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| The BALL Solution: Spheres in motion |
| Ball Semiconductor Inc. is leading a revolution in the semiconductor industry with a simple idea: a one-millimeter spherical semiconductor in place of today's flat, rectangular chip. BALL technology will enable the production of spherical (ball) semiconductors in a single, enclosed process. Using a manufacturing line of small tubes and pipes, the Ball Semiconductors will be manufactured in a single process using the proven technologies of gasses, chemical reactions and solid-state physics of semiconductor manufacturing. |
 Our process begins with the sorting of very small polycrystal silicon granules that are then processed into single-crystal silicon balls. Initially, the company is producing 1-mm single-crystal balls; but we also intend to develop the capability to produce smaller balls. We anticipate that the balls will be in constant motion as they are processed, treated, and transported at high speed through hermetically sealed pipes and tubes during various processes for crystal-growing, grinding and polishing steps as well as for the repeated cleaning, drying, diffusion, film deposition, wet and dry etching, coating, and exposing steps of the integrated-circuit manufacturing process. The spheres are exposed to air only during photolithography; thus, there is no need for the traditional -- and expensive -- clean room. |
| Our vision is to form a new industry. The current semiconductor industry focuses on making integrated circuits on flat-surface wafers, with chips becoming ever more complex, wafers becoming ever larger, and the manufacturing process increasing exponentially in complexity and cost with each new generation. Our idea is to make semiconductors on 1-millimeter spheres, and then go down to .8 millimeters in diameter, .5, .1, and smaller. The company has already been granted U.S. patents covering process methods for three-dimensional integrated circuits. |
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