News from Brooks Instrument

SEMICON West 2014: Brooks Instrument to Feature Advanced Diagnostic Mass Flow Control and Pressure Control Products to Improve Semiconductor Process Yields HATFIELD, Pa. (June 16, 2014) – Brooks Instrument, a world-leading provider of advanced flow, pressure, vacuum and vapor delivery solutions, will present its industry-leading Mass Flow Control (MFC) technology along with a broad range of mass flow meters, controllers, vaporizers and capacitance manometers used for Front End of Line (FEOL) and Back End of Line (BEOL) applications at SEMICON West 2014, held July 8-10 in San Francisco. Located in the south hall booth 1222, Brooks Instrument will showcase key developments in its portfolio of MFCs designed to meet critical gas chemistry control challenges and support process yield enhancement initiatives for sub-20nm nodes. These include the GF135 advanced diagnostic MFC; the XacTorr CMX II capacitance manometer with newly upgraded features, as well as information on emerging pressure-based flow control technologies. Bill Valentine, Brooks Instrument’s Chief Technology Officer, will join a panel of expert presenters at the Semiconductor Technology Symposium hosted by SEMATECH in conjunction with SEMICON West 2014. The symposium, to be held at TechXPOT South on Tuesday, July 8, will discuss “Variability Control – A Key Challenge and Opportunity for Driving Towards Manufacturing Excellence”. Brooks Instrument has a relentless focus on improving the precision and performance of its mass flow, pressure and vacuum technologies to help enable advanced semiconductor processes. At SEMICON West 2014, the company will highlight key technologies including: GF135 Advanced Diagnostic PTI MFC: Brooks Instrument is showcasing the first “smart” pressure transient insensitive (PTI) MFC that can perform self-diagnostics such as integral rate-of-decay flow measurement without stopping the flow of process gas. This technology provides a competitive advantage: It allows semiconductor manufacturers to verify process gas accuracy, check valve leak-by, and monitor sensor stability in real time without removing the flow controller from the gas line. The average lost productivity time to replace an MFC can be six hours; the average preventative maintenance time to run a gas panel calculation check (to determine if an MFC is good or bad) can be up to four hours. It is widely recognized that a one-percent reduction in yield on a 300mm wafer system can cost up to US$60,000 a day. However, with this unique real-time error detection technology, process and equipment engineers are able to reduce both wafer scrap and lost production time due to unacceptable flow deviations and unnecessary preventative maintenance checks. The Brooks Instrument GF135 PTI MFC also offers industry-leading actual process gas accuracy and fast flow settling time for ascending and descending set points, helping to improve productivity and chamber-to-chamber matching. XacTorr CMX II digital capacitance manometer: Created to set new standards for vacuum chamber measurement and control, the newest version of the XacTorr CMX family offers improved process pressure measurement and long-term stability and repeatability through its unique shielded measurement diaphragm and active thermal management and compensation capabilities. The new CMX II offers increased resolution, improved response times and an EtherCAT interface, for integration into next generation high-speed tool sensor networks. In addition to product highlights, the company’s booth will include an enhanced interactive GF 135 demonstration where attendees can see real time flow error detection and MFC diagnostics. Applications engineers will also be available to answer questions about the latest Brooks Instrument technologies designed to help semiconductor manufacturers enhance their process control, improve chamber matching and support process yield programs. This includes information on how advances in pressure controller technologies support ways to shorten process step times through back side wafer cooling. Visitors to Booth 1222 will also have the opportunity to be registered to win a tablet computer; one tablet will be given away on each day of the show. For more information about the complete range of Brooks Instrument products and solutions for process, lab and analytical applications, visit www.brooksinstrument.com. About Brooks Instrument Brooks Instrument LLC, based in Pennsylvania, is a multi-technology instrumentation company serving a range of demanding markets. The Company has a proven history of innovation, including the original commercial design that set the standard for today’s thermal mass flow controllers, the first high-performance digital mass flow controller, the first gas and range programmable thermal mass flow controller (MultiFlo™), the first watertight and explosion-proof thermal mass flow controller (Mf Series), the first thermal mass flow controller with Foundation Fieldbus (SLA Series) and the first variable area meter with Foundation Fieldbus (MT3809 & MT3750). Today, Brooks Instrument’s portfolio includes glass and metal tube variable area meters (rotameters), thermal mass flow controllers and meters from ultra-high purity to industrial grade, Coriolis mass flow controller (Quantim), vacuum measurement and pressure control products, direct liquid injection vapor delivery systems, magnetic level instruments, and a variety of flow accessories. The Company also owns Key Instruments, which offers precision machined acrylic flow meters, molded plastic flow meters, glass tube flow meters, and flow control valves. Brooks Instrument has manufacturing locations, sales, and service offices in the Americas, Europe, and Asia. For more information on flow solutions, products, or sales contacts please visit www.BrooksInstrument.com. Also visit us on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook.