News

1 December 2008

 

Aixtron orders Edwards GaN exhaust treatment systems for R&D lab

Deposition equipment maker Aixtron AG of Aachen, Germany has expanded its installed base of exhaust-gas treatment systems from Edwards of Crawley, West Sussex, UK with the purchase of two GaNcat (gallium nitride catalyst) abatement systems, representing a significant expansion in Aixtron’s abatement capacity. Aixtron will use the systems in its R&D laboratory to handle exhaust generated by the metal-organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) process.

“The GaNcat system is an ideal solution for MOCVD exhaust management,” claims Dr Paul Rawlings, general manager of Edwards’ Exhaust Management Business. “We are particularly encouraged by Aixtron’s adoption of the system and the potential it brings, as Aixtron’s tools proliferate in the market.”

The GaNcat system’s unique dry chemical technology significantly reduces operating costs by eliminating the need for fuel and water in the abatement process, Edwards says. The system treats the ammonia flows present in the exhausts of nitride-based MOCVD processes by decomposing the gas into its constituent elements, nitrogen and hydrogen, using a heated dry cartridge technology. The cartridge removes pyrophoric metal-organic gases, including trimethyl gallium (TMG), trimethylindium (TMI) and trimethylaluminium (TMA), without adding external traps by incorporating a special pre-cleaning stage that converts these compounds into stable inorganic solids.

Each GaNcat cartridge has a capacity to treat up to 20slm (standard liters per minute) of ammonia, and multiple cartridges can be configured in parallel to accommodate any level of gas flow. A spare cartridge can be included, ready to be brought on-line to replace a cartridge that has reached its full capacity, and an optional monitoring system can check the outlet of each individual cartridge to monitor its performance and indicate when change-over is required. The GaNcat system features Edwards’ proven Gas Reactor Column technology, which has an installed-base of nearly 3000 units worldwide.

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