Online information source for semiconductor professionals

Product Briefing Outline: EV Group has introduced the semiconductor industry's first bonding system for 450-mm-diameter wafers manufactured from silicon-on-insulator (SOI) substrates. The EVG850SOI/450mm was created to support and facilitate the industry transition to 450mm wafers from the current 300mm standard. Read more >>

Product Briefing Outline: KLA-Tencor has introduced a new generation to the ‘Surfscan’ family of wafer defect and surface quality inspection systems. The Surfscan SP3 is claimed to be the  first unpatterned wafer inspection platform to incorporate deep-ultraviolet (DUV) illumination, enabling a dramatic improvement in sensitivity and throughput over KLA-Tencor’s previous offering, the Surfscan SP2XP. The Surfscan SP3 platform is also designed for extension to 450mm wafers. Read more >>

Product Briefing Outline: EV Group has introduced a new in-line metrology module for its EVG850TB automated temporary bonding and debonding systems.  This new metrology capability, which is now available as an option on the EVG850TB and EVG850DB platforms, allows customers to implement in-line process control for thin-wafer processing.  Read more >>

Product Briefing Outline: Novellus Systems subsidiary, Peter Wolters has developed a new version of its microLine double side lapping system for prime silicon wafers. The new AC-2100L system features independently driven inner and outer pin rings, automatic force calibration, and in-situ wafer thickness metrology for closed-loop process control. The system can process up to twenty 300mm wafers in one batch, while exceeding the latest wafer geometry requirements. Read more >>

Product Briefing Outline: W. L. Gore & Associates has announced an addition to their line of high-performance cartridge filters for semiconductor applications. The new 40nm-rated filter, intended for use with chemicals in wet processes and distribution systems, provides 40nm retention while maintaining the flow of next-best-in-class 50nm filters. Incorporating a new high-flow ePTFE (expanded polytetrafluoroethylene) filtration media that allows a drop-in retention upgrade from 100nm to 30nm, enables cleaner recirculation baths, reduced processing times and significant savings in cost of ownership. Read more >>

Product Briefing Outline: Dow Electronic Materials has introduced the Optivision 4540 CMP Polishing Pad designed to deliver low defectivity and low cost of ownership (CoO) over the pad lifetime. The new pad is formulated with a unique, surfactant-free, polymer chemistry and pore structure to help minimize defectivity and provide higher dielectric film rates in copper barrier polishing. The pad has a dual pore structure that accurately controls polishing while providing a consistent polishing surface over the life of the pad. Read more >>

Product Briefing Outline: The NBlend system from Norcimbus, offers a new option for mixed gases, bringing to market unique gas mixing technology that combines a MFC mixing system, surge tank, concentration analyzer and a proprietary Power Purge V controller. It is designed to mix two gasses to an adjustable ratio and supply a variable flow up to 250 standard liters per minute (slpm) continuously, while the concentration analyzer monitors and adjusts the blend ratio to maintain the concentration set point. It provides control accuracy of plus or minus 0.3 percent of the requested ratio, allowing it to deliver consistent results with varying flow rates and adjustable blend ratios. Read more >>

Product Briefing Outline: Soitec has introduced a new generation of advanced substrates that support all the applications and architectures on the industry’s sub-45 nm roadmap. New solutions such as ultra-thin top silicon and ultra-thin Buried OXide (BOX) give device architects and designers complete flexibility in their choice of substrates for partially depleted (PD) and fully-depleted (FD) devices, including multi-gate transistor architectures (FinFET, Trigate). Read more >>

One of the equipment suppliers that consistently brings out new products is KLA-Tencor. However, the metrology supplier rarely figures in the most popular rankings in any given year. That has changed in 2008 with its TeraFab tool. Although only released recently, the fifth most popular product was from TEL and Novellus for copper interconnects. Read more >>

Product Briefing Outline: Rohm and Haas Electronic Materials have said that its novel defect reduction and slurry reduction groove designs for CMP pads have already been adopted in high volume manufacturing (HVM) by customers in Europe, Korea, North America and Taiwan. While currently being used on the Rohm and Haas IC1000 AT CMP pad for the 90nm process node and below, multiple customers are now also testing the defect reduction groove on the ‘VisionPad’ line of CMP pads. Read more >>