G.t. Equipment Technologies, Inc.

S.c. Fluids, Inc.

Michael A Costantini

Mohan Chandra

Alleppey V Hariharan

Ijaz H Jafri

David J Mount

Heiko D Moritz

Rick M Heathwaite

Kedar Prasad Gupta

Jonathan A Talbott

Yuepeng Wan

Vishwanath Prasad

Jim Boyd

Keith Matthei

Philippe Leyvraz

Allison Caster

A continuous flow, steady state fluid delivery and recovery system for a process chamber and processes requiring supercritical fluid and desired additives including co-solvents, for conducting repetitive batch processing operations in an automated environment, for such processes as supercritical carbon dioxide cleaning and processing of semiconductor wafers. The system provides for steady-state operation of fluid flow and byproducts recovery while the process chamber is brought rapidly and repeatedly on and off line as in batch operations and for various process steps.

Supercritical fluid delivery and recovery system for semiconductor wafer processing

A dry process for the cleaning of precision surfaces such as of semiconductor wafers, by using process materials such as carbon dioxide and useful additives such as cosolvents and surfactants, where the process materials are applied exclusively in gaseous and supercritical states. Soak and agitation steps are applied to the wafer, including a rapid decompression of the process chamber after a soak period at higher supercritical pressure, to mechanically weaken break up the polymers and other materials sought to be removed, combined with a supercritical fluid flush to carry away the loose debris.

Supercritical fluid cleaning process for precision surfaces

A method for preparing a release coating and applying it to crucibles used to contain molten material while it solidifies, by mixing a release coating power with a dry organic binder into a powder and binder dry mixture, mixing a defoamer with a liquid into a liquid and defoamer mixture, mixing the dry mixture with the liquid and defoamer mixture into a wet release coating, sieving to remove lumps and particles, checking the viscosity, wet-spraying onto a crucible, evaporating the liquid from the wet release coating so as to leave a dry release coating on the crucible, and separating the binder from the dry release coating by thermal decomposition.

Release coating system for crucibles

A thermodynamically stable, protective coating layer is applied by thermal spray technique to the inner and outer surfaces of a quartz crucible used for mono or polycrystalline silicon crystallization processing, inhibiting fusion between the silicon melt and the vitreous silica of the crucible, contamination of the silicon melt by contaminants released from the crucible by devitrification, and any chemical reaction occurring between the crucible and any supporting graphite structure. A powdered form of a suitable protective coating material compatible with high temperature plasma spray techniques, such as magnesium zirconate, barium zirconate, or stabilized zirconium oxide, is fed into a high temperature and high speed plasma jet directed at the crucible. The powder particles are softened or melted in the jet and deposited on the surfaces of the quartz crucible, and allowed to cool and harden into a protective coating.

Protective layer for quartz crucibles used for silicon crystallization

A slurry recycle process for use in free-abrasive machining operations such as for wire saws used in wafer slicing of ingots, where the used slurry is separated into kerf-rich and abrasive-rich components, and the abrasive-rich component is reconstituted into a makeup slurry. During the process, the average particle size of the makeup slurry is controlled by monitoring the condition of the kerf and abrasive components and making necessary adjustments to the separating force and dwell time of the separator apparatus. Related pre-separator and post separator treatments, and feedback of one or the other separator slurry output components for mixing with incoming used slurry and recirculation through the separator, provide further effectiveness and additional control points in the process. The kerf-rich component is eventually or continually removed; the abrasive-rich component is reconstituted into a makeup slurry with a controlled, average particle size such that the products of the free-abrasive machining method using the recycled slurry process of the invention are of consistent high quality with less TTV deviation from cycle to cycle for a prolonged period or series of machining operations.

Method and apparatus for improved wire saw slurry

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Hudson, NH, United States of America

Michael A Costantini