Learning about Front Opening Universal Pod (FOUP) What is FOUP? The Front Opening Universal Pod or FOUP is the exclusive plastic enclosure used for handling the silicon wafers in a safe and secure environment. FOUP is also known by another name, Front Opening Unified Pod. The main purpose of this device is to designate the wafers in the machines for increasing the processing performance. FOUP opener is used to check for any abnormalities by opening the lid. 3000mm FOUP was developed in the mid-1990s as the wafer processing tool. Many businesses design their FOUPs in various color combos, and the product sizes vary as per the brand.
Also, FOUP, as well as IC processing equipment, can provide the nitrogen ecosystem for boosting the device productivity. Earlier, engineers were able to develop only the 300mm FOUP with the detachable cassette, which was used to place the wafer in the right position. With the advancement in technology, 400 mm wafer FOUP load ports are easily accessible from the robotics laboratory. It allows the swapping of doors from front to back so that the robot mechanism can obtain the wafer from the FOUP. Apart from that, the FOUP comprises of many holes, coupling plates, pins, which can be used by the automatic material handling system and can locate over the load port. The sealing capacity of 300mm FOUP is amazing, and it has a great design. It offers clean, safe, and secure wafer transport, integration as well as optimum automation at an effective cost. For the purpose of analysing data, wafer handling software is mostly used.
How to Control Humidity in a Mini-Environment With FOUP? With the FOUP (Front Opening Universal Pod), the placement of the wafer is done when the production chain is on the waiting mode. This approach is a traditional one for removing the contamination. The FOUP is cleaned with the gas, and the cleanliness level