SEMICONDUCTOR

SentrySciences has products for ISO 14644-1 classification and monitoring of Class 1 and Class 2 cleanrooms, tools, and minienvironments. We offer both high-sensitivity condensation particle counters and traditional aerosol particle counters  that deliver up to eight channels of simultaneous data from 0.1 µm to 5.0 µm at 1 CFM. A High-Pressure Diffuser can be paired with almost any particle counter for sampling of CDA and other non-flammable process gases to ensure the gas is as clean as the environment to which they are delivered. With easy to configure on-board, recipe-driven reports for mini-environment qualification or routine tests, SentrySciences has the solutions you need. 

Need to measure down to 10 nm? No problem, we offer a Condensation Particle Counter (CPC) that provides ≥ 10 nm measurements with the industry’s best zero-count rate (0.07 particles/ft3). This water-based, laminar flow, high flow rate (0.1 CFM) instrument provides the confidence you need to monitor your critical cleanroom areas and mini environments. A High-Pressure Diffuser accessory enables sampling of process gases to the same 10 nm sensitivity. The high flow rate and ultra-low false count rate make this CPC the ideal choice for the low particle concentrations found in ISO Class 1 and Class 2 environments. 

SentrySciences offers aerosol particle counters and related download and analysis software you need to efficiently certify your cleanroom every year. With onboard recipes and built-in calculations for ISO 14644-1, certification and the related calculations are a snap. TrakPro Lite secure download software makes it easy to produce professional certification reports. 

Particle sources in cleanrooms can be elusive! Check out our portable and hand-held particle counters that can go with you to find those difficult to locate particle sources. We offer filter scanning probes to reach those awkward places and electronic filter scanning probes with beep mode, so you don’t have to look at the instrument to know counts are being registered during HEPA scans for leaks. 

For most cleanrooms, human activity is the primary source of particles and therefore heavily influences the particle deposition rate (PDR).  As a result, cleanrooms require special cleanroom gowning consideration. Gowning is critical to maintaining a clean environment by containing many shedding human and clothing-based particles.

In the at-rest state, especially in a unidirectional airflow design, particle deposition in a cleanroom is essentially zero. But as soon as personnel enter and processes are up and running, particles of all sizes (0.1 µm to 1mm) can be generated and spread. In cleanrooms with non-unidirectional airflow schemes, which is most cleanrooms and gowning areas, particles in the air tend to float everywhere. Larger particles will settle more quickly than smaller particles, with the settling rate dependent on their size. Smaller airborne particles < 5 µm can be removed effectively by the air flow through the cleanroom. Larger particles (macro particles) are not removed as effectively. Particles that are not removed deposit on exposed surfaces, and remain there until manual cleaning removes them, or normal personnel movements stir those particles back up into the air stream. 

APMON sensors collect 24/7 real-time data on the performance of your environment. They provide real-time particle deposition monitoring of unwanted macro-particles, and include the ability to trigger alarms in real-time. Particle deposition data shows when the raw number or particles, the PDR or cleanliness class exceeds maximum limits. This real-time solution offers a significant advantage over other monitoring techniques for large particles, which often require collecting a sample on a representative surface or filter that is later analyzed in a lab. Real-time monitoring and alarms for large particle deposition ensure that you know when the room needs to be cleaned,  or when your gowning processes might need to be reviewed and improved.

Monitoring and controlling differential pressure, temperature, humidity, airflow, and other environmental parameters in your cleanroom ensures that your manufacturing environment is performing as designed. Our experts at SentrySciences can help you ensure that differential pressure between areas limits particle transmission, and relative humidity levels stay in control and do not cause damage to your critical products, tools, and equipment. Maintaining a constant temperature ensures that technicians are more comfortable, which minimizes particle shedding due to human activity. We have a host of products to help you monitor and control these parameters in your cleanroom. 

ParticleSentryᴱᴹ is a full suite of premium products and services to help you monitor and detect contamination in your clean environments. But at SentrySciences, we go beyond just detection and monitoring – we help you identify the contamination at its source so you can control it. Our systems can be configured to monitor a wide variety of particle and environmental parameters all from one software package. These data can be used to identify and resolve contamination issues, define steady-state and alarm rules so that if your environment changes, you know. 

Finally, ParticleSentryᴱᴹ enables data sharing with other facility management systems via common communication protocols such as OPC-UA to inform decisions that control production yields, regulatory compliance, product quality and your bottom line. A sentry’s primary function is to control, and at SentrySciences, we like control!

Count on us – even after the sale! Calibration and maintenance for hardware components and monitoring system infrastructure is simple with SentrySciences. We provide rapid turnaround for calibration of particle monitoring equipment from our lab in Longmont, CO. Need to minimize disruption, or don’t have time to ship your instrument to us? We can calibrate on-site, and still deliver a fully traceable ISO 21501-4 compliant calibration. We are ISO 17025 accredited.