Alumina
The usual starting grade: insulating, dimensionally stable and clean at process temperature.
Material detailsIND 01
Photovoltaics
High-temperature process equipment where ceramic parts hold their shape and keep the process clean.
Solar cell and wafer production runs hot, and it runs clean. Anything that deforms, oxidises or sheds particles inside the process chamber becomes a yield problem, not just a maintenance problem.
Ceramics are specified here for two reasons: they hold their dimensions through the thermal cycles, and they do not introduce metal contamination into the furnace environment.
Typical parts in this industry
Furnace tube supports and insulationThermocouple and sensor protection tubesWafer handling wear parts and guidesCoating and diffusion equipment componentsContact points that must not mark or contaminate the product
Material systems we start from
What we would propose first
A starting point, not a specification. The grade is confirmed against your equipment, the geometry and the duty.
Silicon carbide
Where the temperature is higher or the part also takes wear.
Material detailsSilicon nitride
Where the part is cycled hard and thermal shock would crack alumina.
Material detailsPart forms for this industry
The shapes this industry orders
Filed by geometry rather than by industry, because the same plate can serve a furnace and a wafer line. Each link opens the catalogue entry.
Comb, rib and carrier plates
Ribbed carriers, tooth-profile inserts, slotted bars and laminated plate packs.
Open the catalogue entryRound chucks and seats
Wafer-contact faces with a chord flat and small fixing bores.
Open the catalogue entryLaminated and clamped stacks
Thin plates stacked, dowelled and held in a machined base.
Open the catalogue entryTapered pins and needles
Ground tapered contact pins for handling and alignment.
Open the catalogue entryFurnace and sensor tubes
Tube supports and thermocouple protection for process equipment.
Open the catalogue entryInsulating bodies
Stand-offs and insulating components for the chamber and its fixtures.
Open the catalogue entryWhat decides the choice
The four conditions we ask about
- Peak process temperature, and how often it cycles
- Process gas or vapour chemistry
- Contamination limits the line has to hold
- Whether the part is inside the process or supporting it from outside
This page is selection guidance for an enquiry. It states no performance figures and is not a specification. Request the material data sheet for grade-specific values.
Other industries
IND 02
Instrumentation
Insulating bodies and precision parts inside equipment that has to read accurately and stay accurate.
Industry detailsIND 03
Medical Devices
Precision parts for instruments and equipment where wear, corrosion and cleanability all matter.
Industry detailsIND 04
Watch & Electronics
Small precision insulators and structural parts for compact, high-value assemblies.
Industry details