News

12 July 2010

 

Veeco launches patterned sapphire substrate surface profiler for automated HB-LED production QA/QC

At this week’s SEMICON West trade shows and seminars in San Francisco, epitaxial deposition, process, and metrology equipment maker Veeco Instruments Inc of Plainview, NY, USA is launching a new ContourGT optical surface profiler configuration optimized for characterizing high-brightness light-emitting diode (HB-LED) patterned sapphire substrates (PSS).

The ContourGT-X8 PSS is a special configuration of Veeco’s ContourGT-X8, the flagship of the ContourGT family (which includes a range of profilers designed to meet the requirements and budgets for production and R&D precision surface metrology applications). Specifically, the ContourGT-X8 PSS combines non-contact 3D measurement capabilities with Veeco PSS metrology hardware and software technology, and a wafer automation system developer’s kit (SDK) that provides a tailored solution for PSS quality assurance and quality control (QA/QC) applications where high-throughput and repeatability capabilities are essential.

Sold in conjunction with the ContourtGT-X8 Wafer Automation SDK, the ContourGT-X8 PSS features patent-pending PSS metrology hardware and software and TCP/IP-based remote control capabilities. These features, combined with the ContourGT-X8’s patented dual HB-LED illumination and continuous calibration, enable the system to be readily integrated with automated wafer handlers to provide optimum PSS measurement precision, throughput and gauge repeatability and reproducibility.

“With the rapid growth of PSS as a vital technology for enhancing efficiency and ensuring color consistency in HB-LEDs, measuring their feature size and consistency on sapphire wafers is becoming a critical step in HB-LED manufacturing,” says Mark R. Munch Ph.D., executive VP, Veeco Metrology & Instrumentation. “Now, the ContourGT-X8 PSS gives wafer suppliers and HB-LED device manufacturers an affordable way to obtain high-throughput, 3D surface metrology to enhance productivity, while assuring the quality of their end products,” he adds.

“We have worked closely with PSS wafer suppliers and HB-LED manufacturers to develop the ContourGT-X8 PSS, ensuring that it has the full breadth of capabilities necessary to deliver the required measurements,” says Ross Q. Smith, VP & general manager, Veeco Optical Industrial Metrology. In addition, Veeco has teamed with wafer automation providers such as CHAD Industries to develop a flexible automation solution for HB-LED makers. "We expect the ContourGT-X8 PSS to become the industry standard as a simple-to-operate, 7/24, high-performance PSS surface metrology solution,” he adds.

At this week’s SEMICON West, CHAD Industries and Veeco are conducting technology demonstrations of the ContourGT-X8 PSS integrated with a CHAD WaferMate200-2 Workcell.

See: Veeco Company Profile

Search: Veeco Patterned sapphire substrates HB-LED

Visit: www.veeco.com/ContourGT