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Wafer-tilt-gauge

Substrate housing and docking system

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Wafer tilt gauge

Details

Inventors: Pence, Paul; Pollock, Greg;
Assignee: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (Austin, TX)
Primary Examiner: Limanek; Robert P.
Assistant Examiner: Hardy; David B.
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Jenkens & Gilchrist

A wafer tilt gauge includes a base support, structure for temporarily connecting a slotted apparatus for holding wafers to the base support, a light beam target connected to the base support, and a light beam source connected to the base support. The various components are positioned so that a light beam emitted from the light beam source will bounce off of a wafer disposed in a temporarily connected slotted apparatus and subsequently impinge upon the light beam target. Further, the base support is rockable, so that a first point of impingement can be obtained for a disposed wafer with the base support rocked into a first position and so that a second point of impingement can be obtained for a disposed wafer with the base support rocked into a second position.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION The present invention overcomes the shortcomings and deficiencies discussed above by providing a wafer tilt gauge including a base support, structure for temporarily connecting a slotted apparatus for holding wafers to the base support, a light beam target connected to the base support, and a light beam source connected to the base support.
According to the teachings of the present invention, the various components are positioned so that a light beam emitted from the light beam source will bounce off of a wafer disposed in a temporarily connected slotted apparatus and subsequently impinge upon the light beam target.
Further according to the teachings of the present invention, the base support is rockable, so that a first point of impingement can be obtained for a disposed wafer with the base support rocked into a first position and so that a second point of impingement can be obtained for a disposed wafer with the base support rocked into a second position.
Accordingly, it is an objective of the present invention to provide a device to precisely measure tilt or "teepeeing" of a wafer disposed in a wafer carrier.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a wafer tilt gauge that measures wafer tilt directly, without first mechanically or otherwise measuring wafer slot size.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a system for detecting teepeeing due to sagging of underlying supports, a type of teepeeing that cannot be detected by slot width measurement techniques.

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