Why is Semiconductor industry UPS solutions Better?

Recent events have highlighted just how critical the semiconductor industry has become with shortages spurring a global investment boom in chip foundry and manufacturing capacity.

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The world’s reliance on microchips is growing as use expands beyond computers and mobile phones to every industrial and consumer product from transport to health to edge and IoT.

The production of these extremely sensitive devices requires high quality power, which cannot be achieved with electrical utility alone. Power disturbances like voltage sags, surges or complete outages can be devastating to the semiconductor industry, leading to costly production downtime, material scrap, equipment damage and ultimately profit lost.

Any semiconductor shortage could affect millions of people and businesses worldwide. In the semiconductor industry had grown to $341 billion but as a result of COVID 19 pandemic and the heightened dependency on digital infrastructure, by the global semiconductor market is estimated to top $500 billion in value.

Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger recently announced the company is seeking to build a semiconductor factory in Europe at a cost of $10 billion.

Gelsinger said “While the industry has taken steps to address near term constraints it could still take a couple of years for the ecosystem to address shortages of foundry capacity, substrates and components. We plan to expand to other locations in the US and Europe, ensuring a sustainable and secure semiconductor supply chain for the world.”

Demand is expected to increase with different countries vying for control. As fears of China overtaking the US in critical technology supremacy US President Joe Biden has proposed a $2 trillion infrastructure development program with $50 billion dedicated towards the semiconductor industry.

Reliable, Sustainable Power back up for chip manufacture

With so many critical operations and complex processes, semiconductor facilities have made it a priority to invest in stable and dependable power sources.

For more than two decades Active Power has been supplying the semiconductor industry with stable, reliable, sustainable Flywheel UPS back up solutions at scale. The Active Power White Paper Integrated Flywheel UPS for Semiconductor Applications provides technical and operational analysis of Flywheel UPS technology use in chip manufacturing facilities.

All chip making fabrication plant operators know that purely relying on the incoming power source is no longer a viable option. There have been historical attempts at solving electrical problems with distributed or localized solutions, such as placing specialized voltage stabilizing equipment in the electrical system or by placing energy storage devices on the DC bus of motor controllers. Any power disturbance may be catastrophic to a wafer production line and potentially cause an entire batch to be scrapped. Some of the major concerns are voltage sags, surges, harmonic distortion and low power factor.

Active Power’s CleanSource® UPS and CleanSource HD UPS feature a true parallel online topology enabled by the flywheel, addressing all types of power quality issues.

The integration of flywheel energy storage into UPS systems for semiconductor manufacturing facilities addresses the central concerns of this critical industry.

With nearly 5,000 flywheels deployed worldwide, Active Power has saved mission critical operations an estimated $250 million in total costs due to the high efficiency and permanent energy storage of our Clean Source UPS and has reduced global carbon emissions by approximately 850,000 metric tons.

Semiconductor manufacturing involves hundreds of steps. These take place on a variety of tools: saws, furnaces, photolithographic steppers, testers, and other specialized equipment. Some of this gear requires little electricity, an example being a track transfer system that moves wafers from one spot to another.

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Other tools demand substantial electrical power, and those needs are growing as process technology evolves. For instance, the next generation of steppers currently being rolled out use EUV, or extreme ultraviolet, lithography. They may require 10 times the power of the previous technology, in part because of a conversion efficiency of only a few percent of an infrared pump laser into the desired extreme ultraviolet output.

Fit-for-purpose approach

So, there is no one-size-fits-all solution that will work to ensure power availability and quality. Instead, what’s needed is a fit-for-purpose approach. That is, the power solution should be customized as needed for a specific task.

Let’s look at three examples:

• A cleanroom process system
• Wafer inspection systems
• Chemical supply, control systems and valves

The power solutions for all three of these systems differ. Consider, for instance, a common factor: an uninterruptible power supply (UPS). A UPS ensures that a temporary loss of power and transient power glitches don’t cause systems to fail or otherwise not function properly. That improves manufacturing efficiency, reduces scrap and increases product quality.

Assessing UPS solutions

But, uninterruptible power supplies vary in terms of capacity and how they react to a power failure or glitch. Capacity must be greater for systems that consume more power or if the UPS is intended to run the system for an extended period. As for a power glitch, an example of that is a voltage sag, which can happen to a circuit when a heavy load switches on.

Applying fit-for-purpose principals to the three different systems results in sizing the UPS appropriately for the applications. The chemical supply control setup, for example, might need a single- and three-phase solution, with a 1-200 kVA UPS. In contrast, air handling might have a three-phase UPS with a capacity as much as 500 kVA and a wafer inspection system would be backed up by a UPS capable of supplying the power needed for the specific tool.

Of course, implementing a fit-for-purpose approach can also lead to a centralized UPS solution. As in the cases mentioned above, it will need to be appropriately sized and configured. The centralized solution can be more cost effective than the decentralized approach due to the efficiencies realized by aggregating the power needs of all protected equipment together. The choice of a decentralized or centralized solution will depend upon the situation.

Regarding this, the trade association SEMI (Semiconductor Equipment and Materials International) recognized the need for the better power quality when it approved SEMI F47, a standard for semiconductor tools voltage sag immunity. The standard specifies acceptable equipment performance in the event of a temporary voltage sag. The idea is to prevent problems, such as wafers being yanked out of a hot furnace and warping to the point of being scrap as a result or an ion implanter going out of calibration and needing time-consuming maintenance

The standard, however, does not cover utilities, like ventilation or exhaust fans, or other infrastructure, like network connections or fire and security systems. Failure of such systems can cause problems. An exhaust failure, for example, can make a production facility hazardous to workers as toxic fumes build up on the plant floor.

In addition to a UPS, another common part of customized power solutions are remote monitoring and system management. This capability allows collection of power data, and this information can then be analyzed to spot dangerous power trends and, therefore, problems before they develop.

Such fit-for-purpose solutions can include a complete electrical system. Together with power monitoring and a resilient architecture, this can improve sub-function operation, enable optimum use of energy, and, in our experience, save up to 30 percent on operating energy costs. Such a solution saves money in another way as well because it sizes the equipment appropriately, thereby eliminating the waste of, for example, too large a capacity UPS.

A customized solution will need to be carefully designed. For instance, the monitoring scheme, such as the frequency and type of data collected, will vary by application. Again, there is not a single approach that works best in all situations. Therefore, the best approach is for facilities and manufacturing teams to work closely, and ideally partner, with a knowledgeable power solutions vendor.

Finding and implementing the right power solution can save energy, protect your equipment and people and reduce waste in multiple ways. For semiconductor manufacturing, which must continually cut costs, that flexibility is important, as is the potential for critical cost savings. Learn more about specific critical power solutions that can optimize operations,

Access semiconductor fabrication efficiency eGuide

To learn more about how semiconductor manufacturing operations can both improve uptime and electrical efficiency, download this complimentary eGuide, “Innovative Power Solutions for Semiconductor Fabrication Efficiency.”

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