KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 1 (Bernama) -- ERS electronic, a provider of thermal management solutions for semiconductor manufacturing, has introduced a fully automated panel-level packaging (PLP) system for 310×310 mm substrates, integrating temporary carrier bonding, debonding and detaping on a single platform.
“Our new machine reflects our commitment to solving real manufacturing challenges,” said ERS electronic chief executive officer, Laurent Giai-Miniet in a statement.
He added that integrating three traditionally separate process steps into one automated platform enables customers to streamline production, improve process consistency and achieve higher yield and throughput.
The system operates at 13 panels per hour and eliminates inter-tool transfers across three thermally critical process steps. The first unit has been delivered to a leading semiconductor manufacturer for integration into its panel production line.
Developed and manufactured at ERS electronic’s Advanced Packaging facility in Barbing, Germany, the machine combines the company’s 55 years of thermal management expertise with more than 30 years of in-house machine-building capability, following ERS's 2024 integration of a semiconductor specialist equipment engineering team.
ERS has been an early adopter of panel-level packaging, having shipped its first commercial panel-level tool to Fraunhofer IZM in Berlin in 2018. The 310×310 mm panel format is gaining traction because it offers significantly greater substrate area utilisation compared with 300 mm circular wafers.
According to Yole Group, the panel-level packaging market is projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of more than 40 per cent over the next five years. Dual-carrier bonding and debonding workflows are also becoming increasingly important for backside processing in 3D IC, high-bandwidth memory (HBM) and 2.5D IC packaging.
In dual-carrier processes, bonding and debonding typically require separate machines positioned at different points on the fab floor. Moving panels between tools adds handling steps and transit time while increasing the risk of substrate damage.
ERS said its integrated platform consolidates all three process steps within one system, allowing panels to move between process modules rather than between machines, reducing handling time and risk without requiring changes to the surrounding fab layout.
-- BERNAMA