AG Associates Introduces Breakthrough RTP System for Sub-0.25 Micron Steam-Based Thermal Applications.

SAN JOSE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 8, 1998--(Editorial Summary) As devices move beyond the quarter micron threshold, gate oxide thickness on the wafer becomes significantly thinner -- requiring precise, cost-effective steam-based thermal processes that deliver superior control of oxide thickness and quality. Conventional furnace techniques are proving incapable of delivering these advanced process capabilities due to uniformity, repeatability and temperature control limitations. As a result, chipmakers are seeking highly efficient, reliable single-wafer thermal solutions, such as AG Associates' STEAMpulse(TM), which offers optimum control of thin oxide uniformity on a low-cost, production-proven platform.

AG Associates (NASDAQ:AGAI), a leading supplier of advanced rapid thermal processing (RTP) equipment used in the manufacture of integrated circuits (ICs), today introduced the newest addition to its family of advanced RTP solutions -- STEAMpulse(TM).

The industry's first RTP system to leverage both catalytic and pyrogenic steam generation capabilities, STEAMpulse delivers a full range of high-quality thin and thick oxide films, as well as low temperature metal annealing capabilities for chipmakers' most challenging sub-quarter micron steam-based RTP applications.

The industry's move toward smaller device geometries has fueled the need for thinner gate oxides down to 3 nm and below. As a result, chipmakers are turning to steam-based thermal processes to grow thin oxide layers on the wafer.

Historically, the thermal oxidation market has been dominated by batch furnaces; however, chipmakers are now encountering significant economic and technical challenges with these traditional thermal processes due to temperature control and overall performance limitations. Offering significant technical and cost-of-ownership (COO) advantages over batch furnaces, steam-based RTP has emerged as the most practical candidate to grow thin oxide layers at various temperatures without sacrificing uniformity, repeatability and throughput.

As a result, steam technology opens up a number of new process applications for RTP, including high quality thin gate/capacitor oxide, thick STI liner oxide, BPSG reflow, selective gate oxidation and low temperature metal anneals for sub-quarter micron devices.

"Developed in anticipation of this emerging trend, STEAMpulse is the industry's first RTP system to offer a choice of either catalytic or pyrogenic steam generation capability," remarked Dr. Arnon Gat, AG Associates' chairman and CEO. "Through its catalytic steam generation capability, which generates steam concentrations less than 1 percent, applications such as selective gate oxidation and low temperature metal annealing are possible."

Gat continued: "Through STEAMpulse's pyrogenic capability, steam concentrations in excess of 40 percent can be generated. This facilitates applications such as STI liner oxide, glass densification and reflow, and post-interlayer dielectric anneals. These applications provide benefits for the production of sub-quarter micron logic and embedded memory devices. The unique versatility of the STEAMpulse for these two critical processing capabilities makes it the smart solution for chipmakers seeking a robust, cost-effective RTP platform for their steam-based applications."

To obtain these results, STEAMpulse utilizes diluted steam as a process gas. Differing from competitive RTP steam-based systems, STEAMpulse creates its steam concentration outside the processing chamber rather than inside -- ensuring extremely precise steam concentration levels.

This accurate steam control, coupled with the system's ability to vary time and temperature during the processing cycle, enables repeatable, controlled, uniform oxide growth. The system's low temperature processing capability is particularly critical for emerging metal annealing applications due to thermal budget limitations during back-end processing.

Leveraging AG Associates' production-proven Heatpulse(R) 8800 technology, STEAMpulse also incorporates a number of design features that greatly improve temperature uniformity and repeatability. The most important of these is emissivity insensitive temperature control throughout the processing cycle, regardless of the processing ambient -- significantly enhancing process repeatability and yield.

This results in temperature uniformity better than 1 percent and repeatability of less than 1 percent for thin oxide applications. Furthermore, the system's production-proven platform provides the industry's highest reliability rating according to the recent VLSI Research customer satisfaction survey, with mean-time-to-failure exceeding 400 hours.

With a dramatically smaller footprint than traditional vertical furnaces and competitive steam-capable RTP systems, STEAMpulse can further lower chipmakers' COO by minimizing the use of costly cleanroom space.

AG Associates shipped its first STEAMpulse system to a large Japanese semiconductor manufacturer in December 1997. In addition, the company recently received an order from a major chipmaker for two STEAMpulse systems to be used for 0.25 micron and below R&D applications, including advanced dielectrics, selective oxidation and shallow junction formation.

AG Associates will be featuring STEAMpulse, along with other leading-edge RTP systems from its suite of mix-and-match RTP solutions, at its booth No. 617 during SEMICON West 98, to be held July 13-15 at Moscone Center in San Francisco.

AG Associates is a leading supplier of rapid thermal processing (RTP) equipment to the worldwide semiconductor industry. Founded in 1981, AG Associates is headquartered in San Jose, Calif. and maintains customer service and support centers in the United States, Europe and Far East to support its global customer base. The company's common stock trades on the Nasdaq Stock Market under the symbol AGAI. For more information on the company, visit AG Associates at: http//www.agassociates.com on the World Wide Web.

    CONTACT:  AG Associates Inc.
               Anita Gat, 408/935-2002
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