Alliance Formed to Address Sub 0.25um Copper/Low-K Post Etch Cleaning Requirements
Semitool and Ashland Electronic Chemicals Division Cooperating on Chemistries And Equipment Interaction to Advance Semiconductor Technologies in Copper Interconnect Applications
DUBLIN, Ohio (USA), July 16 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Ashland Specialty Chemical Company, a division of Ashland Inc. (NYSE: ASH - News), and Semitool, Inc. (Nasdaq: SMTL - News) announced today that they have agreed to work jointly on innovation and process improvement in wet chemical processing for semiconductor manufacturing. The combined efforts of Semitool and the Ashland- ACT business unit of Ashland Specialty Chemical Company's Electronic Chemicals Division will focus on cleaning processes associated with integration of low k and copper materials for advanced devices.
(Photo: newscom.com )
Dana Durham, business director of Ashland-ACT, said, "Ashland is committed to meeting the industry's evolving needs with worldwide technical support and an aggressive research and development program, including our focus to provide the latest cleaning and stripping technology. Through cooperation with Semitool, a leading provider of equipment for wet chemical cleaning, we can increase our effectiveness in developing and deploying new process solutions for our global customers."
"In the rapidly changing semiconductor industry, it is critical that suppliers join together to develop value-added solutions in a timely manner," said Dana Scranton, Semitool's vice president for surface preparation technology. "Our objective in this alliance with Ashland is to enhance our already strong position in post-etch cleaning by developing processes offering benefits in improved performance and lower cost of ownership. Our capability to recommend advanced chemical formulations with our diverse multi-wafer batch and single-wafer product lines gives Semitool and Ashland the opportunity to offer solutions that address the leading-edge cleaning challenges of our industry," he added.
Recent innovations from Ashland include the low-k and copper-compatible ACT® AS-65 etch residue remover, specifically formulated to remove stubborn etch residues for sub-0.25um technology.
ACT AS-65 is an amine-containing product that quickly and efficiently removes etch residue, particularly those with high inorganic content. It contains unique corrosion inhibitors and features very-low etch rates on sensitive metals including aluminum, copper, titanium and tungsten, with minimal impact on critical dimensions of vias, metal lines and trenches.
Advances in post-etch cleaning technology introduced by Semitool include the Enhanced Spray Technology (EST) batch systems, and the single-wafer Millenium products. The EST batch spray systems offer increased process performance and efficiency over previous generations of spray technology, with up to 50 wafer process loads and enhanced cleaning capability for high productivity. The company's Millenium single-wafer system delivers high- performance, low-cost cleaning for leading-edge device manufacturing applications.
About Semitool
Semitool is a worldwide leader in the design, development, manufacture, and support of high performance, single-wafer and multi-wafer batch wet chemical processing systems for use in the fabrication of semiconductor devices. The company's primary suites of equipment include electrochemical deposition systems for electroplating copper, gold, solder and other metals; surface preparation systems for cleaning, stripping and etching silicon wafers; and wafer transport container cleaning systems. The company's equipment is used in semiconductor fabrication front-end and back-end processes, including wafer level packaging.
Headquartered in Kalispell, Mont., Semitool maintains sales and support centers in the United States, Europe and Asia. The company's stock trades on the Nasdaq National Market under the symbol SMTL. For more information, please visit the company's website at www.semitool.com.
About Ashland
Ashland-ACT is a business unit of Ashland Specialty Chemical Company's Electronic Chemicals Division, a leading supplier of ultrapure chemicals, photoresist strippers, parts and equipment cleaning and on-site chemical management services for the worldwide microelectronics industry. The division operates QS-9000 certified production facilities at Dallas; Easton, Pa.; Pueblo, Colo.; Milan, Italy; and Pyongtaek City, Korea. It also participates in a joint venture, Ashland Union Electronic Chemical Corp. (AUECC), serving Taiwan and the Asian region, which is certified to the ISO 9001:2000 quality standard. For further information on Ashland-ACT products, visit the web site at www.ashland-act.com.
Ashland Specialty Chemical Company, a division of Ashland Inc., is a leading, worldwide supplier of specialty chemicals serving industries including adhesives, automotive, composites, foundry, merchant marine, paint, paper, plastics, semiconductor, watercraft and water treatment. Visit the Internet web site at www.ashspec.com to learn more about these operations. Ashland Inc. (NYSE: ASH - News) is a Fortune 225 company providing products, services, and customer solutions throughout the world. Our businesses include road construction, specialty chemicals, lubricants, car-care products, chemical and plastics distribution and transportation fuels. Through the dedication of our employees, we are "The Who In How Things Work(TM)." Find us at www.ashland.com
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SOURCE: Ashland Inc. |
