Packaging for Shipping Wafers/Chips

Wafer shipping container types

Wafers can be shipped in FOSBs, clamshells, or greensheets.

FOSB

A Front Opening Shipping Box (FOSB) is a commercial-grade purpose-made 300 mm wafer shipping box, with purpose-made padding. Each FOSB can convey from one to 25 wafers among 25 horizontal slots. FOSB packaging includes double vacuum bagging inside the originating fab.

Wafers shipped in a FOSB and double vacuum bagged are certified clean by the foundry, to that foundry's cleanroom standards when they are shipped to AMAG nanometro and while still sealed in original packaging, and said foundry includes tools that are ISO-9001 certified. The cleanliness standard is to the extent that the foundry would, hypothetically, allow further processing of the wafer within same the foundry, as long as the wafer came back in the same unopened/undisturbed packaging as it originally left the foundry (and fully guaranteed as such). This same packaging is how inventory of these ready-to-ship wafers is stored outside fab by AMAG nanometro before in-fab transfer of wafers to shipping FOSBs for customer shipments. If a wafer were, for example, to need extra metrology or overcoating for a special request in an order, as long as the wafer was still in its original undisturbed packaging, the wafer can re-enter the line by the fab's standard line reentry protocols and be processed without issue.

FOSB packaging is highly recommended if a wafer is to be used in any other fab or fab-like environment with any cleanliness standards or concerns about cross-contamination protocols, or in any tool in which contamination level is a concern.

When choosing FOSB as the shipping option, each shipment of a FOSB incurs a "FOSB packaging fee" for the packaging and FOSB container. Each FOSB can carry up to 25 wafers. Orders can be split among multiple FOSBs, with each FOSB incurring the FOSB packaging fee.

Clamshell

Clamshells are single wafer containers. Once a wafer is transferred to a clamshell, that wafer is no longer fab/foundry clean due to minimal particulates acquired during the manual transfer process, which is controlled to be best possible but outside of fab, but without guarantee; a wafer in clamshell will have minimal airborne dust particulates. However wafers in clamshells are still far cleaner than with the greensheet option below. Clamshell containers are robust for shipping, although are not guaranteed against damage/breakage during shipping.

When choosing clamshell as the shipping option, each clamshell container incurs a "clamshell packaging fee". Each clamshell container holds one wafer.

Greensheets

With a greensheet, the wafer is stored in direct contact between a green high quality non-stick polymer sheet, to protect the front side, and a transparent low-stick, easily-to-peel transparent tape over the wafer's back side, taping the wafer to the greensheet. Both sides of the wafer are in direct contact with surfaces which may have particles or contamination. Once a wafer is transferred to a greensheet, that wafer is no longer fab/foundry clean. Also, there is more risk of breakage during shipment than with FOSBs or clamshells, and AMAG will not cover loss due to damage/breakage if shipped in a greensheet. Some samples can get slight scratches or abrasions on a greensheet, so defectivity is possible.

The greensheet packaging option is used automatically for special shipments of individual chips or wafer sections (i.e. no longer a full wafer and no longer fab clean — breaking/cleaving a wafer obviously voids cleanliness standard). Greensheets are not clean, but they are cheap, lightweight, wafers can be stored flat and take very little space, and greensheets can be cut into smaller sections for shipping individual die. Because they are lightweight, greensheets are much less expensive to ship.

When choosing greensheets as the shipping option, the greensheet packaging is free, courtesy of AMAG.

2" shipping container

These 2" polypropylene carriers are used for single chip containers. Once a chip is transferred to a container, that chip is no longer fab/foundry clean due to minimal particulates acquired during the manual transfer process, which is controlled to be best possible but outside of fab, but without guarantee; a chip in a  2" container will have minimized airborne dust particulates. However chips in these containers are still far cleaner than with the greensheet option below. These 2" round chip containers have been proven robust for shipping, although not guaranteed against damage/breakage during shipping.

When choosing 2" container as the shipping option (currently the only option) , each container incurs a "chip packaging fee". Each container holds one chip.