Gas Microcontroller

Many key steps in semiconductor "chip" manufacture utilize gases to form thin films which are critical to both device performance and cost. Over $2 billion worth of equipment, materials and peripherals are now sold annually to the semiconductor manufacturers who use gas phase processing. As increased memory demands escalate the need for thinner films, higher quality and lower costs, ever more exacting control over the introduction of gases into this equipment is required. Advanced Technology Materials, Inc is constructing mini-controllers for these gases which have response times nearly 1000 times faster than existing controllers, control over extremely low flows, and can be fully electronically controlled and integrated with gas purification and impurity detection modules. These controllers can be manufactured using micromachining techniques and should therefore be highly cost effective while providing exact control during thin film deposition.