Detection of Micro-Arc Discharge Using ESC Wafer Stage With Built-In AE Sensor

An electrostatic chuck (ESC) wafer stage with a built-in acoustic emission (AE) sensor is developed to detect micro-arc discharge occurring around a wafer. The built-in AE sensor detects acoustic waves caused by anomalous discharge with high sensitivity. The results demonstrate the effectiveness of this novel ESC wafer stage for detecting micro-arc discharge occurring around a wafer and will contribute greatly to improving the production yield of semiconductor manufacturing.