Developing the Sematech Test Methods for Evaluating Cleanroom Gas-Handling Components

Abstract

The contaminant contribution of such process-related systems as high-purity-gas distribution lines has become an increasingly important concern of the semiconductor industry since contaminant sources, including the gas itself, have been tightly controlled. Until recently, however, selecting the optimal components for an application has been difficult because of a lack of standardized techniques for obtaining comparable data on component cleanliness and performance capabilities. This article discusses Sematech's efforts to develop a series of such test methods for cleanroom gas-handling systems, focusing on the test method validation studies and data-generation work with typical components that was organized and performed by Research Triangle Institute. The authors also address the issues raised in a critique of the Sematech particle contribution test for valves that was published in this magazine in April 1993. Finally, two additional studies that were part of the Sematech project are summarized briefly