SAMCO Inc of Kyoto, Japan, a supplier of plasma etch, chemical vapour deposition (CVD) and surface treatment systems to compound semiconductors device makers, has launched an atomic layer deposition (ALD) system focusing on gate oxide formation of silicon carbide (SiC) and gallium nitride (GaN) power devices.
SAMCO designs and manufactures dry etching systems, PECVD, and UV-ozone and plasma cleaning systems, delivering processing solutions for wide-bandgap semiconductor devices such as RF devices, LEDs, laser diodes and power devices.
SAMCO's new AL-1 ALD system deposits pinhole-free AlOx and SiO2 films, which are optimal for the gate oxide in GaN MOSFET, GaN MOS-HFET and 4H-SiC MOSFET devices. The system features precise film thickness control at the atomic-layer level (1.2Å per cycle at a deposition temperature of 350°C). The deposited AlOx film (with a breakdown voltage of 7.5MV/cm) also provides what is claimed to be excellent step coverage (with an aspect ratio of 32:1, width of 1.25μm, and depth of 40μm) with just 103nm-thick oxide films.
SAMCO says that the AL-1 is capable of depositing uniform oxides on an 8-inch wafer or three 4-inch wafers and is suitable for R&D and pilot production.
To strengthen its turn-key solutions for next-generation power device production, on 1 December SAMCO also signed a distributor agreement with Epiluvac AB of Lund, Sweden (which produces SiC CVD systems used in power device research).
