Ultratech, Inc., a supplier of lithography, laser-processing and inspection systems used to manufacture semiconductor devices and high-brightness LEDs (HB-LEDs), as well as atomic layer deposition (ALD) systems, today announced a follow-on order from a major foundry in Asia for its LSA101 laser spike anneal system. Equipped with the dual-beam option, the system provides a second low-power laser that adds flexibility for annealing at low substrate temperatures. This capability is required for advanced applications, such as gate stack formation, silicide or post-silicide anneal. The LSA101 tool will be used to support the foundry’s 28nm and 40nm production efforts, and Ultratech expects to ship the system in the third quarter of 2016.
Scott Zafiropoulo, General Manager of LSA and Senior Vice President of Marketing at Ultratech, said, “This follow-on order for our LSA101 system reinforces the growing opportunities that we are experiencing for advanced planar logic devices. Customers around the world are increasing their 28-nm capacity to take advantage of the optimal performance-to-cost ratio at this node. We will continue working closely with our global customers as we strive to continue to provide advanced annealing systems that deliver the most flexible, extendable and cost-effective performance.”
Ultratech LSA 101 Dual Beam Laser Spike Anneal System
Built on the customizable Unity Platform, LSA101 with the dual-beam option expands the process space by adding a second low-power laser beam that adds process flexibility and enables millisecond annealing with a low substrate temperature. Inserting a millisecond anneal step post-junction formation, such as gate stack formation, silicide or post-silicide anneal, has been shown to improve leakage and device reliability, while reducing contact resistance and improving both performance and yield. Compared to competing millisecond annealing technologies, LSA with dual beam is designed to offer the lowest thermal budget millisecond anneal process along with superior within-die uniformity for different layouts. The LSA101 delivers high flexibility and extendibility for advanced annealing applications and is currently in high-volume production for advanced planar and FinFET devices.