New wafer shipper enhances LED manufacturing

BILLERICA, USA: Entegris Inc. introduced a wafer shipper that specifically meets the critical handling needs of thin silicon (Si) and compound semiconductor wafers.

The new Ultrapak 100 mm Thin Wafer Shipper is designed to reduce damage and contamination in order to better protect thin substrates used in LED manufacturing and other applications. The new product is being featured with other LED solutions at the company's booth at the SEMICON Korea 2011 tradeshow being held in Seoul, Korea on January 26, 2011.

Currently, the LED industry predominantly uses shippers designed for semiconductor applications. These silicon wafer shippers are not designed for thin Si and compound semiconductor applications and can cause wafer damage or breakage, cross-slotting and particle generation via rotation if used in these sensitive applications.

The new Ultrapak 100 mm Thin Wafer Shipper, which leverages the proven technology and design of Entegris' Ultrapak family of wafer shipping products, offers several design features that help thin Si and compound semiconductor manufacturers reduce these risks, including:

* Cradle strap support (upper and lower cushions) of the wafer that limits wafer rotation, thereby reducing particle contamination, and secures the wafers in the cassette to safeguard against breakage.
* Enhanced perimeter support of the substrate via extended upper cushion and lower cushion to reduce stress levels during impact events during transport.
* Ultrapure polypropylene materials that provide a clean shipping environment and assure low levels of outgassing to prevent haze or changes to the wafer surface.
* Robotic pickup flanges on the cassette to allow for convenient handling.
* Center notch track alignment and an "H" bar to help assure accurate equipment interoperability for both vertical and horizontal wafer transfers.
* Secondary packaging design that holds eight shippers at a time, helping protect up to 200 wafers.

The Ultrapak 100 mm shipper successfully passes ISTA-2A procedure for free-fall drop with 150um thick Ge wafers using Entegris' designed secondary packaging. It also passed a battery of other functional tests using 300um, 200um, and 150um thin wafers.