EB Cartridge Heater Meets Precise Requirements for Semiconductor Manufacturing

Problem:

Modern semiconductor technology depends on mono-crystalline silicon electrical contacts precision fused to semiconductor chips.

Solution:

Use multiple 6.5 mm (0.26-inch) diameter Watlow high performance metric EB cartridge heaters. With EB cartridge heaters, the tip of the soldering tool used on automatic die bonding machines can be heated to 600°C (1100°F) making the contact properly fused. All this happens in the few tenths of a millimeter space between the semiconductor chip and the contact. Without such precision, one bad contact point would cause the integrated switching network to fail.

The EB cartridge heater does more than deliver performance at high temperatures. It also allows heat to be evenly distributed, by dividing the four heaters into two separate control loops. Once the soldering tool is hot enough, a semiconductor chip as large as 125 mm (5-inch) in diameter is placed on top of it. Electrical contacts are fused. Then, the chip is put in a nitrogen atmosphere to prevent oxidation of the semiconductor material.