Torrey Pines Scientific, Inc., of Carlsbad, California, has announced the WaferPlate™ Programmable Bake Plate, a fully programmable digital hot plate designed specifically for baking silicon wafers. The company says the unit delivers heating uniformity of better than 1% across the surface over a range from room temperature to 350°C, and is suited to 12-inch (304.8 mm) and smaller wafers.

Plate design and performance

The WaferPlate Model HP90 has a large circular 13.875-inch (352.4 mm) milled-flat aluminium plate. Temperature uniformity is better than 1% from the middle of the plate surface to within 0.75 inches of the sides, which the company notes makes the unit suitable for 12-inch or smaller wafers. Further specifications include:

• readable and settable to 1°C, with accuracy of 1% of setting and temperature stability of ±1°C
• calibration to 0.1°C
• 1500 W heater power
• a temperature indicator lighting ring around the base of the chassis, which changes from blue (no target temperature) to yellow (heating below 50°C) to red (heating above 50°C) and flashes until the temperature is stable within ±0.2°C
• a built-in countdown timer with audible alarm and settable auto-off

In manual operation, the user sets a target temperature and the unit goes to and holds it to within ±1°C.

Programmable operation

In programmable mode, routines can be stored in memory for instant recall and run automatically, and identically, each time. Programmes can store multiple temperatures, temperature ramp rates and dwell times, and can be simple or complex as required. The remote controller supplied with the unit stores five individual programmes of up to ten steps each, and each programme can be set to repeat automatically from 1 to 98 times, or indefinitely. Temperatures can be ramped up or down in 1°C/hour increments.

Programmes can also be written on a PC and run by that PC, or the unit can be controlled from a PC or industrial controller, through the RS232 I/O port on the rear of the heater, using the command set provided. The remote controller gives full access to all parameters or data.

The unit carries a 12-month warranty. UL, CSA and CE approvals are pending.

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