Tag Archives: Clean Rooms

Microtest Laboratories (Agawam, MA) and Texcel Medical (East Longmeadow, MA) recently announced their strategic alliance to provide pharmaceutical manufacturers and biotech companies with outsourcing services for developing the latest combination products-medical devices with pharmaceutical or biologics components-a growing market that is expected to reach approximately $9.5 billion in 2009.

“The combination products market is booming. Yet many pharmaceutical companies are struggling to manage the convergence of devices and drugs or biologics and the host of unique FDA testing guidelines, practices, and regulations that such products require,” says Steven Richter, PhD, president of Microtest.

“For such firms, outsourcing is the solution,” he continues, adding, “provided that the arrangement is struck with the right partner.”

Microtest is a provider of testing services and contract manufacturing for the medical device, pharmaceutical, and biotech industries. Texcel brings to the alliance manufacturing infrastructure and engineering expertise for surgical, interventional, and implantable medical devices. The companies say that together they can offer design, prototyping, development, testing, approval, and manufacturing of combination products in Texcel’s ISO 13485:2003, ISO 9001:2000, and FRD registered facility.

Whenever new technologies emerge, glovebox designs must evolve

By Christopher M. Bartlett, MBraun Inc., USA

Gloveboxes are designed and engineered to provide an enclosed work space for operation under a controlled environment. Today, gloveboxes serve applications ranging from research and development to the manufacture of medical devices, pharmaceuticals, semiconductors, and batteries, as well as welding and nuclear applications.

To meet the varied requirements of these applications, glovebox manufacturers continually search for and implement new design features both inside and outside the box. These include improved software programming, PLC touch-screen displays, gas purification units, advanced oxygen and moisture sensors, rapid transfer ports, and better feedthrough designs.

Among the benefits of the new designs are improved product quality, better efficiency, greater reliability, more user-friendly interface controls, flexible integrated work spaces, and an effective cost-saving alternative to large, expensive cleanrooms. Instead, gloveboxes work in conjunction with cleanrooms to provide an efficient and productive way to work with sensitive materials.

The new designs also enable end users to more easily add onto existing systems as their research and production needs evolve. Meeting market demands is always the driving factor for new glovebox design, and whenever a new technology emerges so does the design of the glovebox.

A wide range of applications

Gloveboxes are available in a variety of shapes, sizes, and designs to support different applications, and glovebox engineers have designed and manufactured solutions that fit in limited space as well as improve operating efficiency. For example, larger, more complex gloveboxes are usually integrated into industrial production lines while smaller, more conventional units are used for research and development. The use of gloveboxes is standard in the manufacturing of a number of products, and gloveboxes have been used on laboratory floors for more than 60 years (see Fig. 1).


Figure 1. A glovebox used for sample preparation. Photo courtesy of MBraun Inc., USA.
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One major application in particular is thin-film deposition, depositing materials such as calcium, silver, and gold onto wafers or thin-film material under high vacuum. A large number of university laboratories and OEMs have also invested in gloveboxes integrated with thin-film deposition chambers for the research and production of solar cells, crystal displays, and thin-film batteries (see Fig. 2). Glovebox manufacturers frequently build their own deposition equipment for research purposes as well as team up with leaders in the deposition equipment field on joint development efforts.


Figure 2. The MB Evaporator glovebox pictured shows three gloveboxes integrated with a square evaporator chamber, a spin coater, Siemens PLC touch-screen controllers, and a t-chamber that connects the gloveboxes together. The design of the MB Evaporator glovebox shows a direct correlation between an emerging technology (alternative energy, OLED display) and a glovebox designed to meet the research and production needs of these technologies. Photo courtesy of MBraun, Inc. USA.
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Another example of two industries working together to provide the best quality system for the application can be found in the welding industry. Weld chambers need an atmosphere free of oxygen and moisture to produce products for medical implants, microelectronics parts, airline parts, and titanium castings. The welding glovebox is integrated with tungsten inert gas (TIG), vacuum, or YAG-laser welding systems. Using weld chambers, manufacturers avoid the need for expensive, manually operated shielding systems such as gas lenses, trailing shields, and backing bars-all of which require highly experienced welders to adjust to the correct shielding conditions. Weld chambers also help prevent discoloration and oxidation in the welding of titanium.

Large, complex gloveboxes are also specifically designed for pilot production systems in the manufacture of high-intensity, metal halide discharge lamps used in homes, automobiles, motorcycles, and many other applications. Lamp-sealing gloveboxes often include integrated cleaning systems for safe and effective removal of silicon oxide dust from the chamber. Plasma jet burners are highly suited for sealing glass tubes within the ultra-clean atmosphere of the glovebox.

Some lamp-sealing glovebox manu-facturers also offer a fully automated pump-fill station that fills the lamp tubes with process gas at a customer-specified pressure and seals them in the inert atmosphere.

Gloveboxes are also standard tools in the research and development of organic solar cells that provide alternative energy solutions. This equipment enables the transfer of extremely clean wafers and provides a process that is exceptional in both efficiency and material quality.

Other gloveboxes are specifically designed for the production of lithium polymer batteries (see Fig. 3). Since lithium is considered a hazardous material under normal atmospheric conditions, the production of these batteries requires careful handling procedures. A great deal of planning and technology goes into the safe storage, shipping, and disposal of the material. In a glovebox, batteries can be produced without the risk of contamination with water and, unlike cleanrooms, the moisture content in a glovebox is uniform, controlled, measured, and independent of the number of operators working in the production room.

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Lithium production lines integrated with gloveboxes come standard with high-powered gas purifiers to accommodate the volume of gas that needs to be maintained within the glovebox. Gas purification plays an important role in the ability of a glovebox to maintain a controlled environment, and new gas-purification system designs allow for larger-scale, cleaner, and more efficient ways to reduce the amount of oxygen and moisture contaminants in the atmosphere. Glovebox manufacturers use molecular sieve and copper catalyst to remove oxygen and moisture. Some new designs also integrate solvent dispensing systems into the box as well as solvent vapor traps that remove solvents from the atmosphere and increase the life of the gas purification units. Other features can provide end users with a system that can be regenerated through a touch-screen PLC controller.

Design features like the touch-screen PLC provide the next generation in user-friendly software. The PLC controller can operate basic functions of the glovebox, eliminating the possibility of human error. Gloveboxes designed with the new PLC controllers can also better track operational hours of the box and provide feedback to the end user about potential problems and when they occurred. Troubleshooting errors in the glovebox through the PLC controller can save users time and money in their research and production.

Glovebox manufacturers have also redesigned and upgraded analyzers to monitor oxygen and moisture levels within the glovebox atmosphere. The analyzers-which are calibrated using NIST traceable gases-provide real-time measurements on a PLC controller to offer an easy, accurate, and reliable reading.

Gloveboxes as isolators

The pharmaceutical glovebox (isolator) is another example of a system specifically designed to meet the unique needs of a particular application. The pharmaceutical industry uses isolators for the packaging of medicine, sterility testing, potent compounds testing, liquid filling, sterile processing, and powder processing. The barrier isolators used in the pharmaceutical industry are designed to provide the barriers of protection needed in the handling of hazardous chemicals, microbiological agents, and/or radioactive material often found in pharmaceutical compounds, chemotherapy agents, and IV admixtures. A large number of pharmaceutical isolators incorporate laminar air flow technology in their design. This feature provides directed air flow for applications requiring low particle counts in addition to user protection.

Barrier isolators are also designed for many other applications crossing various marketplaces. For example, smaller, more compact stainless-steel gloveboxes are commonly found in mobile laboratories that respond and work in the detection and cleanup of possible bioterrorist threats. Other glovebox designs, like acrylic, single-molded systems, can provide users with added protection over fume hoods when working with sensitive material.

Conclusion

Technological breakthroughs and customer requirements will continue to change and improve the designs and capabilities of gloveboxes, but one primary function will stay the same-the ability to maintain a controlled environment. As technology advances, so will the capabilities of the glovebox.

Christopher M. Bartlett is marketing coordinator at MBraun Inc., USA.

Taking into consideration the statistics on hospital-acquired infections (HAIs), it’s no wonder that the health care industry is looking for simple and cost-effective ways to reduce the number of these infections. According to the Centers for Disease Control, proper hand hygiene is the single most effective method for preventing HAIs. And that’s where Ecolab Inc., a global provider of cleaning, sanitizing, food safety, and infection control products and services, steps in with its recently announced Hand Hygiene Monitoring Compliance Program.

The Minnesota-based company’s program for hospitals and health care facilities is intended to provide an intervening approach that combines appropriate hand hygiene products, a step-by-step implementation process, patient empowerment education and training materials, ongoing measurement, and benchmarking to increase and sustain hand hygiene compliance.

Ecolab has partnered with Dr. Maryanne McGuckin, a leading authority in the measurement of hand hygiene compliance, for the design of the program, baseline measurement, and ongoing reporting analysis services.

“Comprehensive hand hygiene compliance monitoring programs like that created by Ecolab enable health care facilities of all sizes to assess compliance rates at their facility and help meet the guidelines and recommendations for improving patient safety set by the Joint Commission (JC) and World Health Organization,” explains McGuckin.

Studies show that improved hand hygiene compliance and the associated reduction in HAI rates lower hospital operating costs. According to data from the Pennsylvania Hospital Cost Containment Council, the average hospital charge without an HAI is nearly six times less ($31,389) than for patients who experienced HAI ($185,260).

“Simply put, proper hand hygiene enables hospitals to provide better patient care and to reduce costs,” says Tim Mulhere, vice president and general manager of health care at Ecolab. “The Ecolab Hand Hygiene Compliance Monitoring Program provides all the tools and resources hospitals need to drive hand hygiene compliance and reduce health care-associated infections.”

Elements of the program

Patient empowerment. These programs increase awareness of the importance of hand hygiene and encourage patients and their families to ask their health care provider to wash or sanitize their hands prior to any direct contact. Ecolab has developed a complete set of materials, including brochures, posters, buttons, and a video (under a program entitled “It’s OK To Ask”), that encourages patients to actively participate in their care. According to recent studies (1999-2006) in the American Journal of Infection Control and Journal of Hospital Infection Control, patient empowerment and measurement have been shown to increase and sustain compliance on average 56 percent.

Measurement. Measurement of compliance data establishes an accurate, current baseline compliance rate against which progress can be tracked. Ongoing measurement and reporting further supports compliance by enabling hospitals to objectively measure the progress of programs and promote improvements.

Benchmarking. Confidential reporting of data and analysis helps hospitals to validate their hand hygiene programs as they grow. In addition, ongoing compliance can be compared against data from similar sized hospitals and units including in-patient/out-patient sites from acute care, pediatrics, ER, ICU, and non-ICU.

Editor’s Note: For more information on other current measures being taken to promote hospital infection control, see “New Approaches to Infection Control in Hospitals” on page 44.

When transitioning to a liquid immersion process using ultra-pure water (UPW), water clarity must be addressed

By Bipin Parekh, Entegris

In response to consumer demand for smaller, faster, and more capable electronics, semiconductor process designers and chip fabricators have adopted optical lithography processes to increase chip capacity by decreasing circuit linewidths. To stay competitive, fabs are gearing up for a transition from dry lithography to a liquid immersion lithography (LIL) processing technique, using ultra-pure water (UPW). Using LIL, manufacturers can create higher resolution images than a “dry” lens system will allow. UPW immersion presents several unique challenges relating to water clarity, which can be addressed through liquid purification and flow control techniques.

Ultimate LW (resolution) in optical lithography is given by:

LW = k1λ/NA

where λ is the illumination wavelength; k1 is an optics/process parameter; and NA is numerical aperture, given by NA = n*sinθ, n being fluid refractive index.

In immersion lithography a higher refractive index liquid (e.g., UPW, index n = 1.44) is placed between the final lens and the wafer (replacing the lower index air, index n = 1). The higher refractive index of the DI water delivers two benefits: improved resolution and increased depth of focus of up to 50 percent for printing the finer circuit lines onto wafers.1,2

Despite the potential benefits, UPW immersion presents several unique challenges surrounding maintaining water clarity (low light absorbance) and purity (ppt levels of contaminants). To achieve high yields, manufacturers must be able to protect the wafer from dissolved materials or particles that contaminate the water and may cause staining. They also must ensure that the UPW is free of bubbles formed during the scanning and exposure processes, or in the fluid delivery, recovery, and recirculation system. Since immersion lithography requires that all water impurities be removed to trace levels, manufacturers must comply with the stringent water quality guidelines, shown in Table 1 (ITRS Ultra Pure Water Guidelines 2006, http://www.itrs.net/), and strictly control the DI water temperature to eliminate patterning defects related to the refractive index.3-6

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The information provided here describes the effects of various water contaminants and attributes on the immersion process and illustrates how to prevent patterning defects by removing these contaminants from DI by purification and conditioning techniques.

UPW parameters and impact on immersion process

Dissolved gases and bubbles, particles, TOC, and extractables (ionic and organic) added from process materials and piping components all have the potential to contaminate the wafer and influence the refractive index of the DI water. UPW with a higher TOC value than specified in Table 1 could absorb DUV energy from the scanner, causing defects. It also could lead to build-up of adsorbed species on the lens and cause transmission loss.

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Figure 1 demonstrates lens clouding by adsorption of fluoro-organics in water. TOC monitoring instruments did not detect the fluoro-organics, but non-volatile residue testing did indicate the presence of these harmful materials. Selecting cleaner materials of construction (such as Teflon®) for the system components is key to alleviate the contamination. A UV oxidation-ion exchange process can reduce TOC to ppt levels by breaking down most organic molecules into CO2 and H2O. Other organic molecules might only be ionized and removed by ion exchange.

Dissolved gases

Dissolved gases in UPW can create bubbles, which can have a negative effect when found moving within the fluid. In Fig. 2, a 10 μm bubble disrupts an unpolarized plane wave and casts a strong shadow. Since the water is moving and carrying the bubble, a longer exposure time can lower the impact of a bubble on any one spot. The distance of the bubble from the resist makes a difference in the impact upon feature resolution and accuracy.7

Vacuum degassing reduces dissolved gas concentration from UPW feed (and gases/bubbles generated by the UV oxidation source). To remove dissolved gases to ppb levels, it is critical to use clean devices with low TOC extractables and particle shedding. Conventional degassers are efficient at typical flow rates (>75 percent efficient) but high TOC shedding from these units limits their use upstream of the UV oxidation source, as roughing degassers. Teflon® degassers are more expensive due to lower efficiency (>40 percent efficient), but their superior cleanliness makes them ideal for use after the UV source.8

Particles in UPW

Since particles in UPW can deposit on the wafer or cast a shadow during wafer exposure and cause defects, it is imperative to remove particles down to 0.03 μm size using point-of-use (POU) filtration. One solution is to use a 0.03 μm rated “all” Teflon® filter with particle retention efficiency of >99.7 percent removal for 0.03 μm. An out-of-the-box filter test extracted metals at the necessary detection limit (an ICP-MS profile of HCl extract), while maintaining the integrity of the UPW.9

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Metal ions, silica, and boron purification. POU mixed bed purifiers installed in series with silica/boron purifiers can help remove ions from the immersion system. Strong resin enables the removal of most metals and weakly dissociated silica and boron.

Temperature control. A stable water temperature prevents imaging defects by eliminating refractive index changes. Inlet fab water temperature swings are not well known, nor controlled to the degree required. To be successful, manufacturers must accurately manage of the point-of-dispense temperature within 0.001°C or 1 mK.

Figure 3 demonstrates the temperature stability results for a POU UPW system that achieves the target temperature of 20.5°C. The system is stable to <0.01°C for target temperature at 20.5°C. Temperature measurement details show accuracy is ±0.0013°C and resolution is ±0.0001°C. The cooling water is degassed to prevent any gas transfer through the PFA tubes in the heat exchanger to the process UPW.

Liquid flow control

It is also important to deliver a stable DI flow precisely/repeatedly to the illuminated area to prevent bubbles from attaching to the wafer or lens during filling. The water filling rate, over the wafer topography, should remove resist reaction byproducts, water soluble resist components, and the heat generated during exposure to prevent refractive index changes. The current flow-rate control required ranges from 0.4 to 1 LPM at steady state. In some newer designs, a flow rate up to 3 LPM is required to maintain the temperature stability. A slower initial fill flow rate, to ensure complete filling under the lens, followed by a faster rate during scanning, is required to ensure byproduct removal and also meniscus integrity during stage movement. We employed an Entegris flow control module in our system to maintain a highly repeatable and stable flow rate through the illuminated area.

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Figure 4 shows the Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulation of the liquid flow processes in the lens area.10 An optimum flow velocity is key to achieving the stable water meniscus free of entrapped bubbles.

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Summary
Research shows that liquid immersion lithography using UPW at the 193 nm laser infrastructure will enable photolithography capabilities beyond 45 nm. However, eliminating liquid contamination and reducing defects through process controls are required at this lower resolution.

Immersion lithography applications must be designed to deliver purified DI water with low TOC, particles, and dissolved oxygen levels. Contaminants must be removed to trace levels to eliminate interference for the laser transmission through UPW. The purification system should be able to maintain a stable thermal control within 0.001°C of the target temperature to ensure stable refractive index. When designing a UPW purification system, manufacturers must select clean construction materials, control ions and organics extractables from the components, control dissolved gas content, and maintain precise water temperature and flow control.

Bipin Parekh is a senior consulting engineer at Entegris (www.entegris.com). Co-authors who contributed to this piece include Michael Clarke, Annie Xia, and Joseph Smith.

References

  1. L.D. Maloney, “Tomorrow’s Lithography: It’s All Wet,” Design News, June 2005.
  2. J. Mulkens, et al., Optical Microlith. XVIII, ed. B.W. Smith, Proc. SPIE 2005, Vol. 5754, pp. 710-724.
  3. C. Robinson, et al., “Immersion Lithography Water Quality at Albany Nanotech,” 2005 Intl. Symp. Immersion Lithography, September 2005.
  4. D. Gil, et al., “First Microprocessors with Immersion Lithography,” Optical Microlith. XVIII, ed. B.W. Smith, Proc. SPIE 2005, Vol. 5754, pp. 119-128.
  5. V. Liberman, et al., “Controlled Contamination Studies in 193 nm Immersion Lithography,” Optical Microlith. XVIII, ed. B.W. Smith, Proc. SPIE 2005, Vol. 5754, pp. 148-153.
  6. S. Peng, et al., “Second Generation Fluids for 193 nm Immersion Lithography,” Optical Microlith. XVIII, ed. B.W. Smith, Proc. SPIE 2005, Vol. 5754, pp. 427-434.
  7. M. Switkes, et al., “Bubbles in Immersion Lithography,” MIT Lincoln Laboratory and University of Wisconsin-Madison Department of Mechanical Engineering.
  8. B. Parekh, “Fluids Purification Technologies for Emerging Immersion Optical Lithography,” Materials Integrity Management Symp., June 5-6, 2006.
  9. I. Funahashi, et al., “Wafer Environment Nanoparticle Contamination Control and Defect Reduction in Front-end-of-line (FEOL) Cleaning Processes,” CleanRooms magazine, pp. 21-23, July 2005.
  10. A. Wei, et al., “Immersion Lithography Modeling 2003 Year-End Report,” Technology Transfer #03124475A-ENG, International SEMATECH, Dec. 12, 2003.

IBM recently announced the first application of a breakthrough self-assembling nanotechnology to conventional chip manufacturing, borrowing a process from nature to build the next-generation computer chips.

The natural pattern-creating process that forms seashells, snowflakes, and enamel on teeth has been harnessed by IBM to form trillions of holes to create insulating vacuums around the miles of nanoscale wires packed next to each other inside each computer chip.

In chips running in IBM labs using the technique, the researchers have proven that the electrical signals on the chips can flow 35 percent faster, or the chips can consume 15 percent less energy compared to the most advanced chips using conventional techniques.

The IBM patented self-assembly process moves a nanotechnology manufacturing method that had shown promise in laboratories into a commercial manufacturing environment for the first time, providing the equivalent of two generations of Moore’s Law wiring performance improvements in a single step, using conventional manufacturing techniques.

This new form of insulation, commonly referred to as “airgaps” by scientists, is a misnomer, since the gaps are actually a vacuum, absent of air. The technique deployed by IBM causes a vacuum to form between the copper wires on a computer chip, allowing electrical signals to flow faster, while consuming less electrical power. The self-assembly process enables the nanoscale patterning required to form the gaps; this patterning is considerably smaller than current lithographic techniques can achieve.

A vacuum is believed to be the ultimate insulator for what is known as wiring capacitance, which occurs when two conductors-in this case, adjacent wires on a chip-sap or siphon electrical energy from one another, generating undesirable heat and slowing the speed at which data can move through a chip.

Until now, chip designers often were forced to fight capacitance issues by pushing ever more power through chips, creating other problems in the process. They have also used insulators with better insulating capability, but these insulators have become fragile as chip features get smaller and smaller, and their insulating properties do not compare to those of a vacuum.

The self-assembly process already has been integrated with IBM’s manufacturing line in East Fishkill, NY, and is expected to be fully incorporated in IBM’s manufacturing lines and used in chips in 2009. The chips will be used in the company’s server product lines and thereafter for chips it builds for other companies.

“This is the first time anyone has proven the ability to synthesize mass quantities of these self-assembled polymers and integrate them into an existing manufacturing process with great yield results,” says Dan Edelstein, IBM Fellow and chief scientist of the self-assembly airgap project. “By moving self-assembly from the lab to the fab, we are able to make chips that are smaller, faster, and consume less power than existing materials and design architectures allow.”

The secret of IBM’s breakthrough lies in how the IBM scientists moved the self-assembly process from the laboratory to a production environment in a way that can potentially yield millions of chips with consistent, high-performance results.

Today, chips are manufactured with copper wiring surrounded by an insulator, which involves using a mask to create circuit patterns by beaming light through the mask and later chemically removing the parts that are not needed. The new technique to make airgaps by self-assembly skips the masking and light-etching process. Instead, IBM scientists discovered the right mix of compounds, which they pour onto a silicon wafer with the wired chip patterns, then bake it.

This patented process provides the right environment for the compounds to assemble in a directed manner, creating trillions of uniform, nanoscale holes across an entire 300 mm wafer. These holes are just 20 nm in diameter, up to five times smaller than would be possible using today’s most advanced lithography technique. Once the holes are formed, the carbon silicate glass is removed, creating a vacuum between the wires-known as the airgap.

Self-assembly is a concept scientists around the world have been studying as a potential technique to create materials useful for building computer chips. The concept occurs in nature every day. The major difference is, while the processes that occur in nature are all unique, IBM has been able to direct the self-assembly process to form trillions of holes that are all similar.

The self-assembly process was jointly invented between IBM’s Almaden Research Center in San Jose, CA, and the T.J. Watson Research Center in Yorktown, NY. The technique was perfected for future commercial production at the College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering of the University at Albany, within the world-class Albany NanoTech facilities, a research and development site in Albany, NY, and at IBM’s Semiconductor Research and Development Center in East Fishkill, NY.

June 11, 2007 — /PRNewswire/ — ALLENTOWN, PA — Akrion, Inc., a leading supplier of semiconductor surface preparation equipment, today announced the sale of an E200 system for 200 mm semiconductor wafer cleaning to a fabrication plant in the United States.

This is the first system order engineered by Akrion’s Boise, ID, team. In October of 2006, Akrion purchased most of the assets and selected liabilities of SCP Global Technologies, Inc. (SCP), a manufacturer of batch-immersion tools.

The E200 will be used for photoresist strip and etch in the manufacturing of devices that will most likely be used in the production of consumer goods for a variety of end uses such as remote controls, portable computers, and various electronic devices used in the manufacturing of automobiles.

The E200 is a modular linear wet bench offering both traditional and innovative surface preparation solutions. Configurations are available for RCA cleans, nitride etch, and photoresist strip applications. E200 features include DynaFlow rinse tanks designed for DI water savings and optimized rinsing efficiency, and GreenDry(TM) dryers. GreenDry allows rinsing and drying in one tank in less than 10 minutes as well as chemical injection for surface conversion and critical etch in “true” HF Last processes.

The E200 software platform (System 4000XT) blends station control software with internet technologies. System 4000XT has many features that enable the customer to improve productivity and ease of use. The customer can log in remotely without the need for a third-party application such as remote desktop, RAdmin, and the like. This allows engineers and equipment managers the ability to manage the tool without the need to interrupt wafer processing.

About Akrion
Akrion is a leading provider of advanced surface preparation systems used in the manufacture of semiconductor devices. The company’s products, which include single-wafer and batch-immersion cleaning systems, are used in the production of a wide variety of semiconductor devices, including logic devices, analog devices, flash memory, DRAM, and MEMS and are used to clean bare silicon and test wafers as well as photomasks. Headquartered in Allentown, PA, Akrion’s Allentown production facility is ISO 9001:2000 and ISO 14001:2004 certified. For further information, please visit Akrion’s Web site: http://www.akrion.com/.

Source: Akrion, Inc.

Contact:
James Whittle, CFO of Akrion, Inc.
Tel: 610-530-3358

June 11, 2007 — /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — WASHINGTON, DC — The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has issued its official interpretation and explanation of the phrase “on site in one location” in the “Application” section of OSHA’s Process Safety Management (PSM) of Highly Hazardous Chemicals standard. The interpretation was published in the June 7 Federal Register.

“This official interpretation should help provide additional clarity to an earlier Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on the threshold quantities of highly hazardous chemicals,” says Assistant Secretary of Labor for OSHA Edwin G. Foulke, Jr. “This interpretation has been accepted by our stakeholders and should further aid those who are affected by the PSM standard.”

OSHA interprets “on site in one location” to mean that the standard applies when a threshold quantity of a highly hazardous chemical (HHC) exists within an area under the control of an employer or group of affiliated employers. It also applies to any group of vessels that are interconnected, or in separate vessels that are close enough in proximity that the HHC could be involved in a potential catastrophic release.

The meaning of “on site in one location” was at issue in a recent case before the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission. In that decision, the Review Commission asked whether that language was meant to limit, in some way, the applicability of the standard to a highly hazardous chemical process. The Review Commission decided it could not determine whether the cited activities were both “on site” and “in one location,” and requested that OSHA clarify its interpretation.

Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, employers are responsible for providing a safe and healthful workplace for their employees. OSHA’s role is to assure the safety and health of America’s working men and women by setting and enforcing standards; providing training, outreach, and education; establishing partnerships; and encouraging continual process improvement in workplace safety and health. For more information, visit http://www.osha.gov/.

Source: Occupational Safety and Health Administration

Contact:
OSHA Office of Communications
Tel: 202-693-1999

June 12, 2007 — Warrington, PA — Tiger Optics, LLC, a manufacturer of laser-based trace gas analyzers, today announced that it has expanded its worldwide presence by forging new distributor partnerships in Europe and South Africa. Tiger Optics added three new distributors to its strong global network, which will enable the company to enhance local presence and increase opportunities in these markets. Tiger Optics’ new distributors include cmc Instruments, GmbH, as its representative in Germany, Process Analyser Systems, Ltd. (PAS), as its representative in the United Kingdom and Ireland, and Online Analytics (PTY) LTD, as its representative in South Africa.

“We selected our new distributors based on their deep and proven expertise in gas analysis, and strong presence in their respective markets,” says Lisa Bergson, CEO of Tiger Optics. “We are confident that together with cmc Instruments, Process Analyser Systems, and Online Analytics, we can help our customers meet the most demanding gas analysis challenges for semiconductor fabrication, laboratory analysis, gas manufacturing and industrial process control.”

“We believe that the addition of the Tiger Optics family of gas analyzers, which provide absolute accuracy, millisecond response time, and low cost of ownership, will give us a decided edge in providing the most comprehensive solutions for gas analysis available,” says Timothy Butler, managing director of Process Analyser Systems. “We look forward to a long and successful partnership representing Tiger Optics in the United Kingdom and Ireland.”

Tim Butler and Phil Moyes formed PAS moe than 10 years ago. Both executives have more than 30 years experience providing comprehensive solutions for the most demanding gas analysis challenges. PAS is located at Grove Technology Park, Wantage, Oxfordshire, OX12 9FF, United Kingdom. Phone: 44 12357 69841. Fax: 44 12357 70290. Email: [email protected]. Website: www.pasuk.com

Online Analytics has been solving gas analysis challenges for a host of demanding customers in the chemical, petrochemical, industrial and natural gas, and laboratory markets for over 10 years. Online Analytics is located at Plot 7, Rietfontein, Vaalpark, Sasolburg, Free State, 1947, South Africa. Phone: +27 (016) 971 3800. Fax: +27 (016) 657 6523. Email: [email protected]

cmc Instruments GmbH, comprised of highly qualified engineers and chemists, provides leading-edge solutions including systems integration and products including trace gas analyzers, generators, and filters. They provide a full range of support services as well from their Rhein-Main base. cmc Instruments GmbH is located at Hauptstrasse 388, Eschborn, D-65760. Phone: 0 6173 320078. Fax: 0 6173 65050. Email: [email protected]. Website: www.cmc-instruments.de

About Tiger Optics, LLC:
Founded in 2001, Tiger Optics, LLC is known worldwide as an innovator of gas analyzers based on patented Continuous Wave Cavity Ring-Down Spectroscopy (CW CRDS) technology. Free of moving parts and calibration down-time, Tiger’s cutting-edge gas analyzers offer absolute accuracy, real-time response, and low cost of ownership for the most demanding applications in a host of industries, including: semiconductor, laboratory, process control, automotive, industrial and specialty gas. Headquartered in Warrington, PA, Tiger Optics is represented in the United States and Internationally by a select group of organizations highly experienced in gas analysis and well versed in the advantages of CW CRDS technology. For additional information, visit www.tigeroptics.com

Contact:
Elissa Ehrlich
Bite Communications for Tiger Optics
Tel: 212-857-9397
E-mail: [email protected]

June 12, 2007 — /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — PHOENIX, AZ — White Electronic Designs Corporation announced today that it has received a contract worth approximately $3.0 million for the design and manufacture of a test strip for a blood monitoring application.

Hamid Shokrgozar, chairman and chief executive officer of White Electronic Designs Corporation, comments, “We are excited to participate in this critical medical application. The medical marketplace demands extremely high quality and accuracy of results. The requirement for high-reliability and exceptional performance aligns itself perfectly with our company’s long established reputation for leading-edge design and manufacturing of quality components.”

According to a recent market report from the Business Communications Company, Inc., blood monitoring and testing systems accounted for 47.9% of medical point-of-care sales in 2005 and are expected to grow at a 9.4% compounded annual rate through 2010. “As we continue to expand and diversify into new target markets, we continue to mitigate our company’s risk related to being dependent on any single market segment,” adds Shokrgozar. WEDC also introduced one of the industry’s first medical series CompactFlash(R) memory cards earlier this year.

The test strip is manufactured using laminated layers of transparent plastic. After the patient places a drop of blood on the strip, the strip is inserted into an electronic instrument to measure blood chemistry. WEDC will produce the test strips in its Columbus, Ohio facility and will commence product deliveries in the company’s fourth quarter.

About White Electronic Designs Corporation
White Electronic Designs Corporation designs and manufactures innovative high technology components, systems, and branded products for military, industrial, medical, and commercial markets. Its microelectronic products include high-density memory packages and advanced self contained multi-chip and system-in-a-chip modules that are used in a growing range of applications across the company’s markets. It also produces anti-tamper security coatings for mission-critical semiconductor components in defense applications. The display segment designs and manufactures enhanced and reinforced high-legibility flat-panel displays for commercial, medical, defense, and aerospace systems. This segment also designs and manufactures digital keyboard and touch-screen operator-interface systems, and electromechanical assemblies for commercial, industrial, and military systems. The company is headquartered in Phoenix, AZ, and has design and manufacturing centers in Arizona, Indiana, Ohio, Oregon, and China. To learn more about the business, as well as employment opportunities, visit the web site at http://www.whiteedc.com/.

Contact:
Hamid Shokrgozar
Chairman and CEO
White Electronic Designs Corporation
Tel: 602-437-1520
E-mail: [email protected]

Source: White Electronic Designs Corporation

June 13, 2007 — /PRWEB/ — BUDAPEST, HUNGARY — MicroVacuum Ltd., a manufacturer of real-time, label-free biosensor chips and OWLS analytical instrumentation, and Nanjing Sunshine Biotechnology Ltd. announced today a distribution agreement for the Chinese market.

“We are excited to partner with Nanjing Sunshine for the marketing of our OWLS label-free biosensor system in China. In the last year, we saw a tremendous growth opportunity in Asia and especially in China. Biotechnology is one of the fastest growing industries in China and we believe that with this partnership, we’ll be able to effectively reach the life science industry and successfully introduce our product line to research labs across the country,” says Dr. Istvan Szendro, co-founder and managing director of MicroVacuum Ltd.

“We are delighted to partner with MicroVacuum, the leader in optical grating coupler sensor chip-based label free-biosensor instrumentation. With MicroVacuum’s technology leadership in the real-time biosensor analytical industry and Nanjing Sunshine’s expertise and reach on the Chinese market, we are going to provide Chinese customers with the most advanced tools and services for their life-science researches,” says Chai Zhongxin, general manager of Nanjing Sunshine.

About MicroVacuum Ltd.
MicroVacuum Ltd. of Budapest, Hungary, is a life science company and leading producer of the optical grating-coupled waveguide (OWLS) based label-free biosensor instrumentation for real-time detection and monitoring of molecular interactions. The OWLS technology allows high-sensitivity, real-time, label free detection of surface adsorption of molecules and providing information on affinity, kinetics and concentration. MicroVacuum supports the broad application of the OWLS system by offering different thin-film layers on the sensor chip surfaces, including conductive, transparent coating for Electrochemical-OWLS measurements. MicroVacuum Ltd. markets the OWLS biosensor products worldwide.

For more information about MicroVacuum Ltd and the OWLS biosensor product line, please visit http://www.owls-sensors.com/ or contact MicroVacuum Ltd. at +36-1-252-1991.

About Nanjing Sunshine Biotechnology Ltd.
Nanjing Sunshine is a leading Chinese biological reagent research, development, sales and marketing company located in Nanjing, Jiangsu, China.

For more information about Nanjing Sunshine Biotechnology Ltd., please visit http://www.njsunshine.com or contact Nanjing Sunshine at +86-25-523-33444.