Semiconductor

Semiconductors begin in a crucible of molten silicon, heated 1420°C.  A Deublin union cools the puller rod, which rotates in the opposite direction from the crucible.  A seed crystal at the end of the puller rod lifts slowly from the melt, resulting over time in an ingot up to 300mm in diameter by 2 meters long.

The cylindrical or rectangular ingot is sliced into uniform wafers by a diamond-coated wire saw.  Deublin unions cool the guide rollers that keep the cut smooth and straight.

After slicing, the wafer is ground to remove saw marks and surface defects, and to bring the wafer to final thickness.  Deublin air unions ensure uniform stock removal during the process, and Deublin water unions keep the grinding surface cool. 

Final polishing removes any remaining microscopic defects in the wafer surface, and imparts a mirror finish on the side that will be made into chips.  Deublin unions control the pressure and temperature of the polishing process.

Electro-Chemical Deposition is a process by which metal atoms from a chemical fluid are deposited on the wafer surface.  Deublin unions hold the wafer in position, and Deublin slip rings transmit the current and voltage necessary for successful deposition.

Atomic Layer Deposition enables Deublin customers to fabricate thin films of either conducting or insulating material with uniform coverage in nanometer-sized structures.

Chemical Vapor Deposition places nanometer-thick films of dielectric and metal materials on a wafer.  This process occurs at extremely high temperatures (800-2000°C), requiring  Deublin unions to cool the equipment and to maintain process stability.

Ion implantation is used many times during chip fabrication to form transistors. During ion implantation, wafers are bombarded by a beam of electrically-charged ions, called dopants, that change the electrical properties of the exposed surface.

Chemical Mechanical Planarization creates a uniformly flat wafer surface in preparation for depositing additional layers of material that eventually becomes the circuitry of the final microprocessor, memory chip, LED and other products.

Deublin unions create thermal stability in finely calibrated wafer fabrication equipment.  Deublin electrical slip rings provide power to and return data from metrology systems built in to the equipment.

Roll-to-Roll processing deposits thin layers of metal onto flexible substrates to create solar panels, thin-film batteries and flexible electronics.  Rotary unions regulate temperature and dissipate heat from the high-temperature deposition process.