Design, Preparation, and Performance Study of a Highly Reliable Temperature Measurement Array Based on NTC Thin Films

This article presents the development of a highly reliable temperature measurement system based on negative temperature coefficient (NTC) thermistor thin films integrated into micro-electromechanical system (MEMS) sensor arrays. Leveraging COMSOL Multiphysics simulations, the system optimizes sensor array configuration to accurately predict and manage thermal gradients on wafer surfaces. It features several technical advancements previously uncombined in temperature sensing applications. First, a novel fabrication process involving magnetron sputtering significantly enhances the uniformity and sensitivity of the NTC thin films. Second, high-resolution photolithography ensures precise patterning of sensor elements, achieving the system’s ultrafast thermal response time of 0.34 s and exceptional measurement accuracy of <inline-formula xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$0.5~^{\circ }$ </tex-math></inline-formula>C across a broad operational range of <inline-formula xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$0~^{\circ }$ </tex-math></inline-formula>C–<inline-formula xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$70~^{\circ }$ </tex-math></inline-formula>C. The integrated sensors exhibit less than 3% resistance drift in high-stress testing environments, underscoring their stability and robustness. By accurately correlating temperature variations with process defects, and with a coefficient of determination (<inline-formula xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">${R}^{{2}}$ </tex-math></inline-formula>) calculated at 0.995, our system effectively enhances process control and contributes to yield improvement and device reliability in semiconductor manufacturing, thereby advancing temperature sensing technology in high-precision industrial applications.