Vertical Wafer Shipping Boxes for 25-Wafer Lots
An ePRO™ wafer shipping box holds up to 25 wafers vertically by the edge, in a cassette clamped between a lid and a base. ePAK builds the line for 100mm to 200mm wafers in three generations; ePRO II and ePRO III offer a choice of lid cushions matched to wafer thickness and fill level.
A vertical wafer shipper keeps wafers upright in individual slots, so wafer faces do not touch each other or an interleaf. Each ePRO box has three parts: a base, a slotted cassette that holds the wafers by the edge, and a lid whose cushions press on the top edge of every wafer when the box is closed. This holds each wafer in its slot during transport. The format is used for raw silicon wafer shipping from wafering to device fabs, for full and partial lots.
The three generations differ in lid and outer format. ePRO has a replaceable snap-in lid cushion and a high parting line between base and lid, and stacks with other ePRO boxes of the same size. ePRO II has integral, non-removable lid cushions and stacks with ePRO III. ePRO III follows the outer dimensions of common industry 25-wafer shipping boxes of the same size and stacks with them. The standard cassette is the same in all three generations.
The lid cushion determines how each wafer is held. Single row continuous cushions are a simple design for full-thickness wafers. Double row isolated cushions give every wafer its own cushion: they work with full and partial lots, suit both full-thickness and thinner wafers, reduce cross-slotting and limit wafer rotation during transport. Horizontal isolated cushions, also a simple design for full-thickness wafers, are available in all four ePRO III sizes including 200mm. Double row dual contact cushions, available for 150mm and used with a matching cassette, use fine tips that separate the wafers for correct lid placement and two contact points that control the extra weight of wafers up to 1.5mm thick. These thickness limits are general guidelines: confirm the cushion against your own wafer specification and shipping conditions.
Three variants cover specific requirements. ePRO-THIN boxes are cataloged for thinned 100mm wafers under 0.3mm. The ePRO PC-Lid Series for 200mm wafers combines a transparent polycarbonate lid with a pressure-equalization gasket for vacuum moisture barrier bag (MBB) packing, and offers E1, E5 and E3 style cassettes to match installed tooling. A 13-slot 200mm ePRO III shipper with an individual cushion per slot carries sapphire, glass and silicon substrates.
ePAK manufactures ePRO boxes from ultra-clean polypropylene; the molded parts are cleaned, inspected and bagged before shipment. For transport, overPAK™ cushion sets are cataloged for ePRO, ePRO II and ePRO III boxes, holding one to six boxes per set depending on size. For horizontal coin-stack shipping, see the eLX™ zero-movement canister; for silicon carbide programs, see eSiC wafer handling.
