DCG Systems, a company that provides solutions for characterization, diagnosis and defect localization of semiconductor circuits, has been awarded a multimillion dollar contract to supply its new generation OptiFIB Viper system that facilitates 20 nm circuit technologies to a renowned manufacturer of integrated devices (IDM).
The factors driving the selection of DCG’s 300 mm OptiFIB Circuit Edit (CE) system apart from its ability to support below 20 nm process is its established capability to facilitate quick time-to-market. The OptiFIB Viper System integrates the recently introduced coaxial photon-ion column from DCG. The feature forms a vital part of the new generation of CE products. The photon ion column allows 50% smaller spot sizes for the beam in comparison to previous technologies. The resulting lower energies in the beam facilitate circuit edit to be carried out without damaging the device. As electronics manufacture transcend various node process levels, the circuit density increases by 50% at each level. This increase in density creates complications in semiconductor diagnostics and characterization. The reduction in circuit density also reduces the defect size to nanoscale leading to newer complications such as enhanced vulnerability in the form of ions punching through the dielectric. The CE solutions offered by DCG address these challenges.
According to Ketan Shah, General Manager of the CE division at DCG, the OptiFIB Viper System supersedes all existing CE solutions in terms of performance. Dr. Israel Niv, President and CEO of DCG Systems, stated that the IDM’s decision to choose DCG’s CE solutions as their semiconductor diagnostics system is testimony of DCG’s leadership in the semiconductor diagnostics market.