FIRE ENGINEERING APPROACH TO DETECTION OF

SMOKE IN SEMI-CONDUCTOR FABS

Vincent DeGiorgio, Mingchun Luo and

Peter Johnson

1. INTRODUCTION

The production of semi-conductor devices, also known as integrated circuits (ICs) or ‘chips’ is truly an
extraordinary process.

The process of manufacture and the semi-conductor chips themselves have such high value that even an
extremely small fire can lead to substantial damage and very significant business interruption loss.

Clearly, a performance based fire engineering approach is appropriate which identifies all fire safety
objectives and develops a comprehensive package of fire protection and management measures.

The fabrication of semi-conductors is extremely sensitive to dust and other particulate contaminants.
Special clean room air handling technology must be adopted that provides high levels of laminar air flow.
These airflows dilute smoke and make early detection difficult.

This paper sets the role of smoke detection in the context of a fire engineering approach to semi-
conductor facility design. It examines the size of fire required to be detected, the optimum smoke
detection arrangements, test results which verify the required performance, and on-going importance of
maintenance and regular testing and inspection.

2. SEMI-CONDUCTOR MANUFACTURING

The production of semi-conductor devices, also known as an integrated circuit (IC) or “chip” is a very
complex process. Silicon, a fundamental component of sand and the earth’s second most abundant
element next to oxygen is processed through several hundred steps into devices that are used in a wide
range of applications.

The fabrication (Fab) or main part of the semi-conductor manufacturing process is performed in Class 1-
10,000 clean rooms. Class number is the number of particles, 0.5 microns in size, per cubic foot of air.
In comparison, normal unfiltered air is the equivalent of Class 5 million and smoke is Class 1 billion and
greater.

The cost of an efficiently sized semi-conductor facility has risen from $200 million (USD) in the early
80’s to $650 million (USD) in the mid 90’s and $2-3 billion (USD) for today’s 300mm Fabs. (The
300mm wafer has 2.25 times the surface area of a 200mm wafer.)

The process hazards associated with semi-conductor manufacturing involve extensive use of toxic, highly
corrosive and flammable gases and liquids. The use of combustible plastics adds to the risk of fire
damage. The process equipment and the work-in-process are expensive and extremely susceptible to fire,
smoke and water damage. A considerable potential exists for substantial physical damage and significant
business interruption from fire, even though the fire may be contained in a very small area.
 The production process is undertaken in fabrication facilities (Fabs) through a series of steps which is
well described by McKenna1 , Robinson2 and the FM Data Sheet3 . The key steps are illustrated in Figure 1
below.

Silicon Crystal
Production1
Fabrication Operation

Mask Production2

Chip Testing3

Plating3 Chip Cutting,

Assembly&Packaging3

Final Chip Assembly

Testing3

Finished Product
Storage3

1. Almost all facilities purchase wafers from an outside supplier

2. Masks are usually supplied by an outside vendor
3. Most of the time these operations are performed at other facilities

Figure 1 Semi-Conductor manufacturing process (after Robinson2 )

3. HAZARDS AND FIRE SCENARIOS

Again, McKenna1 , Robinson2 and FM3 describe the fire hazards associated with semi-conductor
manufacturing. They include many types of hazards found in other industries (flammable liquids &
gases) but are uniquely combined in the semi-conductor process. There is also a need for an extremely
high standard of air quality to prevent contamination and chip production loss.

The hazards include:-

• high temperature furnaces in crystal growing

• flammable and pyrophoric (spontaneous igniting in air) gases & liquids
• toxic gases, liquids and solids
• combustible plastic 'wet benches' and other processing tools for production processes involving
hazardous gases & liquids
• use of combustible pods/FOUPs in vertical storage array (stockers)
• electroplating materials and baking furnaces
• storage hazards associated with high value finished goods.
 Based on historical fire loss experience, the following represents the most likely fire accident scenarios
associated with semi-conductor Fabs:
• Failure of a component, subsystem or engineering control, which results in electrically induced
ignition of combustible materials (equipment shell, wiring, circuit boards, etc.), found in semi-
conductor processing equipment such as wet benches. Incipient stage fire growth is usually very
slow or slow. There are some scenarios, which there is smoky smouldering combustion, and not
visible flaming occurs.
• Unwanted release and ignition of pyrophoric / flammable gases and liquids. In these scenarios,
the rate of heat release and smoke generation is much greater than the electrical ignition
scenarios. Therefore, in terms of the design fire scenarios, the electrical ignition scenarios
represent a more challenging condition for high sensitivity smoke detection systems to detect the
release of incipient stage combustible products.

4. FIRE SAFETY OBJECTIVES

The design of fire protection for semi-conductor fabrication facilities must address a range of fire safety
objectives.

These are best understood and developed in a performance based fire engineering approach which follows
one of the internationally recognised methodologies. These include:

• Australian Fire Engineering Guidelines 4

• SFPE Guide to Performance Based Fire Protection Analysis & Design of Buildings 5

In addition, a documented fire risk assessment as per SEMI S14-0200 "Safety Guidelines for Fire Risk
Assessment and Mitigation for Semiconductor Manufacturing Equipment"6 will provide guidance on fire
protection design.

The most important fire safety objective is life safety, although this is generally easily achieved given the
high level of protection required for the process and the product, and the knowledge of the plant and
procedures required by staff.

Protection of fire fighters during rescue and fire fighting is another objective which requires special
attention in a Fab. All Fabs should have an emergency response team and a comprehensive emergency
plan which includes training with the local fire service. The dangers of flammable and toxic materials, the
sensitivity of the process to water and other contaminants, the power and other shut-offs, the emergency
exhaust systems and other plant complexities mean that emergency management needs to be very well
planned. Keeping the local fire service aware of the chemical usage inside the building is critical. Recent
incident experience has shown a reluctance of the fire service to enter the building if they are unfamiliar
with the chemical usage.

The critical fire safety objectives from a commercial viewpoint are asset protection and business
interruption. Even a small fire can cause considerable damage and stop production. As Robinson2 has
stated "contamination can …. ruin the ultra clean environment in which semi-conductors are made. Once
contaminated, the area & process equipment must be painstakingly hand cleaned before it can be used
again".

Interruption to production or loss of critical process equipment or finished product in storage can lead to
tens of millions of dollars of loss. In addition, consequential losses to customers due to the failure to
deliver contracted quantities of chips on time can add to the commercial impact.
5. FIRE PROTECTION MEASURES

A comprehensive package of fire safety measures is required for semi-conductor Fabs along the lines
suggested in the FM Data Sheet3 . The FM Data Sheet represents a highly protected risk (HPR) approach
to physical asset & business interruption loss prevention. The FM Data Sheet approach many times
recommends features which go beyond local, national and international codes. The HPR features become
important when considering insurance company coverage’s.

Key measures in the FM Data Sheet include:-

• Non-combustible building construction and compartmentation between process areas (tools) and
between the tools and other areas including hazardous storage areas, storage, offices.
• All wet benches and other processing tools of non-combustible, construction or meeting strict
flammability requirements such as FM 4910 fire safe plastics standard.
• Automatic sprinklers with fast response heads.
• Specialised exhaust / ventilation systems.
• Water mist, CO2 or other gaseous suppression systems for localised protection where
appropriate.
• Flame detectors for some specialised areas.
• High sensitivity smoke detection.
• Portable extinguishers.
In addition a comprehensive management and loss prevention program is required to address
housekeeping, maintenance, system testing, staff training, emergency response, and disaster recovery.
While this complete fire safety package is required, a number of the measures such as sprinklers and
other suppression systems as well as physical compartmentation are there to prevent large scale damage.
To keep fire / smoke damage localised and to very low levels, the smoke detection system is critical so
that staff can intervene at a very early stage, if necessary by removing power or using portable
extinguishers.

6. FAB LAYOUT
The requirements for smoke detection in a Fab are best illustrated by understanding the physical layout
and air handling (HVAC) arrangements of a typical process tool in a clean room environment.
One type of Fab clean room layout is illustrated in Figure 2.
 Figure 2 shows the challenge for smoke detection. A very small fire must be detected in a clean room
where the laminar airflow is from the filter bank at the ceiling down through a perforated floor and open
waffle slab into a sub-fab space. Where in many buildings smoke from a fire is carried to the ceiling and
detectors are located at high level. In a Fab the lack of buoyancy from low energy small fires means that
smoke will be carried down initially and recirculated by the Fab air handling system. This suggests that
detection below the raised floor or the open waffle slab (sub fab) is probably the most efficient.

7. SMOKE DETECTION DESIGN OBJECTIVES

DeGiorgio 7 has demonstrated that smoke detection for a semi-conductor manufacturing facility is best
designed using a performance based approach. The general fire safety objectives can be translated for a
Fab into specific design goals which could include the following:
• minimal false (unwanted) alarm potential
• rapid detection and time of response to incipient (very early) fire
• system location of the smoke / fire condition for rapid staff attention
• minimal impact to Fab operations by physical location of smoke detection devices
• cost effective system design, and installation
• cost effective maintenance and servicing requirements.
High sensitivity smoke detectors of the aspirated type or others of equivalent performance are required to
meet the above goals.
The FM Data sheet3 for Fabs and NFPA3188 requires smoke detection at make up and recirculation air
handlers and in the return air path (often at the dry coils), but this will only show the general clean room
location of the smoke source. With this arrangement, it may be difficult for the Emergency Response
Team (ERT) to promptly locate the smoke source over a large clean room area.
More recent work7 suggests the potential for providing high sensitivity smoke detection within the actual
process tools or directly below them at the open waffle slab.
This approach to high sensitivity smoke detection is very similar to that adopted in other high value,
mission continuity facilities such as the Canberra Deep Space Tracking Station9 .

8. ACCEPTANCE CRITERIA

In performance terms, the acceptance criteria for each of the smoke detection design goals for Fabs
could be:

• less than 1% of alarms are false (unwanted)

• response to smoke of less than 120 seconds
• location of smoke source to within 10m
• detectors located acceptable to operations managers
• capital cost similar to existing systems
• maintenance to code requirements at reasonable cost

To achieve the criteria of detection within 10m with 120 seconds has to be translated, where possible,
into performance terms related to a fire size in order to properly model.
9. FIRE TESTING

The fire size to be detected must clearly be less than 1.0kW, even though it is known(7) that fires in
combustible wet benches can grow (free burn) to more than 10,000 kW within 10 minutes.

Theoretically, computational fluid dynamics (CFD) in this high airflow environment should be able to
demonstrate the fire size at which high sensitivity smoke detection should occur, and the level of
contamination which occurs at that time. DeGiorgio 7 indicates that some work in this CFD field has
commenced and included particle trace modeling.

Similarly, if an assumption is made that any smoke produced is well mixed within a clean room by the
high airflow, then a fire engineering analysis can be used to determine the level of contamination (mass of
particulate per metre3 ) for any size of fire. This would be useful in estimating the amount of
contamination which process tools would be exposed to during various fire conditions.

However, in practical terms currently, tests are often used in the computer room, telecommunications and
semi-conductor industries to establish reasonable levels of detector performance for small fires.

A common research or commissioning test for Fabs is the test included in BS6266 "Code of Practice for
Fire Protection for Electronic Data Processing Installations"10 and the draft NFPA76 "Standard for the
Protection of Telecommunication Facilities"11 .

This BS6266 test involves electrical overloading of a short length of PCV-coated wire which produces a
small amount of light grey smoke which is barely visible and simulates a smouldering fire considerably
less than 1.0kW.

Typically, the test is located where the Fab process tool is normally situated, and the high sensitivity
smoke detectors should give an alarm indication within the 120 seconds goal or objective.

Typically, the test is performed where the Fab process tool is normally situated and/or in the sub fab area.
The high sensitivity smoke detectors should give an alarm indication within the 120 seconds goal or
objective.

Test programmes 7 for detectors located at the dry coils and below the waffle slab have shown that the
smoke detector goals and the overall performance objectives can be achieved in operational Fabs.

10. SUMMARY

Semi-conductor manufacturing and the process of manufacture of computer chips using specialised
process tools in clean room environments is a special challenge to very early smoke detection.

The high value and very significant potential for business interruption means that high sensitivity smoke
detection is required as part of a comprehensive package of fire safety measures.

Following regular codes and standards does not necessarily meet the end user and insurer's special
commercial requirement, in semi-conductor Fabs, and a performance based approach with clear agreed
acceptance criteria for smoke detection provides the optimum design.

Theoretical analysis and tests of overheated cable wires shows that high sensitivity smoke detectors
strategically located in these high airflow environments can achieve end-user design requirements.

Continued development of CFD and other testing and theoretical programs will see the performance based
approach to smoke detection continue to develop.
11. REFERENCES

1. McKenna, L.A. Jr., "Semiconductor Manufacturing", Section 2, Chapter 23, Fire Protection
Handbook, 17th Edition, National Fire Protection Association, 1991.

2. Robinson, K, "Semiconductor Manufacturing", Chapter 23, Industrial Fire Hazards handbook, 2nd
Edition, National Fire Protection Association, 1984.

3. Factory Mutual Property Loss Prevention Data Sheet 7-7, "Semiconductor Fabrication Facilities",
Factory Mutual Engineering and Research, May 1999

4. "Fire Engineering Guidelines", 1st Edition, Fire Code Reform Centre, Sydney, 1996

5. SFPE Guide to Performance Based Fire Protection Analysis and Design of Buildings, Society of
Fire Protection Engineers and National Fire Protection Association, 2000

6. SEMI S14-0200 "Safety Guidelines for Fire Risk Assessment and Mitigation for Semiconductor
Manufacturing Equipment”, Semiconductor Equipment & Materials International (SEMI), 2000

7. DeGiorgio, V & CISH-ITRI, "Performance Based Design Evaluation for Fab Smoke Detection
Systems", 8th Annual ISESH Conference, Kenting, Taiwan, 18-20 June, 2001

8. NFPA 318, "Standard for Protection of Cleanrooms", National Fire Protection Association, 2000

9. Johnson, P.F., Olsson, P.A., & Stork-Moore, I. "Fire Risk Assessment – Its Use in Design of
Buildings and Industrial Facilities", 3rd International Conference on Performance Based Codes and
Fire Safety Design Methods, Lund, 2000

10. BS 6266, "Code of Practice for the Fire Protection for Electronic Data Processing Installation",
British Standards Institution, UK

11. NFPA 76 (draft), "Fire Protection of Telecommunication Facilities", National Fire Protection
Association, 2001