Issue

Some people talked of mini-environments, others minienvironments and still others microenvironments and micro-environments. Young men, with shaved heads, dressed in saffron robes, sauntered outside the doors hoping to convert attendees to "Minienvironmentalism." Taking in this scene, one couldn't help but think back to "The Graduate" when Mr. Robinson whispered the word "plastic" into the ear of a young, unassuming Dustin Hoffman.

I've been both praised and jeered for being a big picture guy.

The invention is a microenvironment chamber and system for rinsing and drying semiconductor and microelectronic components.

It is necessary to determine what the total investment will be as well as the ongoing operating cost of an OPL. As expected, an ISO Class 3 is the most expensive and an ISO Class 6 will be less expensive. This cost increase that occurs in the ISO Class 3-5 ranges is due to the need of a pass-through (barrier wall) washer. The pass-through machines are on average two to three times as expensive as an open pocket (front-loading) washer that can be used in less stringent environments.

Last month's column described the DB/CPC combination that can be used to measure aerosol particle size distributions over size ranges too small to be counted by an OPC.

One's junk can be another's treasure, and spent resins of chip, microelectronics, pharmaceuticals and flat panel display manufacturers have indeed proven to be a lucrative business for many in the ultra-pure water market.

Enormous cost-control pressures in the industry have led to novel approaches to reducing the cost and required size of cleanroom manufacturing and assembly operations

Paint shops evaluate their practices to meet automobile manufacturers' demand for quality. Could a robot be the best man for the job?

Kionix gets kudos from Kodak

HILLSBORO, OR—INTEL.CORP.'S 300 MM chipmaking processes are the smallest ever, and while it continues to push the Moore's Law envelope, cleanrooms and contamination control practices remain relatively unchanged.

ROCKVILLE, MD—MARK MCCLELLAN, THE newly-appointed commissioner of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), is already in the hot seat.

SPARTANBURG, SC—IN.WHAT.POTENtially could become a landmark in the world of contamination control, textile and chemical maker Milliken & Co. has announced that it's putting the finishing touches on an ISO Class 1 research and technology center; an industry first under the new global cleanroom standards.

FRANKLIN, MA—AS SEMICONDUCTOR manufacturing platforms plunge deep into the sub-micron realm, molecular contamination becomes even more of a critical threat as it can change the course of the process and completely obliterate the product.