Product Overview

Used in plasma etch chambers, CVD systems, and PVD equipment for wafer clamping and backside gas cooling. Fountyl high-precision ring groove ceramic chucks feature machined concentric groove patterns on the wafer-facing surface. These grooves distribute helium cooling gas uniformly across the wafer backside while vacuum clamping holds the wafer in place during processing. The chuck body is manufactured from high-purity alumina (Al2O3 99.5%) or silicon carbide (SiC 99%) ceramics, sintered to full density and precision-ground to tight flatness tolerances.

Material Specifications

Alumina Ceramic (Al2O3 99.5%)
- Flexural strength: >= 330 MPa
- Vickers hardness: >= 1600 HV
- Thermal expansion: 8 ppm/C
- Electrical resistivity: > 10^14 ohm.cm

Silicon Carbide Ceramic (SiC 99%)
- Flexural strength: >= 450 MPa
- Vickers hardness: >= 2500 HV
- Thermal expansion: 4 ppm/C
- Surface resistivity: 10^4-10^6 ohm/sq (semi-insulating grade available)

Groove and Surface Specifications

- Groove pattern: concentric ring design, single or multi-zone configurations
- Groove width: 0.5-2 mm (customizable)
- Groove depth: 0.3-1 mm (customizable)
- Land width between grooves: 1-5 mm
- Surface flatness: within 0.02 mm over full chuck diameter
- Surface roughness: Ra <= 0.4 um (wafer contact area)
- Wafer sizes: 150 mm, 200 mm, 300 mm
- Custom OD: up to 350 mm

Key Features

- Precision ring groove pattern -- machined to +/- 0.02mm tolerance for uniform gas distribution and consistent wafer clamping across the entire surface.
- Dual-function design -- concentric grooves serve both vacuum clamping and helium backside cooling channels, eliminating the need for separate cooling plates.
- Material options -- alumina for general etch chambers; silicon carbide for high-erosion plasma environments and processes requiring electrostatic chuck compatibility.
- Flatness control -- within 0.02mm ensures uniform wafer contact and consistent heat transfer across the full wafer diameter.
- Plasma resistance -- both material grades withstand fluorine and chlorine chemistry without degradation or coating requirements.
- Custom groove layout -- number of zones, groove width, depth, and land width adjustable to match specific process gas flow and temperature uniformity requirements.

Applications

- Plasma etch chambers -- wafer clamping and helium backside cooling for oxide, metal, and poly-Si etching
- CVD and PECVD systems -- wafer temperature control during thin film deposition
- PVD and sputtering equipment -- stable wafer hold with backside cooling in high-vacuum environments
- Wafer inspection and metrology -- precision wafer positioning with uniform vacuum hold

Manufacturing Capability

In-house production through ceramic powder processing, sintering, precision diamond grinding, groove machining, and final cleaning. Custom groove patterns, chuck diameters, and mounting interfaces available for specific chamber designs.