SAN LUIS OBISPO, CALIFORNIA: Global semiconductor technology and equipment firm, Revasum Inc. (ASX: RVS) announced the sale of a second 7AF-HMG grinder to Halo Industries, a leading silicon carbide substrate manufacturing technology customer in Santa Clara, CA.

This latest sale reinforces the 7AF-HMG grinder’s position as the most flexible grinding platform available to support silicon carbide (SiC) substrate manufacturing and subsequent fabrication of devices such as SiC-based metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistor (MOSFET).

These devices are enabling the current and next generation of electric vehicle charging systems as well as solar/wind power electronics and other industrial high voltage applications.

With the capability to efficiently remove SiC after the wafer has been cut from its boule, the 7AF-HMG has industry-leading flexibility to enable substrate manufacturing with shallower sub-surface damage and better surface roughness (RA) to allow for minimal chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) at the next stage.

Down the line, after device fabrication, the 7AF-HMG can also be used for removing excess material on the back of the wafer for device packaging.

Commenting on the developing partnership with this customer, Chris Sloan, Revasum’s Vice President of Worldwide Sales and Marketing said: “We are delighted to grow our relationship with Halo Industries. They are an innovative and valued customer reshaping how silicon carbide wafers are manufactured. The 7AF-HMG, equipped with the ‘recipe-controlled head angle’ (RCHA) feature, continues to provide the most flexible grinding platform for silicon carbide and other hard materials.”

Luke Asperger, Process Engineering Manager at Halo Industries and a member of the founding team said: “The detailed process data and flexible recipe setup we get from the 7AF-HMG and its RCHA capability have enabled us to really dial-in our grinding process in order to provide the best-possible wafer quality to customers at a low consumable cost. We’re quite excited to add a second tool to our line and continue working with the Revasum team.”

Halo Industries uses proprietary laser-based hardware and processing technology to deliver industry-best SiC wafer-per-millimeter yield while eliminating high material stress and kerf loss caused by more traditional wafering methods.