Resource Center

An information portal to help you meet your process goals. Find whitepapers, application notes, and answers to your frequently asked questions.

FAQ

You have questions, we have answers!

As the authorities on plasma process equipment, we’re asked to address different pain points. From how we work to service offerings and tool adjustments, we tasked our knowledgeable team with answering the most frequently asked questions here. If you don’t see yours, drop us a note and one of our dedicated team members will contact you.

We started our journey way back in 1974 with the same name we have today. Our focus has always been on plasma-based tools and processes. Over time we have made acquisitions, added capabilities, and continually improved our technologies.

The CORIAL products are still available under the same name. CORIAL™ is now a brand name in the Plasma-Therm portfolio, and customers can still purchase these products. The same is true for our KOBUS™ brand.

Typically, we come in a bit lower in price than most competitive systems. And the long-term efficiencies of our systems have customers viewing us as an overall cost-to-value leader in that regard.

Our company is headquartered in St. Petersburg, Florida, and we have a regional office in Gilbert, Arizona. Our Ion Beam Technology Center is in Fremont, California, and our Deposition Technology Center is in Bernin, France. In addition, we have sales and service locations around the world. You can check out that list on a different page on this website.

While our core business is in the specialty markets at 200mm and below, our die singulation systems are available to support 300mm.

Since we create tools to meet your exact specifications, we don’t have a specific return policy. However, we are happy to work with you to make sure you are satisfied with your purchase.

While we respect our competitors and accept that there may be pros and cons in comparison to what we offer, we can only really address what we do and what we have heard from customers. Generally speaking, our systems perform at a high level and on par with or better than other brands. What we hear is that we are often more accessible to serve their needs – quicker to respond and better prepared to solve any process issues or questions. Performing well in this area has endeared us to most of our customers.

You can certainly make stand-alone purchases without affecting your results. Our tools are not dependent on using our other plasma-based tools in your manufacturing line. We do have some customers who are synchronizing their equipment to include all our systems, but it is not required.

While others offer it, we are the only company that’s been building and perfecting plasma-based tools since 1974. We are committed to continually improving our processes to meet your changing requirements. It’s the same as being dedicated to long-proven brands for personal items like running shoes; even though many companies make them, you deserve the best. That’s one reason customers like buying from us.

We offer systems and solutions in the following core areas: etch, deposition, advanced packaging, stripping, and other surface modification, as well as singulation, or dicing.

We offer four different types of etching technologies: reactive ion etching (RIE), inductively coupled plasma etching (ICP), high-density radical flux etching (HDRF), and ion beam etching (IBE).

We offer plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD), high-density plasma chemical vapor deposition (HDPCVD), Fast Atomic Sequential Technology (F.A.S.T.®), physical vapor deposition (PVD), and ion beam deposition (IBD). Our ALD-like solution, F.A.S.T.®, offers a unique combination of an optimized CVD reactor with ALD pulsing capability. Compared with traditional ALD systems, it can reduce the integration cost of through-silicon-via fabrication by >20%.

Using a plasma beam, we can more cleanly cut through the layers without leaving some of the rough edges that you get with saws. In addition, plasma dicing can cut all the way through the layers in one pass and allow for die to be irregular shapes and sizes. Using a strong adhesive tape on the underside of the wafer allows us to do that without chips falling everywhere. Finally, the streets (distance between the die) can be narrower, with chips placed more closely together, potentially allowing for more chips to be added to wafers.

All our terms and conditions and purchasing terms can be found here. Please email us directly for additional questions.

Yes, we do. Plasma-Therm has a variety of options that we tailor to meet your specific requirements and needs.

No

Yes, once you provide us with your product specifications, we will ask for a deposit before configuring your system.

WHITEPAPERS AND TECHNICAL PAPERS

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