Investigating the use of clean dry air to run fab lithography equipment

摘要

The competitive DRAM semiconductor market manufactures small, high-capacity devices at a low cost per bit, leading the industry to develop lithography tools with high throughput and fine resolution. Such tools, in turn, require supplies of CDA at a higher flow, pressure, and purity than in the recent past. These requirements have driven and will continue to drive CDA system design. Many system design options exist. Leased vendor-supplied systems should be carefully considered, specified, and procured. Current and potential lithography tool requirements should be thoroughly documented. Ultimately, the most appropriate systems depend on specific site conditions and preferences, such as the products manufactured, whether the fab is a new or existing one, the availability and cost of capital, tool suppliers, internal lens-purge methods, the anticipated number of tools to be used, and energy costs.