Etching
Atomica offers Deep Reactive Ion Etching (DRIE), Reactive Ion Etching and wet etching capabilities, where the process technologies need to be matched to the design requirements.
Tools
- Omega® Rapier™ Deep RIE system
- PLASMA THERM RIE cluster tool
- STS deep RIE ICP system
- STS AOE Pro (advanced oxide etcher)
- Veeco Ion Mill sytems
Atomica’s Advanced Deep Reactive Ion Etching (DRIE), Reactive Ion Etching (RIE) and Wet Etching capabilities
Atomica offers both dry (RIE, DRIE, ion milling) and wet etching capabilities, where the process technologies need to be matched to the design requirements. Our Deep reactive ion etching (DRIE) capability allows anisotropic etching of silicon which is useful for etching of close-tolerance comb fingers, vias or holes, and trenches.
Specs:
Deep Reactive Ion Etching:
- Ultra-smooth vertical walls
- Better than 50:1 aspect ratio
- 90o sidewall angle
- Useful for etching of close-tolerance comb fingers, vias or holes, and trenches
Reactive Ion etching:
- Silicon, quartz, oxide, nitride, polysilicon, oxynitride, Ti, TiW, Nb
- Wafer edge protection for KOH/TMAH mask etch layers
- Deep trench oxide etch (for removal of oxide at bottom of silicon trenches, up to 10:1 aspect ratio)
Wet Etching:
- Atomica has experience with: Au, Ti, Cu, Cr, Si, SiO2, NiFe, Al2O3, CoNi, NiCo and solder
- Thickness: from 1 µm up to 50 µm
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Featured Etching Tool
OMEGA® RAPIER™ DEEP REACTIVE ION ETCH SYSTEM
The Rapier DRIE process module provides the high-level of profile control, selectivity and uniformity needed for the critical feature requirements of next generation MEMS devices. With an installed base of >1200 DRIE process modules, the Rapier module etches Si using Bosch switched processing as well as non-switched etching for tapered profiles, wafer thinning and via reveal.
- Achieves best-in-class control over side-wall profile, scalloping, and aspect ratio, plus world-class etch rates, uniformity, and tilt control enabling highly sensitive gyro resonators and other critical MEMS applications.
- Implements precise control of the Si etch to a stop layer as commonly used for MEMS processing.
Featured Deposition Tool
PLASMA-THERM’S VERSALINE HDPCVD
Plasma-Therm’s VERSALINE HDPCVD product uses a new approach to achieving highly dense and conformal films at low substrate temperatures. The system utilizes a high-density ICP plasma with a temperature-controlled and biased substrate. Uniform gas injection at the substrate level maximizes film quality.
- Substrate temperature control via mechanical clamp
- Substrate bias at 13.56 MHz
- Low particulate processing environment with thermally managed reactor design — up to 180°C for walls and showerhead
- Process benefits include: Low temperature, Trench Fill, High-density films, High uniformity, Tunable index and Doping
Why Atomica?
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Largest US MEMS Foundry
Atomica serves its customers from a 13-acre, 130,000 ft2 manufacturing campus (including a 30,000 ft2 class 100 cleanroom) in Santa Barbara, California. We operate over 400 sophisticated 150mm and 200mm tools and are ISO 9001 and ITAR certified. This makes us the largest independent MEMS fab in the United States, well-positioned to support the growing demand for domestic production of critical sensors, photonics, and biochips.
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Unique collaborative methodology to ensure program success
At Atomica, we are resolved to help our customers bring their innovations to life using our proven phase-gate process to successfully navigate the challenges of design, development, prototype, scale-up, and high-volume production. Our multi-disciplinary team of scientists and manufacturing engineers tackles the hardest process development and integration challenges with an eye toward manufacturability (DFM). Our methodology entails rigorous project management to optimize resources, mitigate risks, and deliver predictable results.
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Extraordinary engineering expertise
Atomica has over 20 years of experience commercializing technologies that change the future. Our extensive experience spans the full spectrum of MEMS, including photonics, sensors, microfluidic biochips, and other micro components. We have over 20 Phds on-site and we’ve worked on hundreds of programs to date. You could say we’ve seen it all. This experience combined with our volume production facility help ensure customers get to market fast with the highest chance of commercial success.
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Exceptional flexibility in materials and project types
Atomica has a versatile and flexible engagement model. We are able to engage using our standard processes or provide bespoke, custom process development. We will consider programs of many sizes, as long as they hold promise to have an impact on the world once they reach production. Atomica also is able to handle a very broad range of materials providing access to an extensive set of processes and materials unavailable in CMOS fabs, including noble metals, polymers, and virtually any substrate (e.g., silicon, SOI, glass, fused silica, quartz, borosilicate, piezos, and III-V).