AMC can be a “silent poisoner” of your process. Poisons sap strength — including product quality and profits. Stop AMC at the source. Where in your process flow might it be an issue? Could AMC arise from the outside environment or prior processing in your supply chain? Is it being generated inside your facility?

THE SUPPLY CHAIN CONNECTION
If AMC is traced to a supply chain process or to shipping and handling, optimized cleaning or packaging may cure the problem. Inappropriate packaging can constitute an AMC-generating mini-environment, resulting in deposition of outgassed plasticizers. If AMC is generated by the supplier, either eliminate the source or clean the product immediately; the longer contamination remains on a surface, the more likely it is to adhere. This involves monitoring the supply chain and collaborating with your suppliers.

SEGREGATE THE PROCESSES
Investigate other manufacturing, storage, and transport processes that occur within your facility. Physical separation of processes lessens the risk of cross-contamination. This can be accomplished by spatial separation, controlling air flow, or by enclosing critical processes in clean rooms and mini-environments.¹

IT’S NOT THE HEAT
There is no such thing as zero humidity, and adsorbed moisture is AMC. Even in controlled environments, moisture may adsorb to critical surfaces and interfere with subsequent processes. Baking can remove water. However, because the forces of adhesion are stronger than the forces between liquid water molecules, temperatures of several hundred degrees Celsius may be required to remove adsorbed water. High temperatures and excessive heating time may damage the product or at least slow down production. One alternative technique to remove adsorbed water from semiconductors without the heat of baking is to use a UV laser.²