CI-81-05-1 -- Clean Room Design for Microelectronics Manufacturing PDF

High technology microelectronics has experienced tremendous growth in the United States during the decade of the 70's. It is still an industry where the U.S. is the world leader even though other countries, most notably Japan, have begun to challenge that lead. One major reason for this growth has been the micro-miniaturization of components reducing costs and thereby producing, ever larger markets. This miniaturization of electronic devices has resulted in increased demand for clean environments and in an order of magnitude increase in clean room investment compared to 10 years ago.

A clean environment plays a major role in many of the electronic manufacturing areas. A partial listing of these different areas might be as follows:

a. semiconductor manufacturing
b. computer mass storage manufacturing
c. component manufacturing,
d. implantable electronic devices
e. printed circuits
f. general assembly

Of the above, semiconductor and mass storage manufacturing invest more heavily in clean air environments for two reasons : first, the market for these products is very large and, second, the contamination, problem is a very significant factor in the rejection rate of the product.

This, paper will deal with some of the problems associated with clean rooms for microelectronics manufacturing and the various solutions to the problems of contamination and air conditioning.