Semiconductor equipment opticsPalo Alto, California

SEMICONDUCTOR / EXPOSURE / INSPECTION

Optical subsystems for semiconductor equipment, from process requirement to qualified hardware.

Palo Alto Optics designs and develops illumination, imaging, projection, alignment, and optomechanical subsystems for semiconductor-equipment teams. PAO is a fit for new architectures, subsystem recovery, prototype integration, or production transfer, and can deliver optical models, tolerance analyses, drawings, calibrated prototype hardware, verification plans, measured acceptance evidence, and supplier-ready release documentation.

Review an equipment requirement Review engineering scope

01Process

02Optical architecture

03Integrated subsystem

04Calibration

05Release

Silicon Valley technical leadership with managed engineering and production resources.

01Engineering reality

The optical design must close at the equipment level.

Resolution or irradiance alone does not define a successful subsystem. Process window, field, focus, motion, thermal behavior, contamination, calibration, service, and supplier capability have to be resolved together.

Process-to-optics translation

Convert substrate, resist, defect, throughput, and dose requirements into measurable optical budgets.

Stable equipment integration

Control alignment, thermal drift, stray light, contamination exposure, access, and mechanical interfaces.

A credible production path

Specify fabrication, assembly, calibration, acceptance testing, and configuration control before release.

02Project fit

Contact PAO when an exposure, inspection, alignment, or metrology requirement must become a stable equipment subsystem.

The best fit is an equipment team defining a new optical architecture, recovering a subsystem that misses process performance, or preparing a prototype for calibrated, supplier-controlled builds.

Process requirements need an optical budget

Feature, dose, throughput, substrate, focus, or defect requirements must be translated into source, imaging, motion, and calibration decisions.

Subsystem behavior is unstable

Uniformity, focus, distortion, registration, thermal drift, contamination, or alignment changes are limiting the usable process window.

A prototype needs a production path

The design requires controlled optics, optomechanics, calibration fixtures, acceptance data, and supplier-ready documentation.

ENGINEERING DECISION TABLE

Inputs that change the architecture, acceptance method, and program risk.

Input condition	Key metric	Design choice	Risk if unresolved
Process feature and substrate	Resolution, contrast, dose, defect detectability	Imaging or projection NA, wavelength, illumination mode	The optical model does not produce the required process window.
Field, stage, and throughput	Uniformity, distortion, stitching, exposure time	Full-field, scanning, line-scan, or tiled architecture	Registration or throughput fails at equipment scale.
Working plane and environment	Focus margin, thermal drift, contamination sensitivity	Telecentricity, focus control, sealing, thermal strategy	Performance changes with duty cycle or tool condition.
Calibration and service model	Repeatability, traceability, recalibration interval	Datums, reference artifacts, fixtures, correction maps	A good prototype cannot be installed, maintained, or reproduced.

SELECTED ENGINEERING EVIDENCE

Published scope, verification method, and disclosure boundary.

These records describe documented engineering experience or the evidence plan PAO uses for new work. They do not imply that prior-employer programs were PAO customer engagements.

UV exposure optical-engine pathways

Scope: Reference DMD line-imaging and solder-mask optical-engine configurations covering source, homogenization, projection, optomechanics, and calibration interfaces.
Verification: Working-plane uniformity, dose, focus, distortion, registration, or image-quality methods are selected from the customer process.
Boundary: Published reference images demonstrate available engineering pathways, not guaranteed values for an unreviewed process.

Review DMD exposure engineering

Controlled subsystem acceptance

Scope: Requirements trace, optical and mechanical release, calibration definition, supplier review, and subsystem acceptance plan.
Verification: Measured maps and image data are tied to test conditions, configuration, equipment, and agreed acceptance limits.
Boundary: Customer programs and confidential performance data are not published; new results remain governed by the project NDA.

Review UV illumination systems

03Engineering scope

One accountable optical workstream across the subsystem.

PAO can enter at architecture, redesign, prototype, or transfer stage and maintain the technical thread through verification.

Define a technical work package

Requirements and architecture

System boundary, performance budgets, source and detector trades, working distance, field strategy, and risk retirement.

Illumination engineering

UV and visible source integration, homogenization, pupil control, telecentricity, radiometry, and thermal management.

Imaging and projection

Lens design, resolution, distortion, focus margin, depth of field, spectral behavior, and detector or DMD integration.

Alignment and optomechanics

Datums, retention, adjustment, tolerance allocation, motion interfaces, service access, and environmental stability.

Calibration and verification

Uniformity, focus, distortion, registration, image quality, alignment checks, and acceptance criteria.

Prototype and release

Supplier-ready specifications, build support, issue resolution, qualification planning, and controlled design transfer.

04Technical envelope

Subsystems matched to the equipment architecture.

Representative capability is shown with the context needed to qualify it. Program requirements control the final architecture and acceptance values.

Maskless lithography

DMD illumination and projection paths developed around dose, feature size, field stitching, and focus control.

UV exposure

Collimated or homogenized illumination for wafer, substrate, PCB, and process-tool applications.

AOI and inspection

Large-format, line-scan, bright-field, dark-field, and application-specific illumination and imaging.

Alignment and metrology

Fiducial imaging, registration, focus sensing, dimensional measurement, and calibration optics.

REFERENCE ENVELOPE

Spectral regionsUV to visibleCommon exposure bands include 365, 385, and 405 nm

Exposure formats4 to 12 inch classArchitecture selected around field, process, and handling constraints

Large-area illuminationUp to 400 x 500 mm reference classAvailable configuration, subject to full requirements review

VerificationMapped at the working planeUniformity, dose, focus, distortion, or image quality as applicable

Reference envelopes show available engineering and production pathways, not a universal product specification. Final values are established from the customer's process, environment, and acceptance method.

05What you receive

Engineering outputs your team can review, build, test, and maintain.

The exact package follows the program stage and scope. Assumptions, interfaces, decisions, and acceptance evidence remain visible.

System architecture package

Requirements trace, optical layout, interface definition, budgets, and documented trade decisions.

Optical design package

Models, prescriptions, coatings, tolerances, analyses, and controlled optical specifications.

Optomechanical definition

Datums, interfaces, mounts, adjustment strategy, drawings, and assembly considerations.

Calibration plan

Fixtures, algorithms or procedures, reference artifacts, maps, and calibration acceptance limits.

Verification plan

Test methods, equipment, sampling, data outputs, and subsystem acceptance criteria.

Production transfer support

Supplier review, prototype build support, nonconformance disposition, and release documentation.

06Controlled delivery

A local engineering interface from first review through release.

PAO leads the technical work, coordinates specialized fabrication and production resources under the project quality process, and keeps responsibility for requirements, interfaces, evidence, and issue closure clear.

01
Technical intake
Define the system boundary, decision to be made, current evidence, constraints, and confidentiality path.
02
Requirements and risk
Create measurable requirements, interface assumptions, performance budgets, and a ranked technical risk register.
03
Architecture and proof
Compare viable concepts and retire the highest-risk assumptions with analysis, breadboards, or targeted tests.
04
Detailed engineering
Develop controlled optical, mechanical, calibration, test, and supplier-ready documentation.
05
Build and verification
Support procurement, assembly, alignment, test correlation, root cause, and evidence-based iteration.
06
Release and transfer
Close acceptance criteria, configuration, supplier questions, manufacturing issues, and production handoff.

07Qualification questions

Questions engineering teams ask before engaging.

01Can PAO develop only the optical subsystem rather than the full machine?

Yes. The scope can cover a defined illumination, imaging, projection, alignment, or metrology subsystem with controlled electrical, mechanical, software, and process interfaces.

02Can you support an existing design that is not meeting performance?

Yes. A diagnostic engagement can compare measured behavior with the optical and tolerance models, identify dominant contributors, and define a focused recovery plan.

03How early should production constraints enter the program?

Fabrication, coating, assembly, calibration, and acceptance constraints should enter during architecture. This prevents a high-performing model from becoming an unstable or uneconomic subsystem.

04What determines semiconductor optical subsystem cost and schedule?

The main drivers are wavelength, custom optical complexity, field size, tolerance and stability requirements, calibration hardware, prototype quantity, supplier lead times, and the completeness of existing requirements and data. PAO defines these drivers during technical intake before committing a work package.

05Can we begin under an NDA?

Yes. The first discussion can stay at a non-confidential level, then detailed process data, drawings, models, and failure information can move through an agreed NDA channel.

06Can PAO support prototype build and manufacturing transfer?

Yes. Scope can include supplier packages, quote and drawing review, component sourcing support, assembly and alignment planning, calibration, verification, issue closure, and controlled release to the customer's manufacturing path.

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