ACM Research, Inc. announced the launch of wafer-level packaging and plating support equipment for compound semiconductor manufacturing and secured multiple orders for related equipment in the third quarter.

ACM Research announced on the 14th that it has recently launched the Ultra ECP GIII electroplating equipment, a wafer-level packaging product for compound semiconductors capable of supporting silicon carbide (SiC), gallium nitride (GaN), and gallium arsenide (GaAs).

Additionally, ACM's Ultra ECP GIII has reportedly received two orders from Chinese compound semiconductor manufacturers.

The first order equipment was delivered to the customer after applying a plating module composed of copper-nickel-tin-silver using secondary anode technology to wafer-level packaging and integrating it into a vacuum pre-wet chamber and a post-clean chamber. The second order equipment is for gold (Au) plating and is scheduled to be finally supplied to the customer at the end of September.

This wafer-level packaging equipment can plate gold (Au) with improved uniformity and step coverage in the backside deep hole process.

It also features a fully automated platform that supports high-volume processing of 6-inch flat edge and notch wafers, and achieves the highest performance by combining ACM's proprietary second anode supply technology with high-speed paddle technology.

“The compound semiconductor market is growing rapidly due to strong demand for electric vehicles, 5G communications, RF and AI applications. However, the automation level of current compound semiconductor manufacturing processes is limited, and most electroplating processes use vertical electroplating equipment with poor uniformity, which also limits production volume,” said David Wang, CEO of ACM Research. “Our newly developed Ultra ECP GIII electroplating equipment overcomes these challenges and meets the growing requirements for high capacity and advanced performance of compound semiconductors.”

ACM's Ultra ECP GIII tool leverages two key technologies: a secondary anode supply and high-speed grid technology. The secondary anode supply provides superior uniformity control by effectively adjusting wafer-level packaging features to overcome issues arising from differences in electrical field distribution. Additionally, this technology can be utilized to optimize patterns in wafer edge and notch areas and achieve plating uniformity of less than 3%.

ACM's high-speed grid technology achieves a more powerful mixing effect and enhances mass transfer capabilities, improving step coverage in deep-hole processes. Furthermore, improved step coverage reduces gold (Au) film thickness, thereby reducing customer costs.