China Wafer vacuum chuck Manufacturers, Suppliers, Factory

Epitaxial wafers have been used in the electronics industry for decades, but their importance has only increased as technology has advanced. In this article, we will explore what epitaxial wafers are and why they are such an essential component of modern electronics.

While there is currently an oversupply of memory semiconductors due to a sluggish global economy, analog chips for automotive and industrial applications remain in short supply. Lead times for these analog chips can be as long as 40 weeks, compared to around 20 weeks for memory stocks.

In semiconductor fabrication, etching is one of the major steps, along with photolithography and thin-film deposition. It involves removing unwanted materials from the surface of a wafer using chemical or physical methods. This step is carried out after coating, photolithography, and developing. It is used to remove the exposed thin film material, leaving only the desired portion of the wafer, and then removing the excess photoresist. These steps are repeated numerous times to create complex integrated circuits.

A diffusion furnace is a specialized piece of equipment used to introduce impurities into semiconductor wafers in a controlled manner. These impurities, called dopants, change the electrical properties of semiconductors, allowing different types of electronic components to be made. This controlled diffusion process is critical to the production of transistors, diodes and integrated circuits.

The Silicon Carbide (SiC) production process encompasses the preparation of substrate and epitaxy from the materials side, followed by chip design and manufacturing, device packaging, and finally, distribution to downstream application markets. Among these stages, substrate material processing is the most challenging aspect of the SiC industry. SiC substrates are both hard and brittle, making cutting, grinding, and polishing extremely difficult. This increases the likelihood of defects during processing and reduces the yield rate. Currently, major international SiC manufacturers are planning to transition from 6-inch to 8-inch SiC wafers. Overcoming the challenges associated with 8-inch substrates has become a critical benchmark for the SiC industry. This article will introduce the key parameters of SiC substrates.

Silicon carbide (SiC), a prominent structural ceramic, is renowned for its exceptional properties, including high-temperature strength, hardness, elastic modulus, wear resistance, thermal conductivity, and corrosion resistance. These attributes make it suitable for a wide range of applications, from traditional industrial uses in high-temperature kiln furniture, burner nozzles, heat exchangers, sealing rings, and sliding bearings, to advanced applications like ballistic armor, space mirrors, semiconductor wafer chucks, and nuclear fuel cladding.