Can inkjet technology revolutionise semiconductor manufacturing?

The partnership combines the core competencies of both companies to enable digital printing solutions for mass production in the electronics industry for the first time.

Heraeus Printed Electronics is a provider of a turnkey solution for digital inkjet printing on electronic components, offering metallic inks, deep process knowledge and printing systems. Its Prexonics technology enables selective printing on different substrates for various applications such as shielding against electromagnetic interference (EMI), printing of conductive structures and metallisation for heat dissipation.

"This collaboration represents the missing piece in the mosaic of scaling to mass production for us, having recently passed the important milestone of fulfilling the broad functional requirements of the semiconductor industry with our ground-breaking technology," says Franz Vollmann, Head of Heraeus Printed Electronics, in a press release. "By combining our core expertise in metallic specialty inks and digital printing processes with the scaling competence of our strong partner SUSS MicroTec, we are setting a new industry standard for mass production in the semiconductor market."

SUSS MicroTec, known for its advanced equipment and process solutions for semiconductor manufacturing, brings its leading-edge automation platform and industrial inkjet production capabilities to the table. Their high-volume production equipment, JETx, designed to integrate various printhead and substrate technologies, expands the application potential of Heraeus' digital printing technology. 

"The integration of Heraeus' breakthrough ink technology and digital printing capabilities with our robust automation platforms is a testimonial to our pursuit of excellence and innovation. We are confident that our combined efforts will result in unprecedented production efficiencies and costs in line with current and future market expectations," adds Dr. Robert Wanninger, Senior Vice President Advanced Backend Solutions of SUSS MicroTec.

The scope of the collaboration calls for the development of equipment that integrates Heraeus' digital printing technology, image processing software and advanced ink technology into SUSS MicroTec's automation and JETx platform. The end goal is a state-of-the-art system with a competitive total cost of ownership that not only sets new standards in the industry, but also aligns with Heraeus and SUSS MicroTec's vision of cost and performance optimisation. 

The product of this partnership looks to redefine the boundaries of what is possible and push forward into a future where technology serves as the cornerstone for innovation and growth.