Introduction

Amid the rapid growth of 5G communications, new-energy and optoelectronic industries, the performance and reliability of core optoelectronic components such as laser pump sources and optical communication devices have drawn wide industry attention. As a key component of laser chips, the COS (Chip on Submount) device’s end-face cleanliness and surface defects directly determine the chip’s luminous efficiency, heat dissipation performance and service life. Conventional manual inspection and cleaning suffer from low efficiency and poor consistency, and can hardly meet the stringent micron-level cleanliness requirements for mass production of high-power devices, forming a major process bottleneck restricting quality improvement of optoelectronic products.

Drawing on over two decades of expertise in precision laser processing and automation, UW Laser, through its semiconductor-equipment subsidiary Jiangsu United Winners Semiconductor Technology Co., Ltd., has launched the self-developed COS Inspection & Cleaning Machine. It delivers an integrated inspection-and-cleaning solution for COS devices, helping the semiconductor optoelectronics industry overcome packaging-process bottlenecks.

COS Inspection & Cleaning Machine

The UW COS Inspection & Cleaning Machine is a high-end all-in-one inspection and cleaning system tailor-made for COS laser chip products. Integrating machine-vision inspection and eco-friendly CO₂ snow jet cleaning technologies, it performs comprehensive inspection on the N-side, P-side, AR (anti-reflection coating) and HR (high-reflection coating) end-faces of chips. It also delivers precision cleaning for contaminants on AR surfaces, with a 40% removal rate for black spots, loose particles and grease.

The machine features inspection accuracy of ±2μm and detection accuracy of ≥99.5%, while its cleaning efficiency stands at 70% (actual performance subject to incoming material conditions), ensuring high-reliability inspection and cleaning operations.

In terms of throughput, its overall UPH exceeds 500 PCS/H in inspection-only mode, and the cycle time (CT) for single-chip cleaning is no more than 5 seconds. For the full workflow combining complete inspection and cleaning, UPH remains steadily above 300 PCS/H.

Adopting stacked waffle-pack loading, the equipment supports both 4-inch and 2-inch waffle packs. Product change-over is realized via adapters, with change-over time controlled within one hour per unit, effectively improving production-line flexibility and productivity.

Equipment Advantages & Features

High-precision Positioning and Inspection

Equipped with a machine-vision inspection system, the unit performs high-precision positioning based on standard Mark fiducials. Its placement accuracy reaches XY ≤ ±10 μm (for standard samples), guaranteeing reliable inspection and cleaning with a detection accuracy of ≥99.5%.

Efficient and Eco-friendly Cleaning Process

Adopting self-developed eco-friendly CO₂snow-jet cleaning technology, it delivers reliable cleaning performance while remaining safe and environmentally sustainable. It features high cleaning throughput: UPH ≥ 500 PCS/H under cleaning-only mode, with single-part cycle time (CT) ≤ 5 seconds, greatly boosting production rhythm.

High Integration and End-to-end Productivity

Combining inspection and cleaning in one machine to enable one-stop “inspection-to-cleaning” operations. The full-process throughput (full inspection plus cleaning) reaches UPH ≥ 300 PCS/H, cutting inter-process handling and improving overall production efficiency.

Excellent Compatibility & Flexibility

The loading structure is designed for 4-inch waffle packs as standard. An adapter enables compatibility with 2-inch waffle packs to accommodate products of different specifications. Fast product change-over is achieved within ≤ 1 hour per unit, significantly reducing production-line changeover downtime.

Automatic Stacked Loading

Stacked waffle-pack loading is supported to increase batch capacity per loading cycle and lower manual intervention, enabling continuous automated production.

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As a core component of laser chips, COS devices’ inspection and cleaning processes directly determine the luminous efficiency and service life of end-products. Boasting micron-level positioning accuracy, eco-friendly and efficient cleaning technology, and highly-automated workflows, the UW COS Inspection & Cleaning Machine effectively addresses pain points of low efficiency and poor consistency in conventional processes, delivering reliable process assurance for mass-production of high-power laser devices.

As a key strategic arm of UW Laser in the semiconductor sector, Jiangsu United Winners Semiconductor Technology Co., Ltd. has built a comprehensive equipment portfolio covering die‑attach, inspection, laser micro‑processing and precision welding. Its products are widely deployed across IGBT, communications, microwave, laser pump source and other fields. Going forward, UW Semiconductor will keep focusing on semiconductor precision manufacturing, and support the steady advancement of domestic semiconductor industry with superior equipment and services.