SAFC Expands Specialty Chemical Business
Laura Peters, Editor-in-Chief -- Semiconductor International, 4/30/2008 8:09:00 AM
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Wicks stated that SAFC got its start in bulk chemicals. “In the year 2000, we were known as the catalog company.” Since then, the company has expanded into the specialty chemicals, including functional additives for photoresists, antireflective coatings, CMP slurries, precursors for etch, and materials for encapsulation, assembly and packaging. Most recently, they’ve developed hafnium and lanthanum precursors for ALD and materials for phase-change memory, as well as optoelectronic materials. The company’s five-year roadmap (Fig. 2) shows the roll-out of precursors for depositing aluminum-, lanthanum-, zirconium- and hafnium-based dielectrics, ferroelectric, magnetic and phase-change memory materials, tantalum, ruthenium and titanium compounds, tungsten and copper metals and low-k dielectrics. Geoff Irvine, director of commercial development and marketing, commented on the economic impact of some materials. “I think some people are going to be shocked when they see the price of ruthenium. It’s likely that recycling will become necessary for this material.”
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Peter Heys, SAFC Hitech’s group R&D director, discussed the issue of silane shortage in the supply chain. He said the combination of increased demand from the photovoltaics industry, combined with the high capital cost of a silane plant (in excess of $1B), and the time to ramp a new facility has led to supply chain issues for this gas. “The pace of change is accelerating, and several companies are getting away from the business of manufacturing and delivering toxic or pyrophoric materials,” Irvine said.
The search for the ideal hafnium precursor started out with chemists surveying some 50 compounds. In some cases, materials suppliers worked directly with the device manufacturers. In other cases, equipment suppliers were working with the materials suppliers and end customers in testing the materials. Sometimes, the materials suppliers owned the intellectual property (IP); in other cases, the equipment supplier owned the IP.
“We’ve seen several companies exit the high-tech materials business due to the high investment required, lower volumes required, and the margin buffer needed to ride out until you get the return on investment,” Irvine said.
SAFC acquired Epichem in February 2007, which gave the company the ability to develop processes and scale up from pilot production quantities to commercial-level volumes. Through collaborative partnerships and an integrated approach to R&D, the company hopes to provide a cradle-to-grave approach to specialty chemical manufacturing.
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