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Is there anybody here who is familiar with the process of making computer chips?

Posted on 09/16/2022 12:43:00 AM PDT by Jonty30

I'm just curious about the process from the point of CAD to where they have computer chips ready to sell.

Thanks in advance if somebody can explain it for us non-techies.


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Computers/Internet; Education; Society
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1 posted on 09/16/2022 12:43:00 AM PDT by Jonty30
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To: Jonty30

Sorry man, I know how to make potato chips only.


2 posted on 09/16/2022 12:55:02 AM PDT by Rocco DiPippo (I)
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To: Jonty30

What do you want to make? Its making your own board from prefabricated components and chips thats relatively simple. You simply buy the components and solder them together and there are even services that will assemble them for you if you give them the plans. If you want to make the components like the integrated circuits themselves at anything close to a modern level thats much more expensive and difficult and I only know of a few people doing it by themselves like this guy. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IS5ycm7VfXg


3 posted on 09/16/2022 12:57:17 AM PDT by jarwulf ( )
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To: Jonty30
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Integrated_circuit

You're welcome!

Regards,

4 posted on 09/16/2022 12:57:58 AM PDT by alexander_busek (Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence.)
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To: Jonty30

For someone to write up an explanation here would be a bit like reinventing the wheel when there are videos like this on youtube:

Infineon - How are Microchips made? |
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bor0qLifjz4


5 posted on 09/16/2022 12:58:15 AM PDT by irishjuggler
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To: Jonty30

It takes months to make a chip. You take a 2 foot disk of Silicon and make hundreds of copies on it. You apply a substance , shine some light that has a pattern blocking some of it, then wash away the exposed material that was altered by the light. Since ordinary light does not have a wavelegth short enough for the current patterns they use extreme ultraviolet now. You keep adding layers this way until it’s almost like a miniature city.


6 posted on 09/16/2022 12:59:02 AM PDT by Nateman (If Mohammad was not the Anti Christ he definitely comes in as a strong second..)
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To: Jonty30

Vacuum deposition.

Some engineering of design and process/manufacturing.

Water.


7 posted on 09/16/2022 12:59:54 AM PDT by Paladin2
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To: Jonty30

It would actually be kind of a neat project to make a macro scale chip with a 3d printer laying down the different layers with the requisite materials.


8 posted on 09/16/2022 1:03:29 AM PDT by glorgau
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To: Jonty30

I had a 12’ Robertson camera designed to shoot multiple steps of backlit microprocessor schematics. Mid 1970s. Still have the lens


9 posted on 09/16/2022 1:12:33 AM PDT by Gene Eric (Don't be a statist!)
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To: jarwulf

I am not making anything.
I was just wanting to better understand the process.


10 posted on 09/16/2022 1:28:39 AM PDT by Jonty30 (Some men want to watch the world burn. It is they that want you to buy an electric car.)
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To: Jonty30

“I am not making anything.
I was just wanting to better understand the process.‘

YouTube.


11 posted on 09/16/2022 1:34:35 AM PDT by plain talk
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To: Jonty30

How EUVL Chipmaking Works
https://computer.howstuffworks.com/euvl.htm


12 posted on 09/16/2022 1:41:53 AM PDT by FreedomPoster (Islam delenda est)
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To: FreedomPoster

Thank you.
I will read this with great interest.


13 posted on 09/16/2022 1:46:25 AM PDT by Jonty30 (Some men want to watch the world burn. It is they that want you to buy an electric car.)
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To: Rocco DiPippo

“Well, chip, chip, chip.” Who remembers comedian Arnold Stang and his iconic line?


14 posted on 09/16/2022 1:57:53 AM PDT by Seeing More Clearly Now
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To: Jonty30
The very first step is the creation of hyper-pure silicon. The second step is the creation of a hyper-pure silicon crystal. The third step is the creation of a hyper-pure silicon wafer.

Most people have seen photos and videos of microchips being built on silicon wafers.

Conversely, most people have no idea where those wafers come from. If you sent a photograph of a silicon crystal growing furnace to the Department of Software Engineering at your local university, I would wager that 80% of the students would have NO idea what it is!

Most wafers come from long, sausage shaped, brilliantly reflective, silver colored, metallic crystals. The individual wafers are literally sawed (usually wire sawed) off the hyper-pure sausage.

Since the 1960s, the diameter of silicon crystals have steadily increased from 25 mm (1 inch) to 300 mm (12 inches). The larger the diameter, the shorter the crystal length becomes because of weight issues. However, the larger the diameter, the more microchips can be created on one wafer.

Once the wafer is sawed off, it goes through many, many processes to create microchips. When the processes are complete, the individual microchips are sawed off, tested, and shipped.

In 2022, almost all these processes, from crystal growing to finished microchips, are highly automated. My point - human labor costs are not that significant.

It is incomprehensible to me that Europe and the USA have basically surrendered the mass production of microchips to Taiwan, South Korea, China, and Japan.

15 posted on 09/16/2022 2:43:15 AM PDT by zeestephen
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To: glorgau

Intel 8080 processor from 1974 only had 4,500 transistors.

It can certainly be an educational project (and with current technology it is affordable) to tell students to try to recreate it without examining the original.

They’ll learn some humility at least.


16 posted on 09/16/2022 3:03:01 AM PDT by Krosan
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To: zeestephen

>Taiwan, South Korea, China, and Japan

I can see Taiwan, but the US is way ahead of all these other countries on your list.

For example, China can only produce very cheap low performance chips, where the key to success is squeezing that lemon for one more drop and making the inferior product just a fraction of a percentage cheaper.


17 posted on 09/16/2022 3:08:42 AM PDT by Krosan
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To: Jonty30; null and void

“I was just wanting to better understand the process.”

To try and understand the semiconductor manufacturing process first of all you have to limit it to what kind of device are you making. There are many different processes depending on what device you’re manufacturing. But the basic process is build up layers and remove them in a pattern that you want to achieve. But it’s much more complex than that. As others have suggested might want to start with youtube.

Many people spend their entire career in semiconductors at the processing level and only understand one portion of processing. It is a complex system - probably the most complex in the world.

Good luck!


18 posted on 09/16/2022 3:11:43 AM PDT by mad_as_he$$ (Don't rush to your death.)
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To: zeestephen

I appreciate your comment.


19 posted on 09/16/2022 3:13:57 AM PDT by Jonty30 (Some men want to watch the world burn. It is they that want you to buy an electric car.)
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To: mad_as_he$$

It’s just a neat process to watch.
I watched a couple of videos and interesting to watch, even if I don’t much of an understanding of what is going on.

I did read that the silicon wafer has to be at least 100,000 times more pure than a solar panel, which I thought was interesting.


20 posted on 09/16/2022 3:15:33 AM PDT by Jonty30 (Some men want to watch the world burn. It is they that want you to buy an electric car.)
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