Making Every Drop Count: Precision Spray Technology for the Semiconductor Industry

Semiconductors make modern life possible - smartphones, electric vehicles, data centers, industrial automation, and more. But while chips are everywhere, the work that goes into manufacturing them happens at an extreme level of precision, inside some of the most tightly controlled environments in the world.

In a recent interview, Rosuan, Sales Engineer at Spraying Systems Co. and part of our Semiconductor Market Development group, explains what semiconductors really are, why chip manufacturing is so demanding, and how spray technology supports semiconductor fabs - from high-precision processes at the nanoscale to large-scale water and exhaust treatment systems.

What is a semiconductor (in simple terms)?

The term semiconductor gets used constantly - but it’s often unclear what it actually means. As Rosuan explains, semiconductors are special materials (most commonly silicon, but also silicon carbide (SiC) and gallium nitride (GaN)) that can control the flow of electricity.

A helpful analogy: semiconductors act like traffic lights for electricity. Sometimes they let current pass, sometimes they block it, and sometimes they guide it in the right direction at exactly the right time. That controllability is what enables transistors - tiny switches that form the building blocks of every microchip. Put billions (and in many cases tens of billions) of these transistors together, and you get the chips behind today’s technology.

Why chip manufacturing is so challenging

Semiconductor manufacturing is fascinating for one reason above all: scale.

To put it in perspective, a human hair is roughly 80,000 to 100,000 nanometers wide. In advanced microchip manufacturing, features can be as small as 5 to 10 nanometers. At that scale, precision isn’t optional - it’s everything.

When a droplet affects yield

Rosuan explains that even something as small as a droplet that’s slightly off in size can disrupt a process step and reduce yield. And yield is what really drives performance and profitability:

• Higher yield = more usable product, less waste, lower cost
• Lower yield = fewer usable chips, more scrap, higher cost

In other words, in a fab, tiny inconsistencies can have massive consequences.

Contamination control: the invisible threat

Another major pain point is contamination. Dust particles too small to see can ruin an entire batch. That’s why controlling both liquids and air is critical throughout the fab environment.

This is where consistency and control matter just as much as the equipment itself - because when tolerances shrink, the allowable margin for variation shrinks with it.

Efficiency pressures: doing more with less

Semiconductor manufacturers are also working to reduce resource use - especially water and chemicals - without compromising results. That combination can feel impossible.

Rosuan compares it to being asked to paint the Mona Lisa with exactly one drop of paint - and it has to be perfect every time.

The push for efficiency is real, and it’s not going away:

• Reduce consumption
• Improve process stability
• Maintain (or improve) output and yield
  
  
  

It’s not only nanoscale: fabs also run on large-scale systems

When people picture semiconductor manufacturing, they often imagine only high-tech cleanrooms and tiny features on wafers. But fabs also handle very practical, high-volume streams - especially wastewater and exhaust.

Every fab produces significant volumes of:

• Wastewater
• Exhaust gases
• Slurries and other process byproducts

Spray technology plays a key role in managing these streams safely and efficiently.

Where sprays help in a fab

In the interview, Rosuan describes how spray systems can support:

• Scrubbers to capture acids and gases before exhaust is released
• Wastewater treatment, including neutralization and heavy-metal handling
• Cooling slurry streams that might otherwise overheat equipment
• Odor and volatile compound control in tanks and holding systems
• Membrane support, helping maintain system performance
• Ultra-pure water polishing and reuse to improve sustainability and efficiency

So while one part of the semiconductor story is nanoscale precision, another part is large-scale flow management - and sprays are essential to both.

Moore’s Law keeps pushing limits

As chips evolve, everything gets smaller, faster, and more complex. Rosuan points to Moore’s Law - often described as the expectation that transistor density doubles roughly every two years - as a way to understand why demands keep increasing.

Each new generation tightens tolerances and reduces the margin for error, which means the demands on precision spraying and process reliability only get tougher over time.

Not just a nozzle: working as a spray technology partner

One of the strongest themes from the interview is that semiconductor manufacturers don’t need off-the-shelf answers. They need solutions built around their specific process requirements.

Rosuan describes the approach as straightforward:

1. Listen carefully
2. Understand the process
3. Develop the solution together

Sometimes that means using an existing product. Sometimes that means customizing or co-creating something new. Either way, the goal is the same: deliver a solution that fits the application “like a glove.”

What makes Spraying Systems Co. unique in semiconductors?

Rosuan summarizes it in two words: focus and experience.

Spray technology is what we do - and we’ve built deep expertise across industries, including the unique constraints of semiconductor manufacturing. That includes understanding how fabs operate, how strict performance requirements are, and how essential confidentiality is in this space.

Validation: proving performance before installation

In high-stakes environments, confidence comes from validation. Rosuan highlights the importance of proving that a solution will work through testing and technical support - supported by strong internal capabilities like labs, modeling tools, and R&D.

Just as important: decades of real-world spray application experience help ensure recommendations are grounded in proven results, not guesses.

The message to remember: Make Every Drop Count

Semiconductor manufacturing comes down to precision, yield, and efficiency - and ultimately, how well every single drop is controlled and used.

That’s why Rosuan’s closing message is simple: at Spraying Systems Co. we make every drop count.

Want to learn more about our solutions? Reach out to see what precision spraying can do for you.