Are there more aluminum nitride ceramic parts or aluminum oxide ceramic parts in semiconductor equipment?

In semiconductor equipment manufacturing, ceramic parts play a key role due to their high hardness, high insulation, corrosion resistance, and other characteristics. Among them, aluminum nitride ceramics and aluminum oxide ceramics are commonly used materials, but there are differences in their application scale. From the current overall market situation, the usage of aluminum oxide ceramic parts is higher than that of aluminum nitride ceramic parts.

Alumina ceramics have relatively lower costs and more mature preparation processes. It has the characteristics of high hardness, high mechanical strength, and good electrical insulation, which can meet various needs of semiconductor equipment. Aluminum oxide ceramics can be seen in many components of semiconductor equipment. In etching equipment, alumina is often used as a protective material for etching chambers and internal components, playing a role in corrosion resistance and wear resistance; Aluminum oxide ceramics are also commonly used in gas nozzles, gas distribution disks, and fixing rings for fixed wafers in plasma equipment. Due to their stable performance, they can ensure uniform gas distribution inside the equipment, stable wafer fixation, and ensure the accuracy of the etching process.

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Although aluminum nitride ceramics have ultra-high thermal conductivity (thermal conductivity can reach 170-220W/(m · K), which is about 7-10 times that of aluminum oxide ceramics), low thermal expansion coefficient, high insulation and other advantages, they are indispensable in specific fields, such as high-power semiconductor modules with extremely high heat dissipation requirements (such as IGBT, SiC/GaN device packaging) and high-frequency circuits (such as microwave and RF fields). However, its preparation is difficult and the cost remains high, which limits its widespread use in semiconductor devices. It is only applied to key components with extremely demanding performance requirements and low cost sensitivity, such as electrostatic suction cups (utilizing their high temperature resistance and plasma erosion resistance) and high-purity components in etching reaction chambers (resisting fluorine based gas corrosion and extending equipment life).

Alumina ceramics, with their cost and process advantages, are more widely used in semiconductor equipment and have a larger number of parts; Aluminum nitride ceramics play a key role in specific high-end components due to their unique properties. With the development of technology and cost reduction, the application of aluminum nitride ceramic parts is expected to increase in the future. Jundro Ceramics, as a manufacturer specializing in precision five axis machining of special ceramics and special glass, is committed to providing high-quality material solutions for semiconductor component manufacturing.