Hitachi Debuts "Bridge Tool" Etcher

Electronic News, March 15, 1999 by Jeff Dorsch

The Semiconductor Equipment group of Hitachi America Ltd., Carrollton, Texas, introduced a new version of the M700 ECR etcher that serves as a "bridge tool" - the system can be initially installed for processing 200-millimeter wafers and later retrofitted for 300mm wafer processing. Hitachi America, a subsidiary of Japan's Hitachi Ltd., said a 200mm open cassette system could be retrofitted in three to four days to be reconfigured as a 300mm FOUP-compatible system.

The retrofit kit is priced at approximately 8 percent of the original tool's price. The M700 ECR etcher has completed and passed the required International 300mm Initiative (I300I) testing protocols for metal and polysilicon etch processes, according to Hitachi America. It has also undergone "extensive testing" at Selete in Japan.