Workshop on Temperature Measurement of Semiconductor Wafers Using Thermocouples

Published

January 1, 2001

Author(s)

Kenneth G. Kreider, D P. DeWitt, Benjamin K. Tsai, B Lojek

Abstract

Temperature measurement is an important parameter in most semiconductor processes. These measurements are necessary in temperature ranges as low as below 0 C in some plasma etch processes, to near room temperature for soft bakes of resists, to 500 C for low temperature chemical vapor deposition (CVD) and sputter deposition, and all the way up to 1150 C for oxidation. Accurate temperature measurements are needed to control the quality of the wafer processing. Although non-contact temperature measurements have advantages on the processing tools, these techniques must be calibrated by running expensive test wafers or by comparison with contact sensors. The thermocouple can be a very useful sensor when calibrated on an international temperature scale such as the International Temperature Scale of 1990 (ITS-90). In this workshop, we will describe how to use thermocouples for measurements of temperature in semiconductor processing and how to achieve the highest accuracy.

Citation

NIST Interagency/Internal Report (NISTIR) - 6566

Report Number

6566

NIST Pub Series

NIST Interagency/Internal Report (NISTIR)

Pub Type

NIST Pubs

Keywords

process instrumentation, semiconductor processing, surface temperatures, temperature measurement, thermocouples

Citation

Kreider, K. , DeWitt, D. , Tsai, B. and Lojek, B. (2001), Workshop on Temperature Measurement of Semiconductor Wafers Using Thermocouples, NIST Interagency/Internal Report (NISTIR), National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, MD (Accessed October 9, 2025)