How SEMES Tripled Etching Chamber Lifetimes with Ultra-Pure Sintered Alumina Plates

SEMES, a semiconductor equipment OEM in South Korea faced recurring thermal warping and particle contamination issues with metal heater plates used in plasma etching chambers. Under repeated high-temperature cycles (400-900 °C), the metal plates deformed, shed micro-particles, and caused process instability-leading to wafer defects and costly chamber downtime. To solve this, the company transitioned to Sintered Alumina Plates, high-purity (>99.5%) Al2O3 ceramic substrates produced through isostatic pressing, high-temperature sintering (>1,600 °C), and precision surface grinding. These plates offer exceptional dimensional stability, chemical inertness, high dielectric strength, and excellent thermal shock resistance. After integration, chamber particle counts dropped dramatically, thermal uniformity improved, and heater lifetime increased by more than 3×. The switch also enabled tighter etching tolerances for advanced logic and memory nodes. Sintered alumina plates are now widely used in wafer handling systems, CVD/ALD equipment, diffusion furnaces, laser platforms, and high-voltage electrical assemblies requiring stable, high-purity insulating substrates.

https://www.qyresearch.com/reports/5487621/sintered-alumina-plate

Core market data:

Global market size: USD 1.4 billion
CAGR (2024-2030): 6.1%
Average price: USD 45 per piece
Annual production: 62 million pieces
Gross margin: 36%
Production capacity: 78 million pieces

List of Main players:

CoorsTek (USA)
LSP Industrial Ceramics (USA)
Advanced Ceramic Materials (USA)
Edgetech Industries (USA)
Applied Ceramics (USA)
Aremco Products (USA)
Saint-Gobain (France)
Final Advanced Materials (France)
Morgan Advanced Materials (UK)
CeramTec (Germany)
IPS Ceramics (UK)
Sunrock Ceramics (USA)
Kyocera Corporation (Japan)
Honsin Ceramics (Belgium)
Xiamen Innovacera (China)
Xiamen Unipretec (China)
Mascera Technology (China)
Actech Precision Ceramics (Hong Kong)
MKube Enterprise (India)
Carborundum Universal (India)

1. By Alumina Purity

92% Alumina Plate
95% Alumina Plate
96% Alumina Plate
99% Alumina Plate

2. By Plate Type

Thin Alumina Plate (Below 2 mm)
Medium Alumina Plate (3-10 mm)
Thick Alumina Plate (Above 10 mm)

3. By Electrical Grade

Fine-grain (Below 2 μm)
Medium-grain (2-10 μm)
Coarse-grain (Above 10 μm)

4. By Application

Semiconductor & Electronic
Industrial Machinery
Medical Equipment
Automotive
Defense & Aerospace

Case study for bidding

Time: December 2023
Supplier: CeramTec GmbH
Buyer: Applied Materials (U.S.)
Product: 99.5% Ultra-High-Purity Sintered Alumina Plates (Polished, Semiconductor Grade)
Quantity: 3.2 million pieces
Contract Value: USD 142 million
Delivery Timeline: November 2024

Detailed Application Scenario

Applied Materials utilized CeramTec's ultra-high-purity sintered alumina plates in wafer handling fixtures and dielectric components within semiconductor etching and deposition chambers. The 99.5% alumina grade provided exceptional thermal shock resistance, high dielectric strength, and extremely low particle generation-critical for maintaining clean processing environments at nanometer-scale device fabrication.

Polished surfaces minimized contamination and friction, enabling smooth wafer transport and reducing defect rates. The plates withstood repeated plasma exposure, corrosive gases, and temperatures above 1,000°C without degradation or warping.

Applied Materials chose these plates for their material purity, dimensional accuracy, and long operational life, outperforming quartz and glass ceramics under aggressive semiconductor process conditions. The project highlighted the importance of sintered alumina plates in ensuring process stability, cleanliness, and performance in advanced chip manufacturing.

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