Our UV-LED exposure solutions increase the efficiency of advanced packaging processes.
Broadband stepper systems, also known as 1X Steppers or Mini-Steppers play an essential role in advanced packaging applications, such as Fan-Out Wafer-Level Packaging (FOWLP), Wafer-Level Chip-Scale Packaging (WLCSP) or Through Silicon Via (TSV). Complex microstructures like MEMS or LEDs are prominent examples to be manufactured on those highly specialized stepper devices.
Our broadband UV-LED light sources ALE/1 and ALE/1C are a perfect fit, if you want to upgrade your stepper to UV-LED illumination. By adopting our solution, you gain full flexibility on the choice of photosensitive advanced packaging materials you may need to apply in your process.
It is a unique setup that we use: Combining individual LED-Modules around the i-, h-, and g-line into one optical path allows you to have full control on the spectral composition of your broadband exposure in the range between 350-450 nm. As we provide elevated radiation output, you can replace any conventional high-power mercury arc lamp up to 1 kW or even higher – without the hassle of mercury waste disposal and tool downtime while swapping lamps.
With a Primelite ALE/1 UV-LED exposure unit integrated into your stepper, you can target resolutions down to 1 µm or even in the sub-micron range. Furthermore, our stable and highly reliable UV-LED illumination units provide superior system throughput at a lower cost of ownership.
I-Line, H-line, and G-line for Full Power
Many photolithography applications rely on broadband exposure encompassing i-, h-, and g-line (365/405/435 nm) radiation. We designed our ALE/1 UV-LED light sources to provide a very similar spectral output. This way, an upgrade of your existing photolithography process to UV-LED exposure requires as little adaptation as possible.

Apart from our broadband UV-LED exposure units, configurations with single (365 nm) or dual peak wavelengths (365/405 nm and 405/435 nm) are also available.
Comparing our ALE/1 Platform with a Mercury Arc Lamp
The ALE/1C is currently capable of providing broadband exposure of up to 50 W. Our light guide coupled system ALE/1 delivers up to 30 W.
Radiation output in Watts | Broadband | I-line |
(350-470 nm) | (350-385 nm) | |
Primelite’s UV-LED light source | ||
ALE/1C (w/ external chiller) | 50 | 22 |
ALE/1C (standard) | 40 | 18 |
ALE/1.3 | 27 | 10 |
Mercury arc lamp | ||
1000 W type | 37 | 18 |
500 W type | 19 | 9 |
Integrating ALE/1 and ALE/1C UV-LED Illumination Units into Steppers
Our UV-LED exposure solution replaces conventional lamp houses based on mercury discharge lamp technology. There are two different designs to choose from:
- Our fiber-coupled system ALE/1, featuring flexible liquid light guides to be coupled into the integration optics of broadband steppers.
- Our built-in solution ALE/1C, which follows a distributed design approach with a Control Subsystem (CSS) separated from the Exposure Subsystems (ESS).
Both systems may be customized to perfectly fit into your stepper. Also retrofitting – replacing a conventional lamp house in an existing system – is possible.

Super-fast Switching for Highest Accuracy
Switching time (0 to 100%) of our UV-LED exposure equipment is below 1 millisecond. Furthermore, an internal closed-loop feedback control system guarantees constant radiation output over short as well as longer exposure cycles. These features permit dose accuracies of ±0.2% for short 50-millisecond shots just by using a timer. It gets even better for longer exposure cycles (e.g., 300 milliseconds).
Highlights – Why ALE/1 and ALE/1C for Stepper Systems
- Single spot UV-LED light source for easy integration
- Stable, precise, consistent, high-intensity radiation output
- Flexible, polychromatic coverage of i-, h-, and g-line (350-450 nm), no need for optical filters
- Long service life and TCO benefits of UV-LED technology
- Improved operating safety unlike discharge lamps
- No extensive cooling needed (e.g., no nitrogen or CDA)
- No mechanical shutter needed (fast switching times below 1 millisecond)