Back to results
US 2013/0095649 A1Published application
Chemical Bath Replenishment
AssigneeInternational Business Machines Corporation
InventorsTien-Jen Cheng, John Anthony Fitzsimmons, David E. Speed, Keith Kwong Hon Wong
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Ions depleted from a chemical bath by a reaction such as plating are continually replenished by production and moving of ions through selectively permeable membranes while isolating potential contaminant ions from the chemical bath.
Claims20
A method of providing reactant ion species for a chemical reaction, said method comprising steps of
- dissociating a compound into a first ion and a second ion in a solution in a first compartment of a replenishment vessel by passing a current through said solution,
- splitting water into a proton and a hydroxyl ion in a membrane defining said first compartment and
- passing said first ion or said hydroxyl ion to a second compartment of said reaction vessel through a selectively permeable membrane which isolates said second ion in said first compartment to form a chemical bath.
Apparatus for replenishing a chemical bath comprising
- an anode,
- a cathode,
- a selectively permeable membrane separating a cathode rinse compartment containing a first solution from a chemical bath compartment containing a chemical bath solution, and
- a power supply for passing a current between said anode and said cathode through said first solution, said selectively permeable membrane and said chemical bath solution, said current causing electromigration of selected ions to said chemical bath solution while isolating other ions in said first solution from said chemical bath solution.
1 more element
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.