CDS) Task Force – North America
• Advanced Backend Factory Integration (ABFI) Task Force – North America
• Graphical User Interfaces (GUI) Task Force - North America

In the late 1980s and early 1990’s the Semiconductor Equipment Communication Standard (SECS) was starting to gain traction. Back then it was based on RS232 serial communication defined by the SEMI E4 SECS-I Standard. Later, SECS-I was replaced by the SEMI E37 HSMS standard. The content of the messages was defined by the SEMI E5 SECS-II standard. At the time, that was all that was defined. It was a bit like the Wild West with each equipment vendor implementing SECS-II messages as they saw fit.

While it was cool to be able to connect to process or metrology equipment and collect data, specify the process, and monitor alarms, it was a big task to develop factory systems that interface to the equipment because each SECS-II interface was unique. One of the first tasks required when developing an interface was to perform an equipment characterization to understand and document the details of the SECS messages used by each equipment. The characterization report became the guide for developing the factory side interface to that particular piece of equipment.

Semiconductor factories were buying hundreds of pieces of equipment for their factories, and though there were usually multiple pieces of the same equipment, there were still many unique equipment interfaces in each factory. The factories had to develop unique interfaces for all the equipment they wanted to automate. This issue was a bit like the tail wagging the dog.

To change things so that each equipment interface wasn’t completely unique, semiconductor factories worked with SEMI to better define how the communication between factory control systems and equipment should work in the factory. In 1992 SEMI published the first version of the E30 standard – Specification for the Generic Equipment Model for Communications and Control of Manufacturing Equipment (GEM). This standard provided a stable base for both factories and equipment manufacturers to work from in developing equipment interfaces. Message usage and contents were consistent, state models were defined, and interface capabilities were well-documented.

Since that time, other equipment communication standards have been developed and approved for use in semiconductor manufacturing. The GEM300 standards for factory automation (E39, E40, E87, E90, E94, E116, E148, and E157) have made it possible to enable fully automated manufacturing. The EDA standards (E120, E125, E132, E134, and E164) make it possible to implement consistent, well-defined data collection.

Even though the SEMI standards are quite well-defined, they are only as good as the implementation on the equipment. Compliance testing is essential for both equipment manufacturers and factories to ensure the interfaces are compliant to the standards and function as defined. In the early days of GEM, compliance testing was an essential piece of factory acceptance of the equipment. Initially, there wasn’t a lot of experience with developing or using the equipment interfaces. This meant that we needed some way to test compliance to ensure the interfaces worked as expected. Even though GEM and GEM300 are now quite established, compliance testing is still important to ensure the communication interfaces will support the functionality needed in the factories.

Compliance testing for the EDA standards hasn't been as well-defined as it has been for GEM and GEM300. In 2011 the International SEMATECH Manufacturing Initiative (ISMI) published the ISMI Equipment Data Acquisition (EDA) Evaluation Method document which provided step-by-step instructions for testing and evaluating an EDA interface. Using that document, Cimetrix developed EDATester which automates the instructions defined in the Evaluation Method document. This automation allows testing that would normally take several days to be done in a few hours, or less.

Having standard, well-defined communication interfaces for semiconductor manufacturing equipment is important to automated manufacturing and data collection. The ability to test developed interfaces and assure that they are compliant with the SEMI standards is essential to successfully introducing the equipment into a semiconductor factory.

Cimetrix compliance test tools automate the testing process making the acceptance process smooth.

For the first time since the Fall of 2019, the SEMI North America Information & Control Committee (I&CC) was finally able to meet and conduct business online. Throughout all of 2020, the I&CC was not able to meet because SEMI regulations did not at that time allow voting in online meetings. Instead, only the task forces have been meeting. As a result, any passing ballots, unless super clean, had to wait for adjudication in the North America I&CC.

This year, prior to the I&CC meeting on April 1 and 2, all of the associated task forces also met as usual, including the GEM 300, Diagnostic Data Acquisition (DDA), and Advanced Backend Factory Integration (ABFI) task forces. Moreover, the I&CC was able to conduct all the unresolved business that had accumulated over the last year. During the committee meeting, the I&CC successfully used the SEMI Virtual Meeting (SVM) software which runs in an internet browser, allows each committee member to log in, and allows for official voting to take place during the meeting. The North America I&CC will meet again during the summer.

GEM 300 Task Force

In the GEM 300 task force, the primary activity was to officially redefine its charter and scope to match what it has already been doing for the last 20 years. Each SEMI task force defines a “Task Force Organization Force” document (aka TFOF) to establish its charter and scope. Somehow, the GEM 300 task force charter and scope were severely out of date.

In addition to this update, some changes to the E5 standard finally passed voting, pending some final approval. The E5 changes include several new messages and establish definitions for commonly used data collection terminology. The new messages complement the existing set of messages by allowing the host to query information about the current data collection setup. Currently, it is common for a host program to reset and redefine all data collection after first connecting to an equipment because there has been no way to query this information. With these new messages, the host will be able to query the setup and confirm that no data collection has changed while disconnected. Finally, it will be easier to test GEM interfaces with these new messages.

The task force already approved tasks to consider some major work to the GEM standard. The task force is also considering changes to the E116 standard, but there is some resistance to these changes. Here is a summary table of the GEM-related standards activity from across the globe.

DDA Task Force

In the Diagnostic Data Acquisition (DDA) task force (responsible for the EDA standards, aka Interface A), freeze 3 development is moving forward. All of the ballots still failed as expected. The number of remaining technical issues nevertheless has dwindled to just a handful. E132, E125, and especially E164 need the most work.

Following is a summary of the previously completed work.

And here is a summary of the work in progress.

All of the failed ballots will be reworked and resubmitted for voting. For many of these ballots, it will be the sixth time to go through the SEMI ballot procedure. Consensus is very nearly achieved, and the defects in the ballots have been identified and corrected. Additionally, there are plans to modify SEMI E179, the standard that defines how gRPC will be utilized. While testing EDA freeze 3, Cimetrix has identified two simple ways to modify the E179 protocol buffer files in order to reduce overhead. These and a few other changes will be proposed in a new ballot.

One of the last changes to the freeze 3 standards will be the introduction of passwords. In the current freeze 1 and freeze 2 versions, there are no passwords. Any client that knows a valid, unused Access Control List entry (ACL, the equivalent of a user name) can connect; therefore, there really isn’t any authentication unless using the SSL protocol with certificates. Passwords will enhance EDA security and facilitate EDA interface setup by allowing client applications to use the same ACL entry while defining a unique password to block other clients from using the same entry. The final E132 ballot will finalize the password feature.

The task force leaders are asking the voting members to raise any final issues before these ballots are submitted to SEMI to the next voting cycle so that we can approve these standards, give implementers a chance to experiment with EDA freeze 3, raise any serious issues that impede the implementation, and then propose the final changes which incorporate that feedback. Until a version of these standards is formally approved, it will be difficult to get concrete and widespread feedback on the new technology, which is a necessary precursor to its adoption and use.

ABFI Task Force

The Advanced Factory Integration task force passed more changes in E142 without controversy. The task force plans to create E142.4, another GEM implementation of E142, designed for larger wafer maps to allow for increased traceability possibilities. Additionally, the task force continues to make plans to develop an adoption matrix as a new standard to describe when GEM and GEM 300 standards should be adopted in backend equipment based on equipment features.

Background and Audience

Over the past several years, I have written numerous blog postings heralding the benefits of the SEMI Equipment Data Acquisition (EDA, also known as Interface A) standards, promoting their adoption by 300mm wafer fabs around the world, explaining how to develop robust purchase specs to ensure the interfaces delivered by the equipment suppliers meet the fab customers’ expectations, describing how the various components of the standards work together and the importance of the embedded equipment model, and finally explaining how to run compliance and performance tests on an EDA interface to validate its fitness for production use. The target audience for most of these postings has been the factory users, for they are the ones who increasingly depend on detailed equipment and process data to profitably run their enterprises.

By contrast, this posting is aimed at the equipment suppliers who are looking to increase the value of their product families by augmenting their hardware offerings with software capabilities that only they are uniquely qualified to provide.

This is not a new idea. Several major equipment suppliers have offered so-called “Equipment Engineering Systems (EES)” products as companions for their equipment over the years, providing applications like Fault Detection and Classification (FDC), production monitoring, maintenance management, local repositories for diagnostics and field support, and other capabilities that leveraged deep domain knowledge of the equipment. However, these systems necessarily relied on private interfaces to the equipment for their data, such as an additional network connection, direct access to the file system, or other mechanisms. And from the fab’s perspective, these constituted yet another piece of infrastructure to maintain.

Now there’s EDA: a key enabler for value-added equipment applications

Since the SEMI EDA standards are inherently multi-client, a single EDA interface can support not only the factory information and control systems that depend on equipment data, it can also provide whatever information a supplier-specific application may need as long this data is represented in the equipment metadata model. Since that model is designed by the equipment suppliers as a fundamental component of the EDA interface, they can choose to put as much information in these model as they want, possibly well beyond that required by the fab customers’ purchase specifications. In fact, these models could be used to implement the diagnostic logging capability that suppliers usually build into their equipment for their own use, but without requiring custom software to read and interpret that information. See the figure below for an example of such a configuration.

The EDA standards also include a provision for “built-in DCPs” (DCP = Data Collection Plan) which can be shipped with the equipment and protected from accidental deletion at the factory site. These DCPs could be crafted by the equipment supplier to directly feed whatever value-added applications the supplier chose to develop, whether these resided on a computer local to the equipment in the fab, on portable computers used by field service engineers to diagnose problems, or on remote cloud-based systems allowed to connect via secure EDA-defined URLs. This flexibility opens up a wide range of application types, from those that embed equipment-specific algorithms to generic Machine Learning frameworks… the possibilities are endless.

What all these approaches have in common is a standard EDA client capability that can establish a session with the equipment, activate Data Collection Plans, and receive the ensuing Data Reports. The EDAConnecter within the Cimetrix Sapience platform provides all these features and more in a lightweight set of .NET libraries which can be deployed wherever they are needed to consume EDA data.

Conclusion

More and more semiconductor factories are requiring EDA interfaces with their new equipment purchases with highly prescribed equipment models and demanding performance criteria. From the equipment supplier’s perspective, these requirements have been viewed as a source of additional cost, with all the benefits accruing to the factory customers. But it doesn’t have to be that way…

Why not take advantage of this interface to offer additional value using a standards-based approach? This just might be an idea whose time has finally come. If you agree, give us a call – we can help you make it happen!

Background

The SEMI North America Advanced Backend Factory Integration (ABFI) task force is part of the North America Information and Control Committee (I&CC or NA I&CC). Normally this task force meets every July in San Francisco as part of SEMICON West. However, this year the technical committee meetings are spread out over several weeks and do not coincide directly with the exhibition. Additionally, the I&CC did not meet at all because SEMI regulations do not currently allow TC Chapter (Committee) voting in virtual meetings. That will hopefully change later this year, but for now delays SEMI standards development.

Regardless of these challenges, the ABFI task force did meet on Monday July 13, 2020 and continues to develop SEMI standards. I am co-leader of the NA ABFI task force along with Dave Huntley of PDF Solutions. This blog is a summary of the current task force activities.

Wafer Maps

Ballot 6648 to update to the SEMI E142 (Specification for Substrate Mapping) specification has passed initial voting and is recommended to be accepted and published. This ballot significantly enhances the amount of traceability data that may be embedded within wafer maps.

Additional Wafer Map Activity

Because wafer maps will potentially be much larger with additional traceability data, they could be too large for the messages currently defined in the E142.2 standard. A new activity has been started to modify wafer map usage further and to allow Stream 21 messages to be used for wafer map transfer. The stream 21 message in the SECS-II standard can be used to transfer very large items through a GEM interface.

SEMI Standard Usage Matrix for Backend

The ABFI task force is also defining a matrix that specifies which standards beyond GEM (E30), SECS-II (E5), HSMS (E37) and Substrate Mapping (E142) should be used for backend automation, and under what conditions they should be used. This includes consideration of the full suite of GEM 300 standards and other standards that all GEM interfaces should consider, such as SEDD (E172) and SMN (E173).

Getting Involved

For those interested in participating, it is easy to join SEMI standards activities. Anyone can register at www.semi.org/standardsmembership.

All SEMI task force ballot activities are logged at http://downloads.semi.org/web/wstdsbal.nsf/TFOFandSNARFsbyCommittee?OpenView&Start=1&Count=1000&ExpandView

After joining the standards activities, anyone can get involved. The task forces post everything on the connected @ SEMI website https://connect.semi.org/home. The North America ABFI task force does not have a community.

To learn more about the standards, or to speak with a standards expert, click on the button below: