Primaxx Inc. receives order from Siimpel Corporation for a multi-wafer MEMS Etch Release Cluster Tool
Allentown, PA (August 1, 2005) Primaxx, Inc., a leading manufacturer of MEMS and semiconductor wafer processing equipment, today announced that it has received a purchase order for a cluster-based HF Vapor MEMS Etch Release System from Siimpel Corporation. The system will be delivered with a single Process Module later this year, and will have the flexibility to accommodate up to 2 additional modules as production requirements increase. The Process Module comprises a 25 wafer chamber that was developed to optimize the benefits of reduced pressure, gas phase etching with the throughput demands of production. It is able to process up to 25 wafers at a time with excellent within wafer, wafer to wafer, and batch to batch uniformities. The internal cassette supports each wafer on three ceramic pins, and can be easily adjusted to accommodate 100, 125, 150 or 200 mm wafers. Gary Cheek, VP of Manufacturing at Siimpel commented "We selected the Primaxx CET Production tool due to its flexibility, cost effectiveness and due to safety concerns. The Primaxx tool has a process application that is well suited to our needs. Primaxx has been highly responsive to our concerns and has worked with us to develop proprietary process technology."
Siimpel is a venture backed firm that specializes in Integrated Optical MicroSystems and MEMS Fabrication and Product Development services. The Company is located in Arcadia, California just minutes from downtown Los Angeles in a 35,000 sq ft facility that features 9500sq ft of clean rooms and labs for fabrication, assembly, and packaging activities. The increased performance and functionality expectations of imaging systems in phone handsets, laptops, PDAs and micro-cameras has created a global demand for low cost micro-scale imaging systems. Siimpel is actively collaborating with the world's leading consumer electronics, mobile communications and digital imaging leaders to deliver high quality digital camera products that fit the size constraints of mobile platforms.
Primaxx is the world leader in reduced pressure, residue-free MEMS dry etch release, a critical buried oxide etch step which "releases" the moving components of challenging MEMS device designs. Combining anhydrous HF gas and alcohol vapor at reduced pressure provides a wide, stable process window that can address different oxide compositions and thicknesses while maintaining high selectivity to other common materials found in MEMS designs including aluminum. The Primaxx process also eliminates stiction, a yield-killing phenomenon which can bind the moving components of MEMS devices when released with conventional wet processing technology. Primaxx, Inc. designs, manufactures, and markets processing equipment for MEMS and semiconductors, and offers the broadest range of MEMS dry etch release products, from lab systems to multi-chambered cluster tools for high volume production. Headquartered in Allentown, Pennsylvania, Primaxx maintains sales and support centers in the United States, Europe and Asia, as well as two process development labs in Pennsylvania and one in Japan.
For more information, please contact:
Paul Hammond, VP Sales
Tel: +1 (610) 336-0314 ext. 109
Fax : +1 (610) 336-0455
E-mail: phammond@primaxxinc.com
Siimpel Corporation
Gary Cheek, Ph.D., VP for Manufacturing Operations
400 E. Live Oak Avenue
Arcadia, CA 91006
Phone: +1 (626) 821-0570
Fax: +1 (626) 446-7259
E-mail: g.cheek@siimpel.com
Web: www.siimpel.com