JTEKT Thermo Systems Vertical Furnaces

JTEKT Thermo Systems manufactures various versions of vertical furnaces with fully automatic loading or manual handling for applications in semiconductor production. Small models for pilot lines and research institutes are available. The equipment is often referred to by different names: vertical furnace, diffusion furnace, tube furnace, batch furnace, doping furnace, oxidation furnace, semiconductor furnace. They are suitable for many processes in semiconductor manufacturing such as diffusion, oxidation, LPCVD processes (nitride, poly-silicon, TEOS) and for the doping of solar cells using phosphorus oxychloride POCl3.
A specialty of JTEKT Thermo Systems is low-temperature applications such as polyimide curing, copper annealing, low-k curing, SOG or hydrogen annealing.

Wafer size Mini-batch
Manual loading		 Mini-batch
Automatic loading		 Full-batch
Automatic loading		 Full-batch
Integrated cassette stocker
100 mm - 300 mm VF1000 — — —
150 mm - 200 mm — VF3000 VF5100 VF5300
200 mm - 300 mm — VF5700 — VF5900
Equipment

Heating elements

JTEKT Thermo Systems uses special heating elements with particularly low thermal mass in all vertical furnaces, so-called LGO heaters. The covered temperature ranges from 140°C up to 1250°C.

JTEKT developed a special quartz configuration together with material suppliers for specific processes. Outstanding properties are therefore offered particularly by JTEKT's polyimide curing and hydrogen annealing furnaces.

LGO Heater

Quartz equipment

In semiconductor tube furnaces the reaction chamber is typically composed of quartz parts such as quartz tube, quartz boat, quartz liner, pedestal, injector, thermocouple well, etc. For high-temperature versions, SiC tubes or SiC boats are sometimes used.

The top image shows a quartz process tube with an upper gas injection tube installed in a vertical furnace equipped with LGO heaters that have particularly low thermal mass. Other quartz tube arrangements such as double-wall designs or lower gas injection are also available. The lower image shows a vertical furnace with quartz tube and SiC boat during insertion.

All these quartz and SiC parts require regular and careful cleaning. The cleaning frequency depends on the installed process. Today, wet spray cleaning is the state of the art for quartz equipment.

quartz tube SiC boat
VF1000

VF1000: A flexible and cost-effective vertical furnace for research and development.

The VF1000 was developed for research laboratories, pilot lines and small production environments and offers a cost-effective alternative to production equipment while maintaining process quality. Thanks to JTEKT Thermo Systems' patented LGO heating elements, manual loading for high flexibility, and broad process capability, this vertical furnace is ideal for demanding development tasks in oxidation, diffusion, LPCVD, oxynitridation and thermal activation. Installations at leading European research sites such as Uppsala and Fraunhofer IISB confirm its reliability and performance.

Specification
Technical features Product data
External dimensions W1500 × D1000 × H2130 mm (2-8")
W1800 × D1400 × H2300 mm (12")
Wafer sizes 2 to 12"
Batch size up to 25 wafers
Loading Manual loading
Heating technology Patented LGO heaters (Light Gauge Over-bend)
Process types Oxidation, diffusion, LPCVD, oxynitridation, annealing, polyimide curing
Options Forced cooling, Nâ‚‚ load-lock
Vertical furnace VF1000

Find more details about the VF1000 on our VF1000 furnace webpage.

VF3000

VF3000: Compact vertical furnace with a wide range of features.

The VF3000 fills the gap between the compact, manually loaded VF1000 and large production systems. With automatic loading and a cost-optimized design, this furnace is suitable for mini-batch applications in R&D as well as small pilot productions. It handles wafers from 4 to 8 inches in batches of 50 to 75 wafers (max. 50 for 8") and supports a wide range of processes, including ultra-high-temperature treatments for power devices. Cassettes are placed on shelves and transported cleanly into the quartz boat by a horizontal gas flow. As with all JTEKT vertical furnaces, patented LGO heaters are used to achieve excellent temperature uniformity.

Specification
Technical features Product data
External dimensions W1200 × D1450 × H2610 mm
Wafer sizes 4 to 8 inches
Batch size 50-75 wafers (max. 50 for 8")
Number of cassette stocks 4
Fingers Single wafer handling
Loading Automatic
Heating technology LGO heaters / MoSiâ‚‚ heaters / carbon heaters
Process types LPCVD, oxidation, diffusion, SiC power device gate oxynitridation, activation annealing, polyimide curing, ultra-high-temperature treatment
Options Forced cooling, Nâ‚‚ load-lock, convertible wafer sizes
VF3000 vertical furnace

Find more details about the VF3000 on our VF3000 furnace webpage.

VF5100

VF5100: Highly automated vertical furnace for large batches

The VF5100, first introduced in 1990 as JTEKT's vertical furnace with robot transfer, has been continuously improved over the years. The model processes 50 to 150 wafers per batch and can be equipped with up to 8 cassettes, which can also be loaded automatically by AGVs. Five wafers are transferred simultaneously into the quartz boat by a high-precision transfer robot. With patented LGO heaters and optional nitrogen-purged load-lock and thin-wafer handling, the VF5100 meets the highest demands for process quality and reliability. It is used worldwide in pilot and production lines.

Specification
Technical features Product data
External dimensions W900 × D1850 × H2930 mm (100 wafers)
W1000 × D1950 × H3300 mm (150 wafers)
Wafer sizes 4 to 8 inches
Batch size 50-150 wafers
Number of cassette stocks 6-8
Fingers 5 wafer + single wafer handling
Loading Automatic with robot transfer
Heating technology LGO heaters, MoSiâ‚‚ heaters
Process types LPCVD, oxidation, diffusion, SiC gate oxynitridation, activation annealing, ultra-high-temperature treatment
Options Forced cooling, Nâ‚‚ load-lock, thin wafer handling, convertible wafer sizes
VF5100 vertical furnace

Find more details about the VF5100 on our VF5100 furnace webpage.

VF5300

VF5300: Vertical furnace designed for mass production of wafers up to 200 mm.

The VF5300 is a mass-production oriented evolution of the VF series, designed for continuous, high-volume manufacturing. With an integrated cassette stocker for up to 20 cassettes it enables largely unattended operation. Up to two (optionally three) lots can be processed automatically in sequence. The system combines proven LGO heating with powerful robot handling and offers easy operation plus versatile interfaces for higher-level control. Because of its modular design and extensive options the VF5300 is deployed worldwide in many production lines.

Specification
Technical features Product data
External dimensions W900 × D2300 × H3300 mm
Wafer sizes 6 to 8 inches
Batch size 150 wafers
Number of cassette stocks 20 (standard)
Fingers 5 wafer + single wafer handling (vacuumless picks)
Loading / handling Integrated stocker, two independent boat loading robots, programmable quartz-boat loading
Heating technology LGO heaters (Light Gauge Over-bend); MoSiâ‚‚ heaters optional, carbon heaters
Process types LPCVD, oxidation, diffusion, activation annealing, SiC gate oxynitridation, ultra-high-temperature processes
Cassette stocker Multiple stacked carousels; simple, reliable design
Throughput / automation Continuous processing; high throughput; multiple furnaces can be installed close together
Options Forced cooling, Nâ‚‚ load-lock, thin wafer handling, SMIF operation
VF5300 vertical furnace

Find more details about the VF5300 on our VF5300 furnace webpage.

VF5700

VF5700: Rapid-heating furnace for 300 mm wafers.

The vertical furnace VF5700 represents state-of-the-art mini-batch technology in wafer processing. With a new generation of innovative LGO heaters it achieves extremely fast ramp-up and cool-down rates as well as excellent temperature uniformity. Its compact design without stocker requires little footprint and impresses with high performance at low cost. Whether 200 mm or 300 mm wafers, the VF5700 processes small lots of 25 to 50 wafers flexibly and delivers excellent process results for R&D and production. A specially developed loading system with robot ensures low particle counts and high throughput, while optional features such as load-lock, cooling fan or boat rotation offer additional flexibility. It is suitable for oxidation, diffusion and CVD processes on silicon wafers as well as for IGBT, polyimide and thin wafer applications.

Specification
Technical features Product data
External dimensions W1100 × D2000 × H2950 mm
Wafer size 300 mm
Batch size 50 wafers or 75 wafers
Heating technology LGO heaters
FOUP openers 2
Loading / handling Wafer transfer via single- or five-wafer handling robot
Options Forced cooling system, Nâ‚‚ load-lock
VF5700 vertical furnace

More details about the VF5700 can be found on our VF5700 furnace page.

VF5900

VF5900: Outstanding 300 mm vertical furnace for mass production.

The VF5900 was specifically developed for processing 300-mm wafers and can accommodate up to 16 FOUPs and process two lots of 100 production wafers each continuously. FOUPs are managed via a rack station where only the required cassettes are transferred to the handover station. A Z-theta robot with vacuumless tweezers performs the transfer while the quartz boat uses a ladder structure to prevent slips. The furnace uses LGO heaters and is equipped with a fan cooling system and optional nitrogen load-lock. The user-friendly Model-1400 controller complies with SEMI and HSMS standards and is SECS-II and GEM compatible. The FOUP storage can be separated from the main furnace to reduce cleanroom footprint. Besides silicon wafers, the furnace is suitable for heat treatment of IGBTs, polyimides, thin wafers and other materials.

Specification
Technical features Product data
External dimensions W1250 × D4300 × H3450 mm
Wafer sizes 300 mm
Batch size 100 wafers
Loading / handling High-speed wafer transfer via single- or five-wafer handling robot
Heating technology LGO heaters
Process types LPCVD, oxidation, diffusion, annealing, polyimide curing
Options Forced cooling, Nâ‚‚ load-lock, SMIF
VF5900 vertical furnace

More details about the VF5900 can be found on our VF5900 furnace page.

Learn more about the advantages and disadvantages of vertical and horizontal furnaces in a direct comparison.

JTEKT Thermo Systems and Crystec look forward to building a cost-effective system that meets your strictest requirements.