Toray Industries, Inc., announced that it has developed a highly antistatic version of TOYOLACPARELTM acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) resin.
The surface resistivity is 109Ω/sq (one billion ohms per square), one-fifth that of the company’s conventional counterpart. Used in trays, cases, and other handling equipment for semiconductor and electronic device manufacturing and other ultra-precise operations, the new grade can suppress the generation of minute levels of static electricity, thereby lowering the risk of product damage or defects from dust and other contaminants. Toray will begin providing samples to customers from next fiscal year and will continue research and development.
The semiconductor market has grown rapidly in recent years. As devices become smaller and more highly integrated, even small amounts of static electricity can cause product damage and reduce yields. This is driving demand for higher antistatic performance in handling materials for manufacturing processes. There is also a rising need for transparent cases and color-coded parts, making design and appearance important. While antistatic ABS resins containing conductive fillers are widely used, their antistatic durability, molded-part appearance, and color flexibility are limited. This has increased the need for new material that can simultaneously address these issues.
TOYOLACPAREL provides durable antistatic performance by forming a continuous-layer network of antistatic polymer in the ABS resin. The TOYOLACPAREL line is widely used in semiconductor manufacturing processes. The excellent surface resistivity of the new version reflects an improved molecular design and micro-scale control of the continuous-layer structure with proprietary polymer alloy technology. This further expands the potential of the high-antistatic TOYOLACPAREL lineup, supporting a wider range of applications and meeting more stringent antistatic requirements.