Dry Ice Cleaning Equipment for Semiconductor Manufacturing

Decontaminating CVD Reactors for Polysilicon Production with Dry Ice Blasting

Achieve a safer, more efficient, and higher-purity cleaning process.

Polycrystalline silicon manufacturers face a critical challenge in preventing silicon build-up and dust inside their CVD reactors. Conventional cleaning methods, often relying on high-pressure water blasting and manual chemical scrubbing, are inefficient, time-consuming, and pose significant risks. Traditional methods expose workers to hazardous chemicals, can damage valuable equipment, and create a secondary waste stream that requires careful and costly disposal. These limitations lead to production downtime and can compromise the purity of the final product, affecting quality and yield.

Dry ice blasting provides a safer and more effective solution for decontaminating CVD reactors. By quickly and efficiently removing build-up without damaging interior surfaces, dry ice cleaning ensures the integrity of the equipment. The process eliminates the need for harsh chemicals and solvents, greatly improving worker safety and reducing the environmental impact. Dry ice blast cleaning does not generate secondary waste, prevents downstream contamination, and significantly reduces impurities and scrap rates.

Wafer Fabrication Cleaning with Dry Ice Blasting

Dry ice blasting enables non-abrasive cleaning for the high-purity manufacturing of wafers.

• Cleaning Wafer Chambers and Process Tooling

  The delicate and complex nature of wafer fabrication equipment, including wafer chambers, deposition tooling, and polishing equipment, requires a cleaning method that is both highly effective and completely non-damaging. Dry ice blasting provides an ideal solution by dislodging contaminants without scratching or altering the precise surfaces of these critical components. The process allows for thorough cleaning of intricate parts, ensuring that tooling maintains its integrity and continues to perform optimally.

• Decontaminating Plasma-Coated Fixtures and Surfaces

  Following plasma coating processes for microchips or the use of polishing compounds on Teflon-coated aluminum chamber surfaces, a clean and residue-free environment is essential to prevent defects. Traditional cleaning methods can be overly aggressive or leave behind chemical residues that lead to cross-contamination. Dry ice blasting offers a superior alternative, as it is non-abrasive and leaves no secondary waste. This allows for the effective removal of stubborn build-up and polishing compounds from fixtures and chamber surfaces, ensuring the highest level of purity for subsequent production steps.

• Maintaining Vacuum Pumps and Implanters

  Vacuum pumps and implanters are vital to the wafer fabrication process, but they are also susceptible to contamination from process byproducts. The accumulation of these materials can degrade performance and lead to unplanned downtime. Dry ice blasting is a safe and efficient way to clean this specialized equipment. It can be performed in-place, eliminating the need for time-consuming disassembly and manual cleaning, while also being a completely dry process. This not only reduces maintenance time, but also protects these sensitive and expensive systems from damage associated with conventional cleaning techniques.

Dry Ice Cleaning for Semiconductor Manufacturing and Assembly

Dry ice blasting is a non-abrasive and residue-free semiconductor cleaning process.

• Molding & Die Cleaning

  Contaminants like wax and gas buildup can foul the molds and dies used in semiconductor manufacturing, compromising the integrity of microchip carriers and molded components. Traditional cleaning methods are often time-consuming, requiring cool-down periods and manual scrubbing. Dry ice blasting is a superior alternative because it allows for in-place cleaning of molds and dies while they are still hot. This process effectively removes buildup without causing damage to the tooling, reducing downtime and maintaining consistent production quality.

• Post-Processing Chip Finishing

  After molding and laser-cutting, semiconductor parts can have unwanted debris like plastic flash or adhesives on their surfaces. These contaminants can affect performance or interfere with subsequent manufacturing steps. Dry ice blasting is an ideal semiconductor parts cleaning solution for post-process cleaning because it’s a non-abrasive method that removes debris without damaging the delicate chip edges or surfaces. This targeted cleaning process improves the quality of the finished product by ensuring a clean, precise component is ready for the next stage of manufacturing.

• Component Cleaning & General Maintenance

  Dry ice blasting is highly effective for general maintenance of a wide range of equipment and components. It’s a quick and efficient way to remove contaminants from machinery. The process is completely dry and non-conductive, allowing for the safe cleaning of electrical harnesses and connectors without the risk of water damage or short-circuiting. This versatility ensures that your assembly and manufacturing equipment remains in peak condition, extending its lifespan and minimizing maintenance-related downtime.

PCB Manufacturing Cleaning with Dry Ice Blasting

Dry ice blasting is a non-conductive, residue-free method for high-purity cleaning

• Solder Flux & Contaminant Removal

  During PCB manufacturing, solder flux residue, solder balls, and cold soldered leads can remain on PCBs after welding and soldering processes, causing short circuits and component failures. Dry ice blasting provides a safe and effective way to remove these contaminants. Unlike traditional methods that use solvents or abrasive brushes, dry ice blasting is non-conductive and leaves no residue, ensuring the integrity of the board and its components without creating secondary waste. This makes it an ideal solution for cleaning PCBs, pogo pins, and in-circuit test (ICT) fixtures.

• Surface Preparation & Coating Removal

  Dry ice blasting effectively removes dust, flux residues, oils, and moisture contamination prior to conformal coating application. This non-abrasive cleaning method also excels at selective conformal coating removal during rework and repair operations, providing circuit board fabricators with a versatile solution that maintains component integrity while ensuring optimal surface conditions for subsequent processing steps.

• General Maintenance & Component Cleaning

  Dry ice blasting is highly effective for general maintenance of production equipment. It is an ideal solution for removing conformal coatings from spray coating fixtures. The process can also be used to remove surface rust from electrical harnesses and connectors, as well as to clean ceramic support discs and vacuum housing components. This allows technicians to clean sensitive equipment in-place without the risk of water damage or chemical contamination. The speed and efficiency of dry ice blasting reduce maintenance downtime, ensuring that critical production equipment remains operational and clean.