Two cluster tools of centrotherm?s new generation horizontal furnace c.HORICOO 300 will be integrated into Renesas? 300 mm wafer production line in Kofu, Japan (Yamanashi Prefecture). Renesas Electronics Corporation is one of the global leading semiconductor manufacturers headquartered in Japan, that provides microcontrollers, analog devices and power semiconductors for automotive and industrial applications.

Renesas is the first manufacturer in Japan to use the fully automated, high-throughput production solution in mass production. The 8-tube cluster c.HORICOO 300 is designed for oxidation and annealing processes on 300 mm silicon wafers. With its fully automated wafer and boat handling, the system offers a reduction in total cost of ownership of up to 50% compared to vertical furnace solutions with a significant improvement in yield.

After the market launch and evaluation phase in 2018, the high-throughput system cluster is already integrated in the production lines of well-known European customers. Due to the sales success at Renesas, The company expects a pull effect with Japanese power-semiconductor device makers as well as with the leading Asian manufacturers. From 2024, Renesas will start production of its new generation IGBTs at its Kofu fab.

This is where transistors for the next generation of inverters for electric vehicles are produced, which are expected to achieve considerable savings in battery power and thus significantly increase the driving range.