centrotherm international AG

The centrotherm c.ACTIVATOR has been developed for high-temperature annealing applications in high-volume SiC device manufacturing but it is also ideally suited for other materials. There are two versions available providing wafer size capabilities up to 200 mm. The unique all metal free design of the centrotherm process tube and heating system allows process temperatures up to 2000 °C.

The main application for c.ACTIVATOR is the electrical activation by post implantation annealing for SiC MOSFET and diode manufacturing at high temperatures of up to 2000°C.

Further applications are

• High-temperature hydrogen annealing to smooth, clean and round trenches after (RIE) etching in order to improve channel mobility and reduce field crowding on sharp corners in trench MOSFET manufacturing
• Cost-efficient dopant activation in GaN wafers at 1150 - 1250°C
• Annealing of AlN seed layers and AlN epitaxial layers at ~1700°C

The centrotherm c.HORICOO 200 is a field-proven and ultra-versatile tube furnace system that is available for mass and medium volume production as well as for Research and Development.

It provides reliable process capabilities and high process performance for multiple applications, such as atmospheric and low pressure diffusion as well as LPCVD processes. The process tubes can be configured for various processes with associated facilities. Within one furnace atmospheric, LPCVD or mixed-tube configuration can be installed.

All furnaces can be equipped with an integrated boat handling system as well as an integrated wafer transfer system. Interference between individual tubes is minimized by water-cooled heating cassettes. The softlanding system enables repeatable wafer positioning within the tube, independent from wafer load. Ease of maintenance ensures low cost of ownership and a high uptime

The centrotherm c.HORICOO 300 horizontal batch-type system is designed for 300 mm wafer processing with reliable performance in mass production. Based on centrotherm‘s extensive expertise in the semiconductor industry, c.HORICOO 300 is the new high-throughput platform for state-of-the-art wafer processing.

The heating element comprises 5 heating zones where each zone consits of two half shells that proved excellent temperature uniformity. The centrotherm Hydrox system supports wet oxidation processes with different moisture levels.

Temperatures up to 1200 °C allow faster oxidation and shorter drive-in processes.

The system is equipped with a modern touch operating HMI and factory-host coupling for MES connection. The latest CESAR II software enables a SEMI-compliant recipe management as well as remote control and maintenance.

The modular concept of c.HORICOO 300 also allows a single furnace 4-stack version or a cluster version with up to 8 tubes.

The centrotherm c.OXIDATOR high-temperature oxidation furnace has been developed for the special needs of SiC oxidation but can also be used for silicon oxidation. The high-volume furnace is available in two versions allowing wafer sizes up to 200 mm. Optionally c.OXIDATOR supports in-situ wet oxidation as well as H₂ and NH₃ annealing applications.

Temperatures up to 1500 °C and all other supported features open up a wide range of possibilities to SiC oxidation and the development of an oxide layer with low interface trap density (Dit) and high channel mobility.

Due to its vacuum capability, c.OXIDATOR can be excellently used in the development, optimization and production of high quality thermal gate oxides, as well as for a variety of pre- and post-treatments, which are also essential for deposited oxides. 

The stand-alone RTP system c.RAPID 200 has been especially developed for multiple process requirements in R&D and production lines. High performance and flexibility combined with low cost of ownership make it the best choice in rapid thermal processing.

The capability to run a substrate on a susceptor or within a box in combination with atmospheric or vacuum operation enables a wide range of possible applications for compound semiconductors (e.g. for SiC or GaN).

Its wafer surface-independent temperature controllability is unique among all existing RTP solutions. The pyrometer-based temperature measurement system enables processes at low and high temperatures. Independent lamp control combined with predictive PID control provides excellent thermal accuracy and repeatability.

c.RAPID 200 operates with a fully automatic loading system and is available as single or dual chamber version and with up to 4 cassette stations.

The centrotherm c.VERTICOO platform for batch-type wafer processing is ideally suited for many semiconductor device fabrication steps. The special design of process chamber and heating system provides maximum flexibility for all standard atmospheric and LPCVD processes with temperatures up to 1100 °C.

The stand-alone system is available as high-throughput version for mass production or mini-batch equipment for R&D and low-volume production. Both models are outstanding for high performance, small footprint, low cost of ownership and ease of maintainance.

The high-volume furnace c.VERTICOO 200 combines a single-tube setup with dual boat logistics and fully automated carrier-to-carrier wafer handling ensuring maximum throughput with batch sizes up to 150 wafers.

The mini-batch furnace c.VERTICOO Mini meets the demanding requirements of semiconductor device R&D and allows customers to reduce development costs by processing a maximum of 50 wafers per batch.