Showa Denko K.K. (SDK; Tokyo, Japan; www.sdk.co.jp) has expanded its capacity to produce high-purity hydrogen bromide (HBr), which is used in the manufacture of semiconductors, to 600 metric tons per year (m.t./yr), 1.5 times as much as the previous level. SDK started operation of the expanded HBr plant in March.
High-purity HBr is a specialty gas mainly used for fine-etching of polysilicon in the manufacturing processes of semiconductors, including NAND flash memories and DRAMs. In recent years, the demand for semiconductor memories has increased very rapidly, centering on the use in portable terminals and data centers. The semiconductor memory market is expected to continue growing at an annual rate of 10% to 20% or more in the future.
SDK has been producing and selling high-purity HBr since 1993, and also started in-house synthesis of crude HBr in 2008. SDK is the sole company in the world that has an integrated HBr production system that includes synthesis of crude HBr and purification to produce high-purity HBr gas.