News Article
SEMATECH acquires TSV RIE tool from TEL
The 300 mm TSV RIE tool to be installed at SEMATECH’s 3D R&D centre at UAlbany NanoCollege.
SEMATECH, in partnership with the College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering (CNSE) of the University at Albany, is pleased to announce that it has received a 300 mm system from Tokyo Electron Limited (TEL).
The system is the latest generation through silicon via (TSV) etch tool that has the versatility to investigate various chemistries to etch vias ranging from sub 1 micron to tens of microns wide. The TSV RIE tool, which is a critical component of all 3D TSV integration schemes, will be used in SEMATECH’s 3D R&D Centre at CNSE’s Albany NanoTech Complex in Albany, NY.
“TEL was the first associate member of the 3D programme and has been a valued partner of the interconnect division for many years. Given their experience in deep silicon etching, we are very pleased to partner with TEL on this critical aspect of developing 3D interconnects,” said John Warlaumont, SEMATECH’s vice president of advanced technology. “Leveraging CNSE’s pilot line to establish a 300 mm 3D R&D centre is a unique opportunity. It allows our researchers to address the technical and manufacturability issues of creating 3D interconnects within a state of the art CMOS environment.”
Masayuki Tomoyasu, senior vice president and chief engineer for TEL, added, “The integration of TEL's 3D tools with SEMATECH's R&D capabilities and know how will bring significant benefits to our semiconductor customers by refining our processes for TSV etch development.”
Michael Tittnich, associate vice president for technical operations at CNSE, said, “The strategic partnership between the UAlbany NanoCollege and SEMATECH continues to demonstrate global leadership in accelerating cutting edge nanoelectronics education, research, development and deployment for the benefit of a growing number of worldwide industry partners. This latest acquisition of Tokyo Electron’s next-generation TSV RIE tool expands CNSE’s state of the art 300 mm line, while also illustrating the success of SEMATECH’s 3D R&D programme and its growing presence and partnerships at CNSE’s Albany NanoTech Complex.”
Issues which have restricted 3D interconnects from entering high volume manufacturing encompass the front end, assembly and packaging, and design and test. In an effort to transcend these barriers, SEMATECH’s 3D programme has been working jointly with chipmakers, equipment and materials suppliers, and assembly and packaging service companies from around the world on early development challenges, including cost modelling, technology option narrowing, technology development and benchmarking, while also building industry consensus.
The system is the latest generation through silicon via (TSV) etch tool that has the versatility to investigate various chemistries to etch vias ranging from sub 1 micron to tens of microns wide. The TSV RIE tool, which is a critical component of all 3D TSV integration schemes, will be used in SEMATECH’s 3D R&D Centre at CNSE’s Albany NanoTech Complex in Albany, NY.
“TEL was the first associate member of the 3D programme and has been a valued partner of the interconnect division for many years. Given their experience in deep silicon etching, we are very pleased to partner with TEL on this critical aspect of developing 3D interconnects,” said John Warlaumont, SEMATECH’s vice president of advanced technology. “Leveraging CNSE’s pilot line to establish a 300 mm 3D R&D centre is a unique opportunity. It allows our researchers to address the technical and manufacturability issues of creating 3D interconnects within a state of the art CMOS environment.”
Masayuki Tomoyasu, senior vice president and chief engineer for TEL, added, “The integration of TEL's 3D tools with SEMATECH's R&D capabilities and know how will bring significant benefits to our semiconductor customers by refining our processes for TSV etch development.”
Michael Tittnich, associate vice president for technical operations at CNSE, said, “The strategic partnership between the UAlbany NanoCollege and SEMATECH continues to demonstrate global leadership in accelerating cutting edge nanoelectronics education, research, development and deployment for the benefit of a growing number of worldwide industry partners. This latest acquisition of Tokyo Electron’s next-generation TSV RIE tool expands CNSE’s state of the art 300 mm line, while also illustrating the success of SEMATECH’s 3D R&D programme and its growing presence and partnerships at CNSE’s Albany NanoTech Complex.”
Issues which have restricted 3D interconnects from entering high volume manufacturing encompass the front end, assembly and packaging, and design and test. In an effort to transcend these barriers, SEMATECH’s 3D programme has been working jointly with chipmakers, equipment and materials suppliers, and assembly and packaging service companies from around the world on early development challenges, including cost modelling, technology option narrowing, technology development and benchmarking, while also building industry consensus.
