Lithography
IMS offers a comprehensive suite of advanced lithography tools for micro- and nanofabrication, including direct-write systems like the Elionix ELS-G100 e-beam lithography and Heidelberg MLA series maskless aligners, as well as traditional mask aligners like the SUSS MA6/MA8. These tools support high-resolution patterning for applications in semiconductors, quantum devices, MEMS, and photonics.
Etching
The IMS cleanroom offers a broad range of etching capabilities including DRIE/Bosch, ICP, RIE, and XeF₂ etching. With advanced tools like the KLA SPTS Rapier, STS Pegasus, Plasma-Therm Versaline, and Xactix XeF₂ Etcher, users can achieve high-aspect ratio silicon etching, precise dielectric and III-V material patterning, and isotropic release etching. These systems support applications from MEMS and photonics to power electronics and advanced packaging.
Atomic Layer Deposition
The IMS cleanroom houses multiple state-of-the-art atomic layer deposition (ALD) systems—including Cambridge Fiji, Veeco Fiji G2, Kurt J. Lesker ALD150LX, and Oxford FlexAL—offering both thermal and plasma-enhanced deposition modes. These tools support high-precision, conformal film deposition for oxides, nitrides, and metals on substrates up to 200 mm, with process temperatures ranging from room temperature to 600°C.
Physical Vapor Deposition
Physical Vapor Deposition (PVD) at Georgia Tech’s IMS Micro/Nano Fabrication Facility includes a wide array of e-beam evaporators, filament evaporators, and RF/DC sputtering systems for precise metal, dielectric, nitride, and chalcogenide thin film deposition. With tools supporting co-deposition, multi-source sputtering, high-temperature processing, and advanced material capabilities, IMS enables researchers to develop high-quality, uniform films on substrates up to 12". Ideal for applications in microelectronics, photonics, and advanced materials.
Chemical Vapor Deposition
Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD) tools at IMS enable deposition of a wide range of thin films including oxides, nitrides, a-Si, poly-Si, and advanced materials like graphene and nanowires. The facility includes PECVD, HDPCVD, LPCVD, APCVD, and thermal CVD systems. Tools like the Oxford ICP-PECVD and Plasma-Therm HDPCVD offer high-density films at low temperatures, while the FirstNano furnaces support graphene growth and nanowire synthesis. The Black Magic system is dedicated to carbon nanotube (CNT) growth, supporting single- and double-wall CNTs.
Thermal Furnaces
The IMS Furnace Suite supports a wide range of thermal processing applications including oxidation, diffusion, annealing, LPCVD, sulfurization, graphene growth, and nanowire synthesis. With systems ranging from vacuum ovens to rapid thermal processing (RTP) and high-temperature CVD furnaces, users can process wafers and substrates at higher temperatures under controlled vacuum and atmospheric conditions. These tools enable precise thin-film growth, doping, and thermal treatments essential for semiconductor and nanomaterial research.
Metrology
The IMS Cleanrooms offer a comprehensive suite of metrology tools for high-precision measurement and characterization of thin films, wafers, and nanostructures. These tools support critical processes such as film thickness measurement, surface profiling, stress analysis, and microstructural imaging. Key equipment includes the Hitachi S-4700 FE-SEM with integrated EDS for high-resolution imaging and elemental analysis, optical microscopes, profilometers, ellipsometry, reflectometry, wafer stress analysis, and sheet resistance measurements. These tools enable accurate process control, material characterization, and research innovation across a wide range of micro- and nanofabrication applications.
Wet Processing
The IMS Cleanroom wet processing area features a range of specialized chemical stations designed for wafer cleaning, etching, electroplating, and solvent handling. This includes CMOS-qualified cleaning benches with heated baths for 4-inch and 6-inch wafers, solvent fume hoods for resist processing, acid/base hoods for etching and substrate prep, a multi-metal plating station supporting nickel, copper, and gold deposition on wafers, and a PV clean bench for silicon and solar wafer etching. These tools support contamination-sensitive and high-purity microfabrication processes across various applications.