The excimer laser industry has relied on our lithography gases for over twenty years. They were used in the development of the earliest lasers for lithography and are now the most widely used excimer gases for DUV photolithography in the semiconductor industry.
Lasers in thousands of the world's wafer steppers and scanners use our advanced lithography gases and gas mixtures.
Linde’s customers include world’s leading manufacturers of lasers, steppers, and scanners as well as many of the world's largest semiconductor manufacturers. They know they can rely on the highest quality laser gases, coupled with an in-depth knowledge of critical gas technologies.
Linde’s customers also benefit from the development of new technologies and innovations driven by our Centers of Excellence such as the one for lithography gases in Alpha, New Jersey. Key areas of expertise include:
- Full Spectrum - Linde is the market leader in the manufacture and purification of all raw materials necessary for photolithography.
- Cylinder expertise - Linde has special expertise based on our proprietary technologies for the handling and treatment of cylinders containing both inert and halogen (F2) gases.
- Mixing capabilities - Linde has pioneered highly specific mixing technologies to produce fully homogeneous multi-component mixtures.
- Analytical technologies - Linde has developed proprietary analytical technologies that exceed industry standards; all SPECTRA lithography cylinders are supplied with a Certificate of Analysis.
Rare gas and halogen gas mixtures for excimer lasers
Linde is fully compatible in supporting the gas mixtures required for the entire spectrum of excimer lasers used in electronics production.
- XeCl at 308 nm
- KrF at 248 nm
- ArF at 193 nm
Additionally, Linde supports many of the excimer lasers used in the development and non-electronic applications.
Ultra-high purity carbon dioxide for immersion lithography
Immersion lithography has greatly extended the feature shrink possible with 193nm DUV steppers. Linde’s Ultra-High Purity Carbon Dioxide (UHP CO2) enables this process by displacing some of the Nitrogen and other gases in the immersion water layer, which may lead to defective bubbles. Linde UHP CO2 is available in bulk in most regions with optional on-site purification.