Tool matching compares two or more tools by running the same wafers or parts through each and analyzing differences in offset and spread, then adjusting hardware, calibrations or recipes until they agree within a matching specification. It applies to process tools, where mismatched chambers create lot-to-lot variation, and to metrology tools, where a mismatch looks like a process shift whenever lots move between gauges.
Chamber C fails tool matching by 4 angstroms. Keep it out of dispatch until the heater calibration is redone.
Match on product wafers as well as blanket monitors. Tools can agree on flat films and still disagree on patterned features.
Also heard as
- chamber matching
- tool-to-tool matching
- fleet matching
Related terms
Reproducibility
Variation in measurement results when different operators, gauges or setups measure the same items.
Bias
Systematic offset between the average of repeated measurements and the true or reference value.
Golden wafer
Reference wafer or part kept aside and measured on a schedule to check that a tool or gauge has not drifted.
Variance components
Breakdown of total variation into the shares contributed by each source, such as lot, wafer, site and measurement.