From Wafer Cleaning to the Controlled Engineering of Wettability and Interface Chemistry in Next-Generation Semiconductor Integration
The semiconductor industry is undergoing a fundamental transformation. As advanced packaging concepts such as chiplets, 2.5D/3D integration, HBM and hybrid bonding increase integration density and material complexity, critical challenges are shifting from device fabrication toward surfaces and interfaces.
Contamination, copper oxides, adhesion and wettability increasingly affect process stability and package reliability. As a result, clean surfaces alone are no longer sufficient. The ability to control surface chemistry, surface energy and interface formation is becoming a key success factor in next-generation semiconductor integration.
This PlasmaTalk explores how plasma technologies are evolving from surface cleaning tools into enablers of Surface and Interface Engineering.
AURORA-Plasma: From Surface Cleaning to Surface and Interface Engineering
With AURORA-Plasma, Plasmatreat offers low-pressure plasma technology for removing contamination, reducing oxide layers and activating surfaces for downstream packaging processes. AURORA-Plasma provides controlled and reproducible treatment of semiconductor and packaging surfaces.
Beyond cleaning, plasma enables the targeted control of surface chemistry, surface energy and wettability. This allows materials to be guided more precisely, supports critical packaging processes and opens new possibilities for selective metallization and local surface functionalization. Plasma is evolving from a pre-treatment process into a tool for Surface and Interface Engineering.
Openair-Plasma®: Complementary Solutions for Semiconductor Manufacturing
While AURORA-Plasma focuses on highly controlled low-pressure processes, Openair-Plasma® provides complementary capabilities at atmospheric pressure. These technologies support surface activation and adhesion improvement in upstream and downstream manufacturing steps where inline capability and high throughput are essential. Openair-Plasma® is Plasmatreat's atmospheric plasma technology platform for integrating plasma treatment into semiconductor manufacturing environments.
Within advanced packaging applications, Openair-Plasma® complements low-pressure plasma by enabling surface treatment outside the vacuum chamber and supporting process integration across the manufacturing chain.
Outlook
The future of advanced packaging will not be defined by surface cleanliness alone. Success will increasingly depend on the ability to control surfaces and interfaces. Plasma-enabled Surface and Interface Engineering offers new opportunities to address challenges in hybrid bonding, chiplet architectures, HBM systems and future semiconductor integration concepts.
After this PlasmaTalk, you will be able to:
- Assess why surfaces and interfaces are becoming critical bottlenecks in advanced packaging applications.
- Understand how contamination, copper oxides, adhesion and wettability influence process stability and package reliability.
- Evaluate the role of Surface and Interface Engineering in next-generation semiconductor integration.
- Identify how AURORA-Plasma can support process control beyond conventional surface cleaning.
- Differentiate between low-pressure and atmospheric plasma approaches and understand where AURORA-Plasma and Openair-Plasma® fit within semiconductor manufacturing processes.
Practical insights and live Q&A
The 40- to 60-minute PlasmaTalk will provide practical insights into plasma surface treatment for medical applications, followed by a live Q&A session.
Do you have specific questions about an application, material or existing production process? Please send them in advance to academy@plasmatreat.com.
