Choosing the right wet bench equipment is a huge challenge for a manufacturing company or research facility. The equipment represents a major investment and you don’t want to spend a lot of money to find out the system doesn’t meet all your requirements. Secondly, the complex nature of wet bench equipment often makes the selection process even more difficult. In many cases, wet benches are designed to handle specific processes for wafer manufacturing. You need to insure that the equipment can support all your chemical processing and through put requirements.

That’s why you need to carefully evaluate your needs as you prepare to buy a wet bench. Below are 7 things you need to consider when buying wet bench equipment.

• Wafer or substrate size

Before you even think about the equipment you want to buy, consider what wafer or substrate sizes it can handle. Different applications utilize different processes and wafer sizes, which applications do you need? Fortunately Modutek’s wet bench stations can handle all manufacturing process and wafer sizes up to 12″, whichever wet station you choose; manual, automated, or semi-automated.

• Cassettes per bath

How many wafer cassettes per bath can the wet bench equipment hold? Some equipment can hold 2 wafer cassettes per bath; others can only hold one cassette per bath. An even more important feature is how the wafers are moved between baths. In some equipment, the movement is manual while in others it is automatic.

• Is FM approval required?

FM Global Standards form the basis approval assessment of manufacturing equipment used in the semiconductor industry. It is a general understanding in the industry that equipment addressed as FM Standard are custom built rather than produced in mass. The manufacturer’s ability to produce consistently standard products is assessed on a regular basis during FM Approval’s product follow-up program.

• Is CO2 fire system required?

Considering the fire risk posed by wet bench processes when solvents are used, most manufacturers fit their equipment with fire extinguisher systems. A common trend is to fit the equipment with CO2 fire suppression systems (Acid benches do not require CO2). See if the fire extinguisher suppresses fires without leaving behind foam, water, or dry chemical that may damage sensitive equipment parts.

• Is a third party electrical inspection needed?

SEMI S2, CE, and 3rd party tests are an excellent way to test your system for consistency and efficiency. Modutek uses SEMI S2, NFPA, and NEC as guidelines in manufacturing wet processing equipment and can also provide a quotation for inspection reports as requested. You’re guaranteed that all systems will pass 3rd party electrical inspections.

• Wafer volume requirements per day/week

How many wafers do you expect to process per day/week? As most process engineers have discovered, Modutek’s dry-to-dry wet processing equipment eliminates the need to dry using a separate tool. Fitted with an MVD Series IPA Dryer, the equipment shortens overall manufacturing process allowing for greater yield per unit time.

• Exhaust/chemical fume hood filtration requirements

Since hazardous fumes are produced in wet bench process, an exhaust mechanism is critical to all processes. Modutek provides a chemical fume hood that gives you a quick and low cost means to dispose of hazardous chemicals from the work station. Featuring white polypropylene construction for base and acid processes and stainless steel construction for solvent applications, the fume hoods are easy to install and set up, low cost, and meet or exceed all safety standards.

Summary

Remember that you always have the choice of manual, semi-automatic, and automatic wet bench stations. Other factors you may need to consider include: pump requirements, in-line heater needs, and station layout. For more information, contact Modutek on 866-803-1533 or 408-362-2000.