OPERATING MANUAL 

Purpose

The SCS coater is a tool for depositing thin films of parylene. Parylene is a very versatile material that can be used for sealing, insulation, and various different purposes. You may consult http://www.scscoatings.com/parylene_applications/index.aspx for potential applications.

Deposition of the parylene layer is performed on the substrate near room temperature, by evaporating a dimer, which goes through a series of furnaces at different temperature set points. The resulting thickness of parylene will be a function of the mass of dimer used, and, to a lesser extent, the exposed surface area in the chamber. Achievable layer thickness range from 50 nanometers to 5 micrometers.

Parylene can be conveniently patterned through oxygen RIE, using a positive photoresist mask.

Safety

Never use this tool before having been properly trained by qualified personel.

Only use the red alarm button in cases where user personal security or tool integrity are compromised.

Operation

1- Ensure to have a filled N2 bottle at your disposal.

2- Using the parylene soap solution and clearoom wipes, clean the interior of the chamber and of the bell cover, the rotating trays, and the cold trap finger. Remove as much of the parylene residues as possible, to enable the highest possible coating quality.

3- Place your samples on the rotating trays in the chamber, and put back on the bell cover.

4- Insert the coldtrap finger into its functional housing.

5- Remove the old aluminum "boat" from the vaporizer tube. Weigh the desired quantity of parylene dimer using a new "boat", and place it in the vaporizer tube. DO NOT INSERT THE BOAT DEEPLY OR DAMAGE COULD ENSUE!

6- Set the Vacuum switch to the Vacuum position.

7- When the vacuum level reaches below 50 units, fill-up the coldtrap finger with liquid N2. Place the cap and thermal insulator above. VERIFY FREQUENTLY THAT THE COLDTRAP IS FULL FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE PROCESS! OTHERWISE, PUMP DAMAGE WILL RESULT!

8- When the vacuum level stabilizes below 10 units, set the Furnace and Vaporizer switches to Enable, then press the Process Start/Stop button.

9- The rest of the process is automated, and requires about an hour and a half. MAKE SURE THE COLDTRAP REMAINS FULL! The Process Start/Stop button will blink when the deposition is over. Press the Process Start/Stop button again to finalize.

10- Switch the Furnace and Vaporizer switches to Disable and the Vacuum switch to the Vent position.

11- When venting is complete, quickly remove the bell cover, as well as the coldtrap finger. Place the latter in its holder fitting without any cover to let the excess N2 evaporate. Take your samples, and place back the bell cover. There is no need to remove the used boat, as it may still be quite hot. The next user will take care of it.

12- VERY IMPORTANT: Due to inevitable parylene buildup over time, the deposition rates will vary. It is mandatory to log the following parameters in Coral when disabling the tool: parylene dimer mass, expected thickness, measured thickness. This data will allow all users to calibrate their runs over time and achieve satisfactory results.