Fixed Diamond Wire Sawing
Precision Powders and Engineered Coolants for Cutting-Edge Performance
As today’s rapidly evolving technology for wafering silicon and sapphire moves from loose abrasive sawing to fixed abrasive sawing, diamond has emerged as the abrasive of choice for delivering maximum performance in fixed diamond wire products. In these technically demanding applications, diamond is typically attached to thin precision steel wire using an electroplated nickel or resin bonding agent.
Saint-Gobain Surface Conditioning has developed a variety of highly engineered diamond powders for diverse wire applications used in the wafering, blocking, cropping and bricking of sapphire and silicon. We offer nickel-coated diamonds in coating weights from 5% to 50%, with surface morphology depending on the application.
Our proprietary manufacturing processes ensure the highest level of quality and consistency through precise control of critical parameters, including: size and distribution (PSD), shape/aspect ratio, coating thickness, and surface coverage.
Products Tailored to Your Application
Saint-Gobain’s uncoated and nickel-coated diamond products can be engineered to specific weights and chemistries to meet your most challenging wire coating process applications.
- MBE (Metal Bond Economy) — Designed for bricking & blocking, with sizes ranging from 30-40 micron to 90-110 micron
- MBDW (Metal Bond for Diamond Wire) — Designed for wafering applications, with good overall size and shape in sizes ranging from 8-16 micron to 30-40 micron
- MBDWP (Metal Bond for Diamond Wire Premium) — Same raw feed, but with tighter grading to create a controlled PSD for sizes ranging from 4-6 micron to 10-20 micron
- MBDWP2 — Same as MBDWP, but with a much tighter PSD with sizes ranging from 4-6 micron to 10-20 micron
Coolants for Fixed Diamond Wire
Saint-Gobain offers a line of highly engineered coolants that are specifically formulated for the cutting of semiconductor materials using a fixed abrasive wire, including silicon, germanium and II-VI crystals. Our coolants provide excellent cut rates and impart outstanding surface finishes with reduced warp and TTV, while offering superior dispersion of kerf particles and cooling of the cut zone.
Saint-Gobain silicon slice coolants effectively eliminate hydrogen gas evolution when cutting silicon and during waste treatment. These coolants extend abrasive wire life, allowing the slicing of multiple ingots while maintaining performance properties. Our unique formulas are biodegradable, water rinsable and will not leave films or residues.
Saint-Gobain coolants cover the full range of core wire (CW) diameters — from standard 80 micron CW using 8-16 micron diamond down to 40 micron CW using 4-6 micron diamond.
Features and Benefits
- Provides excellent cut rates and outstanding surface finishes
- Prevents kerf from loading wire
- Reduced warp and TTV
- Eliminates hydrogen gas evolution (silicon coolants)
- Superior particle dispersion
- Biodegradable — poses no environmental or health risks
- Minimal contamination of parts
- Water rinsable for easy cleaning
