Sr Project/Applications Engineer

MICHAEL DENHAM

**** ******** ****, *** ***, Naperville, IL 60564 ? 630- 904-8096 ? ***********@*******.***

APPLICATIONS / PROCESS TECHNOLOGY / YIELD ENGINEERING

Product Development / Process Technology / Engineering / Yield / Technical Support / R&D / Scheduling / Budgets CPI / Troubleshooting / Testing / VRM / TQM / Cost Control / Negotiations / Startups / Six Sigma / Training

Directed projects from original concept through final implementation and delivery, improving process control, quality and yields for Cabot Microelectronics and Rockwell/Conexant Semiconductor. Managed diverse groups of programs, people and functions, attaining high levels of client satisfaction and delivering projects on time and within budget. Blended technology background with excellent interpersonal skills to promote, expedite and maximize team performance.

* Managing project prioritization, portfolio balancing and resource allocation

* Resolving project issues to meet productivity, quality and deliverability goals

* Building, mentoring and leading multifunctional teams

* Reengineering processes to improve productivity

* Grasping technical matters quickly

Technical Skills: Minitab. JMP. CCPM. TOC. TQM, MS Project. Reliability/Probe Testing. DOE. SPC. Device Physics. Familiar with statistical sampling/data mining techniques, linear regression, ANOVA analysis, DOE’s, trend analysis and forecasting types (qualitative, time series analysis, casual relationships and simulation).

MBA, Entrepreneurship, DePaul University.

BSc, Physics, BASc, Engineering, University of Toronto. Six Sigma Green Belt.

Career History & Accomplishments

Sr. Project Manager - Metrology/Applications Engineering, Cabot Microelectronics Corporation, 2001-2008. Managed clean room, R&D, and data mining/storage/metrology applications development and support for semiconductor consumables startup. Participated in product development groups to provided semiconductor applications and data analysis support. Developed Unix based defect server (Oracle 9i) database for use with yield software (Klarity Defect) to enhance product yield and development. Explored future Capital Equipment Purchases of R&D equipment. Managed budget of $2M and four staff.

Analyzed and improved source vendor product, improving slurry quality, retaining key customers. Cross functional product development with Cu development team, quality and supply chain work:

? C5001 Cu Slurry Defect reduction team 2002 (six members, Ph.D., Formulation Engineer, Supply Chain Eng.) Defect performance requests from Intel, TSMC, led to identification of alumina supplier quality issue. Feedback to supplier identified alumina process issue that was corrected.

? C600Y75 next generation Cu Slurry 2005 (five members) that identified interconnect corrosion issue during new product development.

? B6600 Cu Barrier Slurry 2007 based on specs from IBM 32nm development work (ten members).

Identified critical defect mode, revitalizing product line and increased margins 3%. 2007-2008. Oxide slurry margins were low due to high material costs. Built and managed cross-functional development team (two Ph.D.s and two techs.) to investigate and develop PRD’s. Discovered changes in chemistry of SS25/SS12/D112/D3500 products resulted in process PH changes, causing silica to form out of solution. Decreased resultant silica formation through CMP process change. Reduced material costs and increased margins.

Product development of W2000/2085/6300/700 Tungsten product line. 2001-2008. Worked with tungsten formulation scientists to develop better chemistries to customer’s device/interconnect performance requirements of coring, removal, plug recess and oxide loss. Developed the concept of tunable tungsten slurry to extend life cycle.

Program managed integration of SEM/Yield Defect metrology equipment on-time and under $6.5M budget. A SEM based defect analysis capability was needed to further R&D efforts. Assembled and led team comprised of ten engineers and technicians.. Researched and selected new equipment and software systems. Developed budget and timeline. Managed labor, facility/safety and technical requirements for installation. Used MS project to breakdown precedence relationships, activity durations, required resources and responsible team members.

MICHAEL DENHAM PAGE TWO

? Project: eV300 Install. Budget $2.1M for purchase and install of 200/300mm SEM based inspection system. MS Project used to create project timeline from evaluation to install. GANT charts used to determine critical path to schedule instillation of isolation table, facilities requirement, Safety Evaluation, vendor support. Team comprised of 10 engineers and technicians from KLA-Tencor and internal staff.

? Project: SEMG2 Install, decommission and reinstall eV300 in Asia/Pacific R&D facility. Budget $3.0M. Evaluate new automated 200/300mm SEM system, upgraded existing defect analysis software. Assist in AP R&D startup.

? Project: S300 Cascade Automated Probe tool. Budget $400k for purchase and install of semi-automated 200/300mm probe tool to provide yield analysis by examining line recess of short loop test wafers. Equipment provided analysis of potential line recess/low k back end interconnect effects.

Enabled acquisition and installation of metrology tool with 100% utilization, saving $250K. Optimal CMP R&D development tool was needed to measure performance data with limited technical intervention. Researched existing metrology tools and technology. Conducted comparison tests, with recommendations. Managed purchase, installation and applications development. Tool utilization is 10/7, with MTBF calculated in months.

? Project: June 2002 DUVx310 Atomic Force Profilemeter with budget of $1.2M for purchase and install. Negotiated price down as result of lost overseas order (original cost $1.5M for tool alone). Worked with finance to pick up order from Veeco and negotiated lower price. Team size five, two engineers and three technicians.

Conducted due diligence for expansion, rejecting purchase of target company, saving $75M. Company was looking to increase revenues and diversify position in marketplace through purchase of existing operation. Researched target company and conducted due diligence regarding product lines, market drivers and financials. Evaluated parent company’s technical status, bandwidth and risk assessment. Recommended against acquisition based on market conditions and technical status and management of target company.

Yield Engineer, Conexant Semiconductor, 1999-2001. Principle engineer for photo and chemical mechanical planarization defect reduction, analysis and metrology. Led disposition of out-of-spec lots utilizing advanced tools such as SP1, AIT, WF736, and SEMVision. Resolved probe/equipment issues and process interactions. Increased yields within the FAB. Developed proprietary SPC methods, improving photo process capability index and reducing scrap.

Developed metrology recipes for advanced inspection tools, reducing defect charts 25%. After Develop Check (ADC) inspections were not detecting tool issues, resulting in probe yield losses. Investigated optimal parameters for advanced inspection tools. Conducted comparison testing. Determined optimal tool type and settings for critical defect modes. Introduced sampling method to eliminate multiple lot scraps. Reduced all metal ADC SPC defects.

Identified and corrected photo process issues for Conexant, reducing lost product. Probe data showed incremental loss of yield, resulting in inconsistencies and lost product. Utilized advanced inspection tools to conduct intense process tool isolation inspections. Conducted SEM based reviews using sampling scheme that was different from normal production. Identified layer and process equipment issues. Implemented corrective photo processes for tool and step, and passed along equipment issue to vendor for alterations.

Process Engineer, Rockwell/Conexant Semiconductor, 1997-1999. CMP engineer. Managed online statistical process control (SPC) and metrology to monitor tool performance, organize consumables and provide technical support for replacement of equipment taken out of service. Directed disposition of out-of-spec lots. Maintained product flow. STI process development, FeNi to peroxide polish. Setup thin film measurements and organized operators work.

Reduced slurry consumption 80%, enabling annual savings of $75K. Slurry is main consumable and primary cost factor in chemical mechanical planarization (CMP) process. Conducted process metrics data capture for oxide and tungsten processes. Researched slurry flow reductions while monitoring process parameters. Determined initial and subsequent applications, with no quality reduction. Reduced slurry consumption and tool defectivity 15%.

Technical Officer, National Research Council Canada (NRCC), 1992-1997. Supervised daily operations of research projects for nationally recognized research institute. Designed and supervised construction of ISO9000 compliant test specimens. Set up data acquisition systems and analyzed data for internal and external customers. Wrote technical reports and presentations for clients and peer review papers.

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