Measurement of airborne concentrations and surface arrival rates of organic contaminants in clean rooms

Both airborne concentrations and surface arrival rates of organic vapors have been measured in several manufacturing locations. The level of organic contamination was found to be > 100 μg/m3 at all sampling locations. The surface arrival rate of these gas phase species is, on a mass basis, several orders of magnitude higher than the particulate surface arrival rates. Both internal and external sources contribute to the total hydrocarbon abundance, although several significant sources within the clean room were detected. Clearly, if successful manufacture of integrated circuits requires Class 10 or better environments with respect to airborne particles, then the potential effect of organic vapors and other gas phase contamination on yield and reliability needs further investigation