Electrical parameter data analysis and object-oriented techniques in semiconductor process development

Early and rapid assessment regarding the outcome of process experiments on performance and integrity of fabricated devices is critical to the learning process inherent in process development. In-line electrical measurements on test structures play a critical role in this assessment. Interpretation and analysis of data generated from such measurements usually falls short of its potential because of the data storage/retrieval/calculation/and analysis tools available to those required to understand this data. At IBM's Advanced Semiconductor Technology Center, we have taken advantage of object-oriented technologies to develop a system that solves these problems in a single integrated package. Central to this system is an object-oriented "data model" in which engineering domain objects (i.e.: Devices, Measurements, and Calculations) are represented and stored as database objects. This paper reviews the requirements for a parametric electrical database and analysis system, and describes the integral part that these modelled objects play in our implementation of the calculation and analysis routines. Real-life examples are drawn from the SiGe HBT technology supported by this system at the ASTC.