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Semiconductors and Electronics

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An illuminated view of a semiconductor chip hovering over an interconnected circuit board.

"Be Right" When it Comes to Ultrapure Water Quality Monitoring and Analysis

Semiconductor and chip fabrication plants need to use the highest quality water (called Ultrapure Water or UPW), to produce everything from microchips, to LEDs, smart phones, flat panel monitors, and silicon wafers and more.

Ultrapure Water (also known as highly purified water or HPW), is water that is free from impurities and contaminants such as microbes, minerals and bacteria. It is produced under stringent specifications and guidelines.

High Water Consumption = High Costs, Water Scarcity Issues

A large fabrication plant can easily use upwards of 40 million litres of Ultrapure Water every day in fab processes such as water polishing, clean rinse, dicing and back grinding and of course Ultrapure Water production.

This high water consumption means that other challenges include:

  • Water conservation, recycling and water reuse
  • Quality defects due to rinse fouling
  • Chemical reduction
  • Energy and operational cost savings
  • Contaminant removal (related to toxic materials and chemicals in the wastewater discharge)
  • Maintain compliance regulations – specifically around Total Organic Carbon (TOC) and silica

Get Start-to-Finish Confidence with Hach

Let Hach ® be your water partner. With our online and lab solutions with real-time process control, we can help you ensure the high standard of Ultrapure Water quality you require, optimise component usage, maximise the effectiveness of your watercycle, boost operational efficiency, reduce equipment downtime and more.

From source water, to wastewater monitoring and analysis, to Ultrapure Water , you can depend on Hach.

Semiconductor Manufacturing Process Overview

Electronic component manufacturing unit: main components in Ultrapure Water and industrial wastewater recycling systems

Electronic component manufacturing unit: main components in Ultrapure Water and industrial wastewater recycling systems

  1. Mains Water

  2. Ultrapure Water Production

  3. Recycling System

  4. Ultrapure Water Loop

  5. Rinsing Water

  6. Chemical Mechanical Planarization

  7. Fabrication

  8. Wastewater Treatment

  9. Discharge

  10. Organic Industrial Wastewater

  11. Pretreated Recycled Water

Process Flow Chart

Pretreatment
Raw Water Tank Media-filter MMF ACF Deionization (Optional) Reverse Osmosis (Double Pass Common) Make-up Plant
Primary
Ion Exchange UV Treatment (185 nm) Degasifier (Optional) Permeate Tank
Ultrapure Water Tank (Ozonation Optional) UV Treatment (185 nm) Hexagonal boron nitride, h-BN Degas (Tower or Membrane) Polish Plant
Fabrication Point of Use Filters Final Filters Polish Mixed Bed

Fabrication Flow Chart

Ultrapure Water Consumption in Semiconductor Fabrication Process
Silicon Thinning *
(Backgrinding)		 SiO 2 Layer
Formation		 Photolithography *
(Lithography)		 Etching *
Stripping * Electricity Flow
Stabilization		 Electroplating *

Diagram key

*Ultrapure Water consumption and wastewater generation

Symbol Key

  • Reduce Fresh Water Consumption

  • Reduce Discharge Volume

  • Reduce Electricity Usage

  • Reduce Fuel Consumption

  • Reduce Operational Cost

  • Improve Productivity

  • Reduce Compliance Risk

Featured Semiconductor & Electronics Applications

Influent/Raw Water

It all starts at the source. The consistency and purity of your influent or raw water greatly affects the quality of water used throughout the semiconductor production process. With strict standards and guidelines to adhere to, it is imperative that manufacturing plants have the proper water testing systems, equipment, and technology in place from the beginning, to meet regulations and production time.

By utilising accurate instrumentation with real-time analysis to monitor changes to incoming water quality, filter effectiveness and microbiological activity, you can stay at the forefront of potential challenges and establish a reliable system that helps to minimise costs.

Reduce Fresh Water Consumption

Suggested parameters to monitor:

A mountain river stream representing an influent water source.

Production/Process Control

During the production of microchips, the first step is to create a substrate of monocrystalline silicon which is then used to create discs or wafers. Whether rinsing or positioning the individual components on a disc or wafer, the key factor in each stage of production is purity.

All processes need to be performed precisely without any impurities present. Airborne particles and rinsing agents need to be strictly monitored in clean rooms with the rinsing agents being as pure as possible. Guaranteeing the quality of the Ultrapure Water requires the use of highly sensitive water analyses in as low concentrations as possible.

  • Reduce Operational Cost

  • Improve Productivity

Suggested parameters to monitor:

  • Ultrapure Water Conductivity Combined with Hach Conductivity Certification System (Purecal)
  • Ultra-low Turbidity
  • Ultra-low Chlorine
  • Silica
  • Sodium
  • Dissolved Oxygen (DO)
  • Dissolved Hydrogen
  • Dissolved Carbon Dioxide
  • ATP

Woman technician placing circuit board in factory assembly line.

Effluent Treatment

The demands to minimise environmental impact combined with the necessity of clean water sources are posing many limitations for current and future facilities. Effluent management is a journey that evolves from laboratory measurements to automatic online process control and finally to smart optimisation systems.

From chemical neutralisation, to sampling and sludge treatment, prominent and effective monitoring can help reduce waste and treatment operation costs. Act in real time to fluctuating parameters while maximising efficiency and minimising violations at the systemic level with a continuous, reliable, and accurate water analysis system implementation.

Reduce Discharge Volume

Suggested parameters to monitor:

Looking through a large water pipe flowing out to a body of water.

QA/QC Lab

Control of high-volume manufacturing processes can be challenging due to excessive volumes of process data, tools, and monitoring systems. Avoiding abnormal processing conditions, breakdowns, and human error is crucial to optimising quality control. When you combine your QA/QC lab check with real-time process measurements, you are ensuring the process equipment remains validated and within a tolerance window.

Understanding the methodologies available to your specific testing needs will enable you to make the right decisions regarding your plant and final product. Take out the guesswork.

Reduce Compliance Risk

Suggested parameters to monitor:

A technician wearing protective gloves examines the water turbidity within a laboratory.

Water Reuse

Reducing environmental impact is a key reason to optimise water reuse. Water reuse, including reclaimed and recycled water, is one method facilities can utilise to enhance sustainability practices and safeguard water quality standards by reducing the plant's dependency on external water sources.

With water scarcity as a serious concern worldwide, there is an emergent need to address the impact of the production process' water consumption and consider ways in which we can optimise water reuse in the future while still ensuring quality products.

Recovering and reusing wastewater from a manufacturing process will require some form of treatment—basic or rigorous. By monitoring for parameters and compounds such as pH, TOC, BOD, COD and TSS, from start to finish, treatment operators will be equipped to make better informed decisions and have the knowledge they need to continually assess the water quality and advance the efficiency of the reuse treatment process.

Reduce Operational Cost

Suggested parameters to monitor:

  • Ultrapure Water Conductivity
  • Ultrapure Water pH
  • Ultra-low Turbidity
  • Ultra-low Chlorine
  • Silica
  • ATP

A series of reverse osmosis membranes within a plant facility.

Steam and Power

Monitoring is critical. Improper feedwater, impurities, condenser tube failure and excessive air are just a few of the pitfalls/hazards that can lead to system fouling, malfunctions, lengthy repairs and expensive unexpected costs.

With timely and accurate measurement, you can quickly identify issues (corrosion, iron transport, fouling, etc.), that could impair production and shorten the life of your equipment. Protect against microbial growth inside cooling towers, corrosion to piping, condensers and dryers over time, and potential leakage in heat exchangers by utilizing continuous, accurate monitoring and analysis tools.

  • Reduce Electricity Usage

  • Reduce Fuel Consumption

Suggested parameters to monitor:

Steam billowing out of a tower.