Part 7/12:
How Do Fabs Use Water?
Seventy-five percent of a semiconductor fab's water is used in manufacturing processes, especially for wet cleans—the critical step of removing contaminants from wafers using ultrapure water—and Chemical Mechanical Polishing (CMP), which involves slurry and chemicals to achieve wafer surface smoothness.
Innovations such as spray cleaning (which can use twenty times less water than immersion baths), dry cleaning methods like plasma ashing, and wastewater treatment processes allow fabs to minimize water consumption.