Aerotech offers PlanarHD air bearing stage
An
Aerotech product story
Edited by the Engineeringtalk editorial team
Mar 2, 2009
The novel PlanarHD air bearing stage from Aerotech features design enhancements for increased throughput in ultra-high precision step-and-settle and scanning applications.
These improvements include semiconductor processing and emerging micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS)/nano technologies.
The PlanarHD employs a low mass structural bearing design with a balanced air-on-air preload system for higher lateral, vertical and angular stiffness resulting in improved speed, acceleration and accuracy characteristics.
The 500mm x 500mm travel stage includes larger air bearing surfaces for significantly improved dynamic characteristics and higher-power linear servo motors on both axes to deliver a specification that includes a 2m/s scan velocity and peak acceleration to 5g, with a positioning resolution of up to 0.25nm, repeatability to 50nm and accuracy to +/-300nm.
It is estimated that the PlanarHD will yield a 50 per cent increase in throughput when compared to other manufacturers' stages that have a typical scan velocity of 500mm/s and 0.5g acceleration over a 300mm constant travel range.
The 500mm travel range is also a future-proof investment for 450mm-diameter wafer production.
The PlanarHD employs a low-mass structural bearing design with a balanced air-on-air preload system for higher lateral, vertical and angular stiffness, aimed at resulting in improved speed, acceleration and accuracy characteristics.
Nominal payload is 5kg to maintain dynamic specifications, with an upper limit of 30kg.
The H-bridge design utilises dual air-bearings, dual linear motors and dual linear encoders on the step axis and, in conjunction with Aerotech's A3200 control system, a calibrated orthogonal/yaw control of one arc-sec is made possible for parallel scans or process swaths over the entire surface of a wafer.
The low-profile H-bridge design employs the scan and step axe centrelines and all encoders at the same level, effectively co-locating the centre of mass, the force centre and the feedback centre.
This ensures a high dynamic capacity that combines with the optimised air bearing preload system for a 330Hz first natural frequency and a high servo bandwidth.
Furthermore, as all encoders are placed very close to the working plane, Abbe errors are minimised for improved stage precision.
Optional laser interferometer feedback is also available and the 500mm travel range may be increased to 1.2m while still maintaining comparable performance and precision levels, according to the company.
As part of Aerotech's comprehensive engineered systems capability, the PlanarHD can be delivered with matching rotary and/or Z-axis stages and the aluminium/granite stage construction may be replaced with ceramics, invar, stainless or titanium materials for further improved performance.
The stage makes full use of Aerotech's BLM-series brushless linear servo motors that feature an ironless forcer with zero cogging for smooth motion and jitter-free in-position stability.
BLM-series linear motors generate the highest force-per-unit volume ratio of any competitive linear motor design.
To further improve dynamic performance, both air and water cooling thermal management options are available.
The high throughput and ultra-high precision capability of the PlanarHD is completed with Aerotech's A3200 Digital Automation Platform and Firewire networked Ndrive linear stage amplifiers.
This decentralised and fully deterministic PC-based motion and machine control system includes advanced features such as trajectory generation with multi-block look-ahead to minimise geometry errors in tight profiles by speed/position regulation.
Position-synchronised output (PSO) is also available to maintain precise synchronisation between the exact real-time X- and Y-stage position and the customers' laser or light source, with the ability to dynamically modify pulse, power and firing characteristics during motion.
For further motion trajectory optimisation and where improved throughput performance of complex motion profiles is required, users can also call upon Aerotech's Motion Designer software.
Motion Designer is claimed to facilitate trajectory programming and reduce development timescales with analysis tools and iterative learning control algorithms that reduce following error and improve cycle times over multiple runs.
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Contact Aerotech
Tel +44 118 940 9400
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