New ‘Grade 6’ Productivity Upgrade Option Available for Canon FPA 6300ES6a KrF Scanners

MELVILLE, N.Y., December 22, 2016 – Canon U.S.A., Inc., a leader in digital imaging, has announced that its parent company, Canon Inc., has commenced sales of a new “Grade 6” productivity upgrade option for its FPA‑6300ES6a KrF semiconductor lithography equipment. With the spread of the Internet-of-Things, big data and Artificial Intelligence technology, the demand for semiconductor devices such as large-volume memory and sensors is expected to grow in order to keep up with ever-increasing volumes of data. Consequently, the demand for semiconductor lithography equipment that offers increased levels of productivity is also growing.
Since the launch of the FPA‑6300ES6a KrF scanner in April 2012, Canon has continuously developed productivity-enhancing options, available as upgrades for existing units that have earned praise and a reputation of high-reliability from the market. When equipped with the newly available Grade 6 productivity upgrade option, the FPA‑6300ES6a reaches even higher levels of productivity to meet user needs.
By increasing stage speed and optimizing control processes, the new Grade 6 productivity upgrade option reduces exposure process time and achieves the industry’s highest-level throughput rate, 255 wafers per hour, to respond to the needs of chip manufacturers seeking reduced cost of ownership. Additionally, by simply changing the process mode, the equipment can balance productivity and overlay performance levels to support chip manufacturing processes that require a variety of overlay accuracies.
The upgraded models inherit the same high reputation and reliability of the currently available FPA‑6300ES6a, to facilitate a smooth upgrade for models currently in operation. Additionally, downtime resulting from the upgrade process has been reduced, minimizing impact on production schedules.
For more information on Canon U.S.A. and its industrial products, please visit www.usa.canon.com.