In the semiconductor manufacturing industry, the precision motion platform is the core equipment for wafer processing, and its performance directly affects the yield and production efficiency of chips. Huzhou Prim Semiconductor Co., Ltd., as a leading enterprise in the domestic semiconductor equipment sector, has broken the foreign technological monopoly through its independently developed technologies such as air-floating rotating shafts, wafer transfer systems, and ceramic fork components, providing important support for the domestic production of high-end semiconductor equipment. 

I. Air flotation rotating shaft: The core component of high-precision motion 

The air-floating rotating shaft is the core component of the precision motion platform. Its working principle is to achieve non-contact support through gas bearings, thereby eliminating the vibration and wear caused by mechanical friction. The air-floating rotating shaft developed by Prim Semiconductor adopts the air static pressure bearing technology. Through the precisely processed air hole array, an even gas film is formed between the shaft and the bearing, enabling the rotating shaft to maintain nanometer-level positioning accuracy during high-speed rotation. For example, in the 12-inch wafer alignment system, this technology can control the rotational angle error within ±0.001°, meeting the process requirements of 28nm and below. 

In addition, the air-float rotating shaft also has the characteristics of fast dynamic response and long service life. By optimizing the gas flow model, the Prim team reduced the startup time of the rotating shaft to the millisecond level. At the same time, through the application of ceramic-based composite materials, the service life of the bearings was increased by more than five times that of traditional mechanical bearings. This technological breakthrough provides a reliable guarantee for the application of semiconductor equipment in high-speed and high-precision scenarios. 

II. Wafer Transfer System: The "Invisible Hand" for Efficient Production 

The wafer transfer system serves as the "bridge" connecting various processes in semiconductor manufacturing. Its performance directly affects the production cycle and equipment utilization rate. The wafer transfer system developed by Prim Semiconductor adopts a modular design. By combining linear motors with air-floating rails, it enables the rapid and smooth transfer of wafers in a vacuum environment. The system supports multi-wafer parallel processing, and the single transfer time can be controlled within 0.5 seconds, which is 40% more efficient than traditional mechanical hands. 

In terms of reliability, the key components of this system, such as the rails and sliders, are made of ceramic materials, which possess high hardness and low thermal expansion coefficient properties. They can maintain stable performance within an extremely wide temperature range of -200℃ to 800℃. Additionally, the system is equipped with a real-time monitoring module that collects data such as vibration and temperature through a sensor network and uses AI algorithms for fault prediction, reducing equipment downtime by over 70%. 

III. Ceramic Plate Fork: The Perfect Combination of Corrosion Resistance and High Precision 

The ceramic disc tweezers are a crucial consumable in wafer processing equipment, and their performance directly affects the surface quality of the wafer and the lifespan of the equipment. The ceramic disc tweezers developed by Prim Semiconductor use a zirconia toughened alumina (ZTA) composite material. Through isostatic pressing and high-temperature sintering processes, the material achieves both high hardness (HV ≥ 1500) and bending strength (≥ 500 MPa). During the wafer grasping process, the surface roughness of the ceramic disc tweezers can be controlled within Ra ≤ 0.1 μm, avoiding scratching the wafer surface. 

In addition, ceramic blade tips also have excellent corrosion resistance. In the plasma etching process, traditional metal blade tips are prone to corrosion, causing contamination of the wafer. However, ceramic blade tips use surface coating technology to form a dense layer of aluminum oxide on the material surface. This can resist the erosion of etching gases and chemical reagents, and their service life can be extended to more than three times that of metal blade tips. 

IV. Technology Integration and Market Application 

Prim Semiconductor has integrated key technologies such as the air-floating rotating shaft, wafer transfer system, and ceramic fork to form a complete precision motion platform solution. This solution has been applied in several domestic wafer factories, achieving a positioning accuracy of 0.1 μm and an overall equipment efficiency (OEE) of 99.5% in 12-inch wafer manufacturing, reaching international advanced levels. 

For instance, in the etching equipment of a certain wafer factory, Prim's precision motion platform has shortened the time it takes to align the wafer from 15 seconds to 8 seconds. At the same time, through the application of ceramic fork technology, the wafer fragment rate has been reduced from 0.05% to 0.01%, saving the factory's customers over 10 million yuan in costs annually. 

V. Industry Impact and Future Prospects 

The technological breakthroughs of Prim Semiconductor not only enhanced the competitiveness of domestic semiconductor equipment, but also promoted the coordinated development of the upstream and downstream industries in the chain. For instance, the development of ceramic disc forks led to the technological upgrading of domestic ceramic material enterprises, while the industrialization of air-floating rotating shafts facilitated the domestic substitution of precision processing equipment. 

In the future, with the development of technologies such as 5G and AI, the demand for precision motion platforms by semiconductor equipment will further increase. Prim Semiconductor plans to launch the next-generation air-bearing rotating shaft in 2025, with a positioning accuracy of up to 0.01 μm. At the same time, it will develop a wafer transfer system that can adapt to processes below 5 nm, providing more powerful technical support for high-end chip manufacturing. 

Conclusion

From the air-float rotating shaft to the ceramic disc fork, Huzhou Prim Semiconductor Co., Ltd. has achieved continuous technological innovation, breaking the monopoly of foreign countries in the field of precision motion platforms and injecting new impetus into the development of domestic semiconductor equipment. With the continuous iteration of technology, Prim is expected to occupy a more important position in the global semiconductor equipment market, helping China's semiconductor industry achieve the leap from trailing to leading.