Precision ceramics, especially advanced structural ceramics, are indispensable materials in high-end semiconductor manufacturing, permeating the entire industry chain from chip fabrication, testing and packaging. Precision ceramics like alumina, silicon nitride, aluminum nitride and silicon carbide, which fully meet the stringent requirements of semiconductor processes for high purity, high heat resistance, high wear resistance, robust corrosion resistance and superior electrical insulation. In semiconductor equipment, precision ceramics account for approximately 16% of the total value, and they are widely applied in the manufacture of components for equipment, including wafer polishing machines, heat treatment equipment, lithography machines, deposition equipment, etching equipment and ion implantation machines.

Application Process	Ceramic Components
CMP	Polishing table, polishing plate, handling arm
Photolithography	Vacuum chuck, wafer chuck, worktable, handling arm
Hightemperature Processing (RTP / Epitaxy / Oxidation / Diffusion)	Insulator, base susceptor, wafer boat, furnace tube, cantilever paddle
Deposition	Chamber lid, chamber liner, deposition ring, electrostatic chuck, heater, electroplating insulator, vacuum break filter
Etch	Dome top, chamber body, focus ring, nozzle, electrostatic chuck, handling arm
Ion Implantation	Bearing, vacuum chuck, electrostatic chuck

---

I. Chip Fabrication: Core Components

1. Wafer Processing

A. Electrostatic Chucks

Electrostatic chucks are commonly made of high-purity alumina and aluminum nitride ceramics. Their main function is to adsorb and fix semiconductor wafers during processes such as etching, chemical vapor deposition and physical vapor deposition. In these processes, electrostatic chucks need to have excellent overall flatness, electrical insulation, plasma erosion resistance and precise temperature control through an internal heating & cooling system.

B. Etching process components

Components like ceramic liners, focus rings and gas distribution discs used in etching reaction chambers are typically directly exposed to high-temperature and severe corrosion etching conditions. The industry typically uses yttrium oxide, aluminum nitride, and aluminum oxide to make these components, ensuring they have extremely strong corrosion resistance to prevent them from contaminating the wafer. Yttrium oxide exhibits excellent corrosion resistance in halogen plasmas (such as Cl₂ and CF₄), making it the preferred choice for high-end etching machines. High-purity aluminum nitride ceramics possess excellent thermal conductivity, heat resistance, and insulation, with a coefficient of thermal expansion close to that of silicon, and exhibit excellent plasma resistance, resulting in uniform heat distribution, making it an ideal choice for etching components.

C. Chemical mechanical polishing

Ceramic polishing heads used in chemical mechanical polishing equipment are usually manufactured from aluminum nitride, because aluminum nitride has superior hardness, wear resistance and chemical stability. These material properties enable ceramic polishing heads to operate stably in long-term chemical mechanical polishing environments to maintain the consistent flatness pressure on the wafer surface.

D. Ion implantation

Components used as insulators, fixtures and baffles in the beamlines of ion implantation processes require high insulation to prevent charge accumulation and withstand bombardment by high-energy ion beams. Alumina and silicon nitride possess reliable material properties, making them ideal for fabricating components in these components.

2. Thin film deposition

Precision ceramics, such as aluminum nitride and alumina, can be produced as heating plates, susceptors and chamber liners in chemical vapor deposition equipment. Their superior material properties allow them to maintain stable performance and prevent the release of unwanted impurities under challenging operating environments involving high working temperatures (up to several hundred degrees Celsius) and corrosive reactive gases.

3. Heat Treatment (Diffusion, Oxidation)

High-purity quartz glass (though not a typical ceramic, it falls under the category of silicate ceramics) and silicon carbide ceramics are commonly used in the manufacture of diffusion furnace tubes and wafer boats. Silicon carbide possesses high thermal conductivity, high-temperature mechanical strength, high rigidity, low coefficient of thermal expansion, good thermal uniformity, corrosion resistance, and wear resistance. Besides its use in the production of furnace tubes and wafer boats, it can also be applied in the production and processing of XY platforms, bases, focusing rings, polishing plates, wafer chucks, vacuum chucks, transport arms, and cantilever paddles.

---

II. Chip Testing and Packaging

1. Test Probe Cards

Precision ceramics such as alumina and aluminum nitride are commonly used as substrates for probe cards. These ceramic substrates deliver excellent insulation, flatness and dimensional stability to ensure that thousands of microprobes can accurately aligned with tiny pads on the chip for electrical performance testing.

2. Packing substrate and housing

Aluminum nitride and beryllium oxide are commonly used materials for manufacturing packaging substrates and housings. They offer exceptional hermeticity, high thermal conductivity and a thermal expansion coefficient matching silicon to effectively protecting the chip and dissipating heat during ceramic packages, such as CERDIP and CQFP. In power modules, the aluminum nitride substrate as the insulating layer can efficiently conduct the heat generated by the chip to metal heat sink while ensuring electrical isolation between circuits.

---

Precision ceramics are the "unsung heroes" of the semiconductor industry. Although they do not directly constitute the chip's circuitry, they are the cornerstone and guardian upon which the manufacture of cutting-edge chips depends. Precision ceramics, with their reliable and consistent material properties, support the semiconductor industry to build smaller, faster and more robust devices.