A - D
4G
Fourth-generation cellular wireless standard
anti-reflective coating
A layer of material deposited on a wafer before the resist is applied in order to reduce line width variation caused by scattering and reflection of light
bottom anti-reflective coating (BARC)
Spin-on organic polymer formulation applied to the bottom of a photoresist coating
buffer coating
Product used in the integrated circuit industry to protect circuits from external damage
chemical mechanical planarization (CMP)
The chemical and mechanical smoothing of dielectric layers of semiconductors, in order to ensure a uniform plane surface
CMP slurry
Viscous liquid with a high solids content used in the CMP of a wafer in order to ensure a uniform plane surface
colloidal silica CMP slurries
Colloidal silica form of a CMP slurry, as opposed to fumed silica technology
chemical vapor deposition (CVD)
Chemical process often used in semiconductor chip manufacturing for the deposition of thin films of various materials
developer
Product used to remove the photoresist from the substrate after exposure to light
dielectric
Nonconductive material or insulator
E - F
edge bead
Residual resist that remains on the edge of a substrate after the application process
edge bead remover (EBR)
A solvent mix used in both the flat panel display and integrated circuit IC industries to remove photoresist at the substrate edge
etching
The process of using a solution, a mixture of solutions, or a mixture of gases that attacks the surfaces of a film or substrate, removing materials either selectively or nonselectively
film of contamination
A layer of contaminant on part or all of a substrate. An example is wax that has migrated onto the substrate surface.
FIRM
Type of proprietary rinse materials used to prevent defects and the collapse of stacks of silicon wafers
flat-panel display (FPD)
A thin lightweight video display used in laptops, televisions, mobile phones, and notebook computers and employing liquid crystals, electroluminescence, or a similar alternative to cathode-ray tubes
I - M
integrated circuit (IC)
A fabrication technology that combines most of the components of a circuit on a single-crystal silicon wafer generally used as a proxy for semiconductors
International Technology Roadmap for Semiconductors (ITRS)
The roadmap or technology assessment of the needs and challenges facing the semiconductor industry over the next 15 years
liquid crystal displays (LCD)
A low-power flat-panel display used in many laptop computers, televisions, and electronic devices, made up of a liquid crystal that is sandwiched between layers of glass or plastic that becomes opaque when electric current passes through it. The contrast between
the opaque and transparent areas forms visible characters.
light-emitting diode (LED)
A semiconductor diode that produces visible or infrared light when subjected to an electric current, as a result of electroluminescence
lithography
Process in which a masked pattern is projected onto a photosensitive coating that covers a substrate
miniaturization
The trend towards decreasing sizes of semiconductor chips enabled by technologies that facilitate narrower line widths and reduced feature sizes
Moore’s Law
Describes the industry impetus to fit more functionality in a semiconductor device and states that the number of transistors on an integrated circuit will double approximately every two years
N - Pi
novolac
Polycondensate resin made from phenolic monomers
organic light-emitting diode (OLED)
An LED in which the emissive electroluminescent layer is a film of organic compounds that emits light when an electric current passes through it. This technology is still in the development phase and is used mostly in small screens for mobile phones, MP3 players, car radios, and digital cameras.
PAC
Organic photoactive compounds, which is oil based and tends to be used in the production of photoresists
patterning
A process of photolithography of forming geometrical shapes by the use of photosensitive resists, masks, and etching techniques
PC
personal computer
perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS)
An acid used in the photolithography process
perhydropolysilazane (PHPS)
A novel spin-on dielectric (insulation layer used in semiconductor chips). PHPS is rapidly replacing the existing chemical vapor deposition products, given its lower cost and superior performance characteristics.
pixel
The basic unit of programmable color on a computer display or in a computer image
Ph - Pr
photomask or mask
A structure comprising functional pattern images produced on a film, plastic, or glass-based material and accurately positioned so as to be useful for selective exposure of a photoresist coating
photoresist
A light-sensitive substance used to facilitate the transfer of glass substrate materials in semiconductor wafers in integrated circuits of flat-panel displays
polymer
A macromolecule made up of repeating chemical units, joined together typically by covalent bonds. Polymers enable nearly every phase of advanced electronic device manufacturing. From improving dielectric properties to enhancing physical characteristics, polymers are a key element in fabricating today's ever smaller ,
yet highly robust electronics devices.
propylene glycol monomethyl ether (PGME)
Oil-based solvent used in the manufacture of photoresists and edge bead removers primarily for use in the manufacture of integrated circuit materials
propylene glycol methyl ether acetate (PGMEA)
Oil-based solvent used in the manufacture of photoresists and edge bead removers primarily for use in the manufacture of integrated circuit materials
R - Si
RELACS™
Licensed shrink technology, used in the integrated circuit industry, that enables feature sizes to be significantly reduced while still using existing lithography equipment. The term RELACS™ comes from resolution enhancement lithography assisted by chemical shrink
resist
Photosensitive liquid-plastic film applied to the surface of a substrate for lithography
SAP
System Applications & Products
SEMATECH
Semiconductor Manufacturing Technology, an international consortium of semiconductor manufacturers
SELETE
Semiconductor Leading Edge Technologies, a consortium for the development of silicon wafer technologies
semiconductor
An element that has an electrical resistivity in the range between conductors (such as aluminum) and insulators (such as silicon dioxide). Integrated circuits are typically fabricated in semiconductor materials such as silicon, germanium, or gallium arsenide.
SI or silicon
A brownish crystalline semimetal used to make the majority of semiconductor wafers
St - W
stripper
A chemical solvent used to remove residual photoresist from a silicon wafer after etching
substrate
A substance that is the basis for subsequent processing operations in the fabrication of semiconductor devices, circuits, or flat-panel displays
thick-film resist (TFR)
A resist used in the integrated circuit industry to connect semiconductor chips to a circuit board
thin-film transistor (TFT)
A special kind of field-effect transistor made by depositing thin films of an active semiconductor layer as well as the dielectric layer and metallic contacts over a supporting substrate
top anti-reflective coating (TARC)
Water-soluble polymer applied to the top of a photoresist coating
UV
ultraviolet
wafer
A thin slice with parallel faces cut from a semiconductor crystal