What is a Cleanroom?

You might be thinking a cleanroom refers to an organized and tidy space. However, a certified cleanroom is much more than that. A cleanroom is a space for conducting operations that are sensitive the particle contamination, such as semiconductor fabrication. Enviornmental factors are altered in order to provide a controlled clean atmosphere. Airborne particles are filtered out while temperature, humidity, and air flow are regulated.  

Cleanrooms are classified through a numbering system, which indicates the amount and size of particles contained within a specified enclosed room. Common nomenclature includes 1K or 10K cleanroom. The numerical values indicate the maximum number of particles that can be present to maintain air cleanliness.  

Full-body suits are worn prior to entering a cleanroom facility. These suits serve as a protection against hazardous chemicals that might be used and to reduce the particle count as much as possible. In addition, nitrile gloves, a face mask, and shoe coverings are also worn with the suit. This full-body suit protects substrate surfaces from particles emitted by human clothing, skin, hair and breath.  The video below features a look into wearing the proper cleanroom attire: 

To minimize particle contamination, staff at Platypus wear a protective cleanroom suit during fabrication of thin films. Contact us today to assist with your custom fabrication needs at