TMC offers a highly sophisticated active vibration cancellation system called STACIS® III, which performs vibration cancellation in real time through continuous measurement of floor activity and expansion and contraction of piezoelectric actuators for filtering out floor motion.
With a worldwide installation of over hundreds of systems, most tool manufacturers prefer STACIS as it is recognized as the most suitable solution to cancel vibration for the most vibration-sensitive instruments.
Key Features and Advantages
STACIS® III is equipped with sophisticated piezoelectric actuators, advanced control algorithms, cutting-edge inertial vibration sensors, and the DC-2020, a new and optimized digital controller. The new hi-tech control system also features a new dual-core processor, Ethernet and USB serial ports on its front and rear panels, and user-friendly graphical user interface (GUI).
STACIS does not have the limitations of air vibration isolation systems as it has stiffness hundreds of times more than air isolators. The absence of “soft” suspension is another key feature of this novel system. STACIS is different from active air systems and can be placed underneath a tool featuring an integrated active air isolation system. This approach enables full optimization of both the systems.
With the exclusive serial design and proprietary high-force piezoelectric technology, STACIS® III has a broad active bandwidth ranging from 0.6 Hz to 150 Hz and unprecedented vibration cancellation at 1-3 Hz. It provides 40% to 70% isolation at 1 Hz, and over 90% isolation both vertically and horizontally at frequencies 2 Hz and higher. With a six degree-of-freedom active hard mount design, the powerful control system does not require scheduled re-tuning.
Besides lowering floor construction costs, STACIS® III enables deployment of tools in higher vibration environments. It is a point-of-use solution with compatibility to all types of internal tool vibration isolation systems. In areas where vibration levels increase with respect to time, the STACIS® III system ensures compliance with tool vibration criteria. With piezoelectric actuators, it isolates vibrations using TMC’s STACIS® technology.
With compatibility to diverse floor heights and sub-floor geometries in fabs, STACIS® III helps accommodating sophisticated tools in older and noisier floors. The RoHS-compliant version is also offered by TMC.
Specifications of STACIS® III System
The following table summarizes the key performance specifications of the STACIS® III system:
| Performance Specifications |
| Active degrees of freedom |
6 |
| Active bandwidth |
0.6 to 150 Hz |
| Natural frequency |
Passive elastomer. 18 Hz
Effective active resonant frequency: 0.5 Hz |
| Isolation at 1.0 Hz |
40% - 70% |
| Isolation at 2.0 Hz and above |
90% or better |
| Settling time after a 10 lb (4.5 kg) step input (10:1 reduction) |
0.3 sec |
| Internal noise |
<0.1 nm RMS |
| Operating load range per isolator (different passive mounts required) Isolator overload safety factor |
400 - 4,500 lb
(182 - 2,045 kg)
>2:1 |
| Number of isolators |
3 or 4 typical |
| Stiffness (1,000 lb/454 kg mass) (typical middle capacity isolator) |
40,000 lb/in.
(73 x106 Wm) |
| Magnetic field emitted |
<0.02 micro -gauss broadband RMS |
The key specifications of the DC-2020 controller are listed in the following table:
| Isolator Dimensions, Environmental & Utility Requirements |
| Isolator size |
11.75 in. (W) x 12.5 in. (D) x 10.8 in. (H)
(300 x 320 x 275 mm) |
| Isolator weight |
75 lb (34 kg |
| Controller size |
19 in. (w) x 8.5 in. (D) x 1.75 in. (H)
(483 x 381 x 44 mm) |
| Temp., operating |
50° to -F90 °F (10 to 32 °C) |
| Temp., storage |
-40° to 255 °F (-40 to 125 °C) |
| Humidity, operating |
30- 60% |
| Power required |
100, 120, 230 or 240 volts; 50/60 Hz; <600 watts, CE compliant |
| Floor displacement |
<480 µ in. (12 µm) below 10 Hz |
| Options: TMC laminated, stainless steel platforms, frames, "risers," leveling devices, earthquake restraints, and lifthoods |
The isolator dimensions, environmental, and utility requirements are given as below:
| DC -2020 Controller Specifications |
| Physical dimensions |
1.75" (45 mm) H x 19' (483 mm) W x 8.5" (216 mm) D
RETMA rack mountable with optional brackets |
| Weight |
6.3 lb. (2.9 kg) |
| Processor |
Dual core processor 150/75 MHz |
| Sampling rate |
10 KHz |
| Analog outputs |
16 channels |
| Analog inputs |
16 channels |
| Status light |
Single LED |
| Front panel ports |
Serial USB 2.0
Serial Micro USB
Ethernet RJ-45
2 BNC connectors |
| Rear panel ports |
Ethernet RJ-45
Serial USB 2.0
RS -232 DB-9 legacy serial port (compatible with STACIS 2100) |
| User interfaces |
Character menu on HyperTerminal
Extended GUI on Windows -Based PC
Embedded Ethernet GUI control pages |
Performance of STACIS® III System
The performance advantage of STACIS® III is depicted in the following graph:
Key Applications
The STACIS® III not only improves quality, but also enhances throughput and yield. It is originally devised for isolating precision microlithography, inspection, and metrology equipment used in cutting-edge semiconductor factories.
STACIS is now recognized as the standard industry solution to cancel vibration for the most sensitive systems operating in noisy conditions, such as semiconductor fabs, materials research, nanofabrication facilities, failure analysis labs and much more.
TMC’s STACIS® III Piezoelectric Active Vibration Cancellation System
STACIS® III (Piezoelectric Active Vibration Cancellation System)
STACIS® System on “risers” installed under a custom designed TMC Quiet Island® subfloor platform to support an eBeam lithography tool in a 36” tall raised floor.
A STACIS® System, incorporating a non-ferromagnetic, highly damped, aluminum platform, provides a second stage of vibration isolation for a Bruker BioSpin 600 MHz NMR Spectrometer. Photo courtesy of Bruker BioSpin and Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.
DC-2020 and PC-Bassed Graphical User Interface
STACIS® supporting the end chambers of a prototype LIGO interferometer at the California Institute of Technology. These are the most precise instruments ever made – capable of measuring distances of less than 10-18 meters.