Spirox and Southport Launch Industry-first Non-Destructive SiC Defect Inspection System: Saving Significant Costs and Increasing Output

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HSINCHU, Nov. 28, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Spirox Corporation (TWSE: 3055) and its subsidiary, Southport Corporation, launch the industry-first JadeSiC-NK non-destructive defect inspection system. JadeSiC-NK employs state-of-the-art non-linear optical technology for whole-wafer scanning of SiC substrates to identify killer defects. It substitutes the current high-cost, destructive KOH (potassium hydroxide) etching method, leading to increased production yields and process improvement. Calculating based on the need to etch two substrates for each SiC ingot in the KOH process, JadeSiC-NK can save approximately $7.68 million in annual costs incurred due to etching losses for a substrate manufacturer with 100 crystal growth furnaces.

The quality of substrate materials determines the reliability and performance of SiC chips. However, the number of defects and distributions of the substrate crystal can only be inspected by sampling with mathematic interpolation when using the destructive KOH etching method. If SiC substrate manufacturers can implement non-destructive inspection of materials in the manufacturing process, it will not only reduce the usage of harmful chemical solutions associated with KOH etching but also allows for the early detection of defects.

General Manager of Southport, Jay Wang, says "Traditional optical technologies can only detect surface non-crystalline defects. JadeSiC-NK allows for a whole-wafer surface scan to a specific depth to efficiently identify killer defects (BPD, TSD, MicroPipe, Stacking Fault). In comparison to KOH etching method, JadeSiC-NK can significantly save inspection time and substrate costs. Furthermore, JadeSiC-NK enables a 100% wafer inspection for the same ingot, facilitating detailed ingot analysis and batch traceability analysis which will assist customers in process and yield optimization.

Dr. Hao-Chung Kuo, Chair Professor of the Department of Optoelectronic Engineering at Taiwan NYCU, says "Applying non-linear optical technology, JadeSiC-NK is expected to break through the current industry's technical bottlenecks in process improvement. It is hoped that JadeSiC-NK establishes industry standards for SiC substrate inspection, becoming a leading brand in the industry for non-linear optical technology and lead continuous innovation and breakthroughs in field applications."

CEO of Spirox, Paul Yang, says "Spirox has been continuously enlarging its investment to develop solutions to fulfill customer needs. With Southport, Spirox expands our product portfolio from semiconductor testing equipment to optical inspection. The initial focus is on the highly promising defect inspection of compound semiconductor materials. Besides applying non-linear optical technology in the newly launched JadeSiC-NK, Spirox plans to accelerate the commercialization of advanced optical inspection technologies in areas such as MicroLED, metamaterial, silicon photonics, etc., in the future."

Ken Tai, Chairman of Taiwan Photonics Industry & Technology Development Association, says "It's a great pleasure to see two Taiwanese companies creating synergy through a mutually beneficial collaboration, generating tremendous value for the industry. JadeSiC-NK represents a groundbreaking technological breakthrough. It's not only a revolutionary product for the booming global compound semiconductor industry, capable of significantly reducing costs and increasing production capacity, but also showcases Taiwan's technological leadership with Spirox and Southport as representatives."

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