News Article
Showa Denko moves towards 150mm SiC growth with Aixtron
Aixtron's CVD reactor will be used to grow silicon carbide power devices employed in consumer electronics, railroad power handling and the automotive markets
Japanese based firm, Showa Denko K.K (SDK) has added an Aixtron SiC CVD Warm-Wall Planetary Reactor system to its equipment collection.
The AIX 2800G4WW reactor is capable of handling either ten 100mm or six 150mm wafers. SDK has increased its four-inch SiC epitaxial wafer production capacity by 2.5 times, to 1,500 units a month, through facility expansion and improvement in production technology.
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AIX 2800G4WW
The chemical vapour deposition (CVD) system will be used to produce homoepitaxial material on SiC substrates for a range of power electronics applications and devices, such as inverter systems for solar power modules, AC-DC converers and industrial motor controllers.
With the new system, SDK will extend its existing 100mm-diameter wafer production and also migrate production to the larger diameter 150mm SiC wafers that are now becoming available from semiconductor material suppliers. Production on larger wafers should lead to cost reductions and wider market acceptance.
“Aixtron has designed its system to push these economies of scale even further by reducing the wafer edge exclusion zone, increasing chip yields per wafer of larger diameter substrates,” Frank Wischmeyer, Vice President and Program Manager Power Electronics at Aixtron, comments. “The attraction of silicon carbide for such application derives from its unique material properties, such as high critical electrical field strength, allowing high device breakdown voltages and low turn-on resistance. Further advantages for power applications arise from SiC’s higher thermal conductivity and ruggedness at higher operation temperatures.”
A special reactor chamber was developed for the most modern Aixtron Warm-Wall reactor for SiC. It is capable of handling up to the 1650°C, which is needed for the growth of SiC. The six 150mm wafers loaded per batch in the Aixtron system have individual ‘planetary’ rotation during epitaxy, to improve uniformity and reproducibility.
The company sees market opportunities for SiC-based products arising immediately in consumer electronics, and in the longer term in railroad power handling and automotive markets.
The epitaxial SiC business was acquired at the end of 2008 from Esicat-Japan LLP, a spin-off from Japan’s National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), Central Research Institute of Electric Power Industry (CRIEPI) and Showa Denko.
When compared with conventional silicon-based semiconductors, SiC power devices using SiC epitaxial wafers can operate under higher voltages, heavier currents and at higher temperatures.
These features enable reductions in the number of components and miniaturisation of cooling devices, helping to make smaller and lighter power control modules. SiC power devices also reduce energy loss in the process of power control, resulting in a substantial energy saving.
Schematics of SBD and MOSFET, based on SiC epitaxial wafers
SiC power devices are also expected to be used increasingly in inverters (devices for converting direct current into alternating current) to control rotation of motors. Such inverters are already commercialised in some home electric appliances and distributed power supply systems, and used in subway railcars on a trial basis.
Outline of products related to SiC epitaxial wafers
What's more, an increasing number of electric vehicles and hybrid cars are expected to be equipped with inverters using SiC power devices. These inverters contain Schottky barrier diode (SBD), and metal oxide semiconductor field-effect transistors (MOSFETs), based on SiC power devices.
SDK says it can manufacture SiC-MOSFETs, incorporating a surface oxide film which is very smooth. The smooth surface is needed during device operation.
Following the capacity expansion, SDK will continue developing SiC epitaxial wafers with larger diameter, lower defect, and higher uniformity. The firm will concentrate on developing six-inch SiC epitaxial wafers for heavy-current high-voltage applications.
The AIX 2800G4WW reactor is capable of handling either ten 100mm or six 150mm wafers. SDK has increased its four-inch SiC epitaxial wafer production capacity by 2.5 times, to 1,500 units a month, through facility expansion and improvement in production technology.
AIX 2800G4WW
The chemical vapour deposition (CVD) system will be used to produce homoepitaxial material on SiC substrates for a range of power electronics applications and devices, such as inverter systems for solar power modules, AC-DC converers and industrial motor controllers.
With the new system, SDK will extend its existing 100mm-diameter wafer production and also migrate production to the larger diameter 150mm SiC wafers that are now becoming available from semiconductor material suppliers. Production on larger wafers should lead to cost reductions and wider market acceptance.
“Aixtron has designed its system to push these economies of scale even further by reducing the wafer edge exclusion zone, increasing chip yields per wafer of larger diameter substrates,” Frank Wischmeyer, Vice President and Program Manager Power Electronics at Aixtron, comments. “The attraction of silicon carbide for such application derives from its unique material properties, such as high critical electrical field strength, allowing high device breakdown voltages and low turn-on resistance. Further advantages for power applications arise from SiC’s higher thermal conductivity and ruggedness at higher operation temperatures.”
A special reactor chamber was developed for the most modern Aixtron Warm-Wall reactor for SiC. It is capable of handling up to the 1650°C, which is needed for the growth of SiC. The six 150mm wafers loaded per batch in the Aixtron system have individual ‘planetary’ rotation during epitaxy, to improve uniformity and reproducibility.
The company sees market opportunities for SiC-based products arising immediately in consumer electronics, and in the longer term in railroad power handling and automotive markets.
The epitaxial SiC business was acquired at the end of 2008 from Esicat-Japan LLP, a spin-off from Japan’s National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), Central Research Institute of Electric Power Industry (CRIEPI) and Showa Denko.
When compared with conventional silicon-based semiconductors, SiC power devices using SiC epitaxial wafers can operate under higher voltages, heavier currents and at higher temperatures.
These features enable reductions in the number of components and miniaturisation of cooling devices, helping to make smaller and lighter power control modules. SiC power devices also reduce energy loss in the process of power control, resulting in a substantial energy saving.
Schematics of SBD and MOSFET, based on SiC epitaxial wafers
SiC power devices are also expected to be used increasingly in inverters (devices for converting direct current into alternating current) to control rotation of motors. Such inverters are already commercialised in some home electric appliances and distributed power supply systems, and used in subway railcars on a trial basis.
Outline of products related to SiC epitaxial wafers
What's more, an increasing number of electric vehicles and hybrid cars are expected to be equipped with inverters using SiC power devices. These inverters contain Schottky barrier diode (SBD), and metal oxide semiconductor field-effect transistors (MOSFETs), based on SiC power devices.
SDK says it can manufacture SiC-MOSFETs, incorporating a surface oxide film which is very smooth. The smooth surface is needed during device operation.
Following the capacity expansion, SDK will continue developing SiC epitaxial wafers with larger diameter, lower defect, and higher uniformity. The firm will concentrate on developing six-inch SiC epitaxial wafers for heavy-current high-voltage applications.
