CRF Instruments

Cleanroom Facilities provide the instruments for fabrication and characterization of semiconductor materials and devices. 

See Our Instrumentation List for a sortable list of all SRF instruments, location, and contact person.

Patterning

Mask Aligners

Suss Microtech MA6 Mask Aligner

Purpose: For patterning photosensitive polymers with UV light

• Front side or back side alignment
• 320 nm UV exposure source
• Contact, vacuum contact or proximity modes
• Sample size between 10×10 mm die to 4 in. diameter wafer
• Masks with 2 to 4 inch diameter pattern area

Suss Microtech MJB3 Mask Aligner

Purpose: For patterning photosensitive polymers with UV light

• Front side alignment
• 365 nm UV exposure source
• Contact, vacuum contact, or proximity modes
• Sample sizes between 10×10 mm die to 4 inch diameter wafer
• Masks with 2 inch diameter pattern area

Spinners

Laurel Technologies 400 Spinners

Purpose: For applying uniform polymer films like photoresist or for spin cleaning with solvents

• Located in 4 foot spinner hood with hotplates available
• Substrates from 10 mm to 6 inches
• Maximum speed of 8,000 rpm

Laurel Technologies 600 Spinner

Purpose: For applying uniform polymer films like photoresist or for spin cleaning with solvents

• Located in 4 foot spinner hood with hotplate available
• Substrates from 10 mm to 6 inches
• Maximum speed of 12,000 rpm

UV Flood Exposure

OAI UV Flood Exposure

Purpose: To provide a uniform beam of UV light for photolithography processing

• 365 nm UV exposure source
• 5 inch diameter exposure area

Electron Microscopy

JEOL JSM-7600F Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM)

Purpose: For structural characterization at nanometer scale 

• Accelerating Voltage of 0.1 to 30 kV
• Magnification range from 25 to 1,000,000´
• Sample up to 4 inch diameter

Deposition

E-beam Evaporation

Temescal BJD 2000 E-Beam Evaporator

Purpose: For the deposition of metal and oxide thin films

• Standard materials: aluminum, chromium, cobalt, gold, nickel, platinum, titanium, aluminum oxide, and silicon oxide
• Six pocket, single-beam source
• In-situ crystal deposition monitor
• Standard planetary holds maximum of 13 substrates up to 3 inches in diameter
• Variable-angle planetary holds one, 3 in. diameter wafer and can be used for glancing-angle deposition
• Oxygen ion source
• Substrate heater

Sputtering Systems

CVC 610 DC Magnetron Sputtering Station

Purpose: For the deposition of metal thin films

• 8 inch target source with available targets of titanium and aluminum
• 2-inch interchangeable target source with available targets of aluminum, chrome, copper, gold, platinum, titanium, and tantalum Note: maximum coverage area of 2 inch target is 3 inch
• Maximum substrate size of 6 inch
• Rotating sun which holds up to 6 substrates
• Argon source gas
• Capable of nitrogen-assisted argon deposition for reactive sputtering depositions
• Ion cleaning source
• Backside substrate heater up to 300°C
• Base pressure of chamber is 10-6 Torr

DC and Rf Sputtering Station

Purpose: The instrument is used for the deposition of thin metal and dielectric films.

• Configured for DC and Rf Sputtering
• 5 - 2 inch AJA 320 sputter sources with available targets of aluminum, cobalt, chrome, copper, gold, nickel, platinum, tantalum ,titanium and zinc oxide - User targets specific to a project can be installed upon request
• Rotatable substrate holder with a maximum sample size of 3 inches.
• Loadlock system is attached to chamber for high throughput
• Stanford Research System RGA 100 is installed for in-situ analysis
• Source gases are argon and oxygen
• Backside substrate heater with a maximum temperature of 850°C
• Base chamber of the chamber is 10-8 Torr

Reactive Ion Etching (RIE) with ICP (Inductively Coupled Plasma)

Trion Technology Minilock III RIE

Purpose: For plasma etching of semiconductors, insulators, metals and polymers

• Anisotropic and isotropic plasma etching
• Maximum substrate size of 3” wafer
• 600 W RIE power supply and 1000 W ICP power supply
• Cl2, BCl3, CF4, O2 and Ar etch gases

Plasma Asher

March PX-250 Plasma Asher

Purpose: For cleaning substrates with oxygen plasma

• 8 in. x 8 in. shelf can accommodate a variety of substrate sizes
• 300W maximum RF power

Thermal Processing

Rapid Thermal Processing

AnnealSys AS-Micro Rapid Thermal Annealer

• For rapidly heating and cooling samples
• Maximum temperature of 12500C
• Variable ramp rate of 0.1 to 3000C per a second
• Nitrogen or Argon environment
• Vacuum
• Sample sizes up to 2 inches in diameter

Oxidation Furnace

Lindberg Blue M Tube Furnace

Purpose: For silicon oxide and titanium oxide growth

• For 3 inch diameter wafers
• Maximum Temperature 1200°C

Programmable Furnace

Thermolyne 6000 Programmable Furnace

Purpose: For annealing samples in air or nitrogen atmosphere

• Maximum temperature of 1200°C
• 12.75” W x 6.75” H x 10” D chamber
• Ramp rate of 100°C per minute
• Nitrogen purge

Furnace

Lindberg Blue M Tube Furnace

Purpose: For annealing samples less than ½-inch diameter

• Quartz Tube
• Maximum 1100°C

Sample Inspection/Packaging

Stylus Profilometer

Tencor Alpha-Step 200

Purpose: For non-destructive measuring of height

• ±160 µm height range
• 10 µm horizontal scan range
• Measures hard or soft films (i.e. polymers)

Digital Microscopy

Keyence VHX-7000

Optical Microscopy

Olympus BH-2 UMA

Purpose: For visual examination of features

• 1.5x, 5x, 10x, 20x, 50x, objectives with 10x eyepiece
• Bright field/dark field with polarizers and Nomarski prisms
• Reflective and transmissive
• Canon PowerShot digital camera for image capture

MEIJI MT7000

Purpose: For visual examination of features

• 5x, 10x, 20x, 50x, 100x objectives with 10x eyepiece
• Brightfield observation mode with polarizers
• CC2100 digital camera with computer Infinity Capture and Analyze software for image capture and photomicorgraphy

Optical Profilometry

Bruker Contour GT K0 Optical Profiler

• Synchronous pulsed fluorescence illuminator
• 5×, 10×, 50× objectives with 2× field of view multiplier
• Motorized stage for data stitching
• 5× – TTM (Through Transmissive Media) objective

Packaging

Gold Wire Bonder – West Bond 74776E

Purpose: For making gold wire connections between device and package

• Ball-wedge bonding, deep-access ball-wedge bonding, and wedge-wedge bonding
• Packages of any shape up to 2 inches square

Epoxy Die Bonder – West Bond 7372E

Purpose: For epoxy mounting 10×10 mm die into package

• Packages of any shape up to 2 inches square

Dicing

DISCOTECH DAD-3240 Dicing Saw

Purpose: High throughput system for the dicing of materials from silicon to ceramics

• Auto alignment function for improved precision
• Minimum indexing step in X and Y direction of 0.0001mm
• Maximum sample size of 6 in.
• Standard dicing blades for dicing of silicon and sapphire substrates
• Can be configured to use hub or hub-less style blades
• Styles of chuck for use are ceramic or vacuum