Tools from previous generations of semiconductor manufacturing technology (200mm and smaller) are still providing useful services for production and research and development. Volumes of 200mm wafer production continue to increase. As a result, there is an increasing demand to downsize 300mm wafers to enable processing in tools designed for smaller wafer sizes. Downsizing (also known as resizing) can enable organizations with 200mm or smaller tools to work with 300mm wafers featuring the latest CMOS process nodes. Additionally, some SOI or blanket film wafers are not readily available in sizes smaller than 300mm, creating an additional need for wafer downsizing. MPE is a leader in 300mm wafer downsizing techniques and has downsized thousands of 300mm wafers sourced from both 300mm CMOS foundries and producers of bare 300mm Si or SOI wafers.
300mm to 200mm resizing: A single 200mm wafer can be obtained from a 300mm wafer. MPE offers several options for the layout. MPE’s well-established notch creation process can create new notches in 200mm wafers that are geometrically equivalent to standard 200mm notches and will be easily recognized by tools. See the layout options for 300mm to 200mm resizing below.
300mm to 150mm resizing: Up to two 150mm wafers can be obtained from a 300mm wafer. While most 150mm applications utilize a SEMI alignment flat, alignment notches or JEIDA flats are also widely used in 150mm wafers. MPE can offer either alignment flats or notches in 150mm wafers. See the most common layout options for 300mm to 150mm resizing below. Alternatively, MPE can perform a concentric resize to yield only one 150mm wafer.
300mm to 100mm resizing: MPE’s wafer resizing process can yield up to five 100mm wafers from a single 300mm wafer. See the five 100mm wafer layouts below. MPE can shift the wafer coordinates if the standard layout is not desired, but this usually requires the yield to be reduced to four or fewer wafers.
Other 300mm downsizing options: The examples listed above are the most common 300mm wafer downsizing layouts. However, the possibilities are nearly endless, and custom layouts with less common wafer sizes (2”, 125mm, etc.) are all possible. Additionally, multiple wafer sizes can be generated from a single 300mm wafer to maximize the full area of the wafer. See an example of a 300mm wafer downsized to multiple sizes below.
For any additional questions about our wafer downsizing services, please call us at 1-877-MPE-DICE, contact us via email, or fill out the request a quote form.
