MiniNet Particle Counter0 pages

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get a minienvironment clean, it is impossible to keep it clean. Over time, fans can fail; robot arms can start to wear. FOUP slots can become misaligned, causing wafer breakage. Only real-time particle monitors can send alarms when events first begin to occur.When particle events do occur they are much closer to the product - increasing the potential for product damage.
Particle events can be more difficult to detect than in tra-
ditional cleanrooms. Events in minienvironments are often short in duration and localized in space. Spot checks with test wafers are inadequate. Failure to detect a particle event is more expensive than ever. >

nnTHE IMPORTANCE OF MONITORING IN MINIENVIRONMENTS

The semiconductor industry continually drives to decrease the cost and increase the performance of computer chips. A key to meeting these goals is reducing chip sizes and squeezing more chips onto the 300 mm wafer. As the indus-
try moves to 300 mm technology, however, this means that smaller and smaller particles can impact chip performance. The solution is to develop cleaner and cleaner manufactur-
ing processes.The minienvironment (or isolator) is a key design element in this process -- just as for the data storage and pharma-
ceutical industries. By building protective enclosures that fit snugly around each tool, the volume of air to keep clean has been reduced significantly. By combining this with other design elements (such as robotics, filtering and FOUPs), it has become possible to get minienvironments 100 times cleaner than previous generation cleanrooms.
While minienvironments are significantly cleaner, it is still essential to monitor them continuously in real-time for par-
ticle events. Although it is possible to >

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MININETMINIENVIRONMENT
MONITOR

MiniNet is available either with or without an internal pump. >

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