Semiconductors & Microelectronics

From Wafer Inspection to Integrated Circuit Testing and Failure Analysis to Micro-processing, Calmar Lasers are enabling the Semiconductor and Microelectronics World

Today’s consumer electronics industry has come to rely heavily on lasers as versatile and precise tools in the manufacturing process.  From the semiconductor chips to printed circuit boards to flat panel displays, lasers support the entire fabrication chain to enable smaller feature sizes, improved device performance, increased yields, reduced manufacturing costs and more.  Whether it is metrology, lithography, annealing, micro-drilling, die singulation, patterning, cutting, failure analysis, etc., unique laser sources ensure an optimum outcome and excellent process control.

With their precise material removal and limited peripheral damage, ultrafast (picosecond and femtosecond) lasers are often the preferred sources for some of these advanced micromachining applications.  Generally, such lasers operate in the kHz to MHz repetition rate with pulse energies in the µJ to mJ range and utilize some type of chirped-pulse amplifier scheme but all require a highly stable, robust seed laser source.  And that’s Calmar’s expertise.  Mendocino OEM laser modules can be found at the heart of many of these amplified systems.  They are the reliable “black-box” devices that offer seamless integration with the ability to be customized according to the requirements of the downstream amplifier.

In the semiconductor wafer inspection and thin-film metrology areas, ultrafast lasers have also found broad utility.  For example, with its compact form factor and exceptional stability, the Carmel X-series offers the ideal source for second harmonic imaging and the non-destructive detection of subsurface impurities in silicon-on-insulator wafers.  Similarly, both the Mendocino and Carmel X-series are perfect sources for picosecond ultrasonic measurements of single and multi-layer metal thin films in a variety of semiconductor devices.

Cazadero and Carmel X are also used to enable highly spatialized probing of integrated circuits through two-photon excitation.  The two-photon absorption-transient current technique (TPA-TCT) is a powerful inspection tool for high-resolution 3D mapping of the charge collection junction in semiconductor detectors, while two-photon laser-assisted device alteration enables the localization of failure sites in integrated circuits to a precision of ~ 100 nm.

Whether it be a robust, low power, seed laser source such as the Mendocino or a higher power laser, such as the Carmel or Cazadero, Calmar offers an ultrafast fiber laser solution for your semiconductor/microelectronics applications.

Mendocino OEM Ultrafast Laser Modules for Industrial Applications