Surface cleaning with the carbon dioxide snow jet

Surface cleaning using a carbon dioxide snow jet incorporates a high-velocity stream of small dry ice particles and gas which is directed towards a contaminated surface. The resulting interactions between the snow particles and surface contamination lead to particulate and hydrocarbon removal. Past work has demonstrated removal of micron and submicron particles and also hydrocarbon and silicone-based stains from many different samples including Si, GaAs, InP wafers, metals, ceramics, UHV components, glass, optical components, and electronic devices. Several typical applications and examples are discussed along with the experimental parameters for effective carbon dioxide snow cleaning. The above results supports previous findings that carbon dioxide snow cleaning is nondestructive, nonabrasive, and residue-free, thus making this cleaning procedure acceptable for many critical cleaning applications.