[labnetwork] How do you handle PDMS in a cleanroom environment?

[Price, Aimee]

Hi Leif,
We actually have a lot of users who use PDMS for various uses here at Ohio State, including soft lithography.  We allow it in most of our tools, including our plasma tools and metal deposition chambers that are reserved for high quality contacts with the requirement that the PDMS must be fully cured.  We do allow some users to cure the PDMS on benchtops or hotplates in the cleanroom itself as well.

We have not seen any problems with it, but we are not processing CMOS type structures.  Mainly we deal with compounds III-V, III-N, ceramics, etc.

I think it depends on what kind of user base you have, but in our case it would have excluded a lot of users to disallow it.  However, we would have forbidden it if we felt that it would contaminate or found any contamination issues.

I've copied our lab manager Paul in case he may have more to add on the subject.

Best of luck,
Aimee

From: labnetwork-bounces at mtl.mit.edu [mailto:labnetwork-bounces at mtl.mit.edu] On Behalf Of Leif Johansen
Sent: Wednesday, November 25, 2015 3:58 AM
To: labnetwork at mtl.mit.edu
Subject: [labnetwork] How do you handle PDMS in a cleanroom environment?

Dear Lab Network,

I have a dilemma. Polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) is a promising material for soft lithography, and a lot of our users have a strong wish to process this material in our lab - especially for making nanoimprint stamps . However, before being cured, PDMS is basically a silicone oil, and all our front end engineers (plasma chambers, lithography etc. ) are really scared about this substance ending up in their equipment. Our back end engineers (especially the wire bonding engineer) is also strongly opposed to the introduction of PDMS into the back end lab.

Are there any experience out there in the community on how to handle PDMS in a cleanroom environment?

Best regards,
Leif

Leif S. Johansen

Head of Operations

DTU Danchip



Technical University of Denmark

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Danchip

Ørsteds Plads, Byg. 347

2800  Lyngby

Direct +45 45255713
Mobile +45 25348992

lesjo at danchip.dtu.dk<mailto:lesjo at danchip.dtu.dk>

www.danchip.dtu.dk/<http://www.danchip.dtu.dk/>



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