Ceramic End Effector (Wafer End Effector) – Custom Alumina & SiC
A ceramic end effector is the blade or fork at the tip of a wafer transfer robot — the only part that touches the wafer, so it decides how much particle, breakage and placement error the tool generates. LONGYI is a Taiwan manufacturer of ceramic wafer end effectors in Alumina, Silicon Carbide and Anti-Static Ceramic, from sintering to the lapped, measured part — built to your drawing or reverse-engineered from a sample. OEM and ODM.
A ceramic end effector (wafer end effector) is a precision robot blade — typically 1.5–4.0 mm thick, flat to ≤ 0.05 mm, for 150 / 200 / 300 mm (6, 8 and 12-inch) wafers — that picks and places wafers by vacuum, edge grip, friction pad or Bernoulli lift. Alumina gives the best value, SiC the highest stiffness and heat resistance for long 300 mm blades, and Anti-Static Ceramic controls charge on ESD-sensitive devices.
Match the Cup to Your Slot Pitch
The rubber cup snaps into the ceramic blade. Under the cup runs the vacuum channel, closed by a ceramic cover plate — so the thinnest blade is 0.7 mm cover + 0.5 mm channel + the cup's snap-in depth. Pick the cup, and the blade thickness and total height follow.
| Cup part no. | Profile in blade (to scale) | Top Ø | Cup height | Above blade | Thinnest blade | Blade + cup | 3D model |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ESD-ND-11 | 10.3 mm | 2.0 mm | 1.0 mm | 2.2 mm | 3.2 mm | STEP ↓ | |
| ESD-ND-12 | 12.5 mm | 2.4 mm | 1.35 mm | 2.25 mm | 3.6 mm | STEP ↓ | |
| ESD-ND-15 | 15.0 mm | 3.15 mm | 1.15 mm | 3.2 mm | 4.35 mm | STEP ↓ |
Every combination fits a standard 300 mm FOUP slot (10 mm pitch). Other cup sizes, thicker blades and your own cup on request — download the STEP model to check the fit in your tool. ■ vacuum path
Why a Ceramic End Effector Instead of Metal
Four reasons engineers move from an aluminium or stainless blade to ceramic. The ceramic values are from LONGYI's own material data.
| Metal blade | LONGYI ceramic end effector | |
|---|---|---|
| Metal contamination | Bare or coated metal; a worn coating exposes metal to the wafer | No bare metal touches the wafer — 99% / 99.5% alumina or 99.8% SiC |
| Stiffness | Bends more at full reach for the same thickness | Young's modulus 360 GPa (99% alumina), 430–440 GPa (SiC) — less tip droop on a thin 300 mm blade |
| Heat | Expands and moves the teach point as it warms | Low expansion: 7.2 (alumina) and 3.7 (SiC) ×10⁻⁶/°C; our ceramic paddles are used at up to 400 °C |
| Flatness | Long thin blades are hard to keep flat | Lapped and measured — 0.05 mm or better, typical |
Metal and plastic blades are still fine for short-reach, cold, non-critical handling. Not sure which you need? Try the selector →
Ceramic End Effector Types We Build
The handling method — not the material — is the first decision. It is driven by what the back side of the wafer is allowed to touch, how thin or warped the wafer is, and whether the blade runs in atmosphere, vacuum or heat.
Which End Effector Do You Need?
Answer three questions about your wafer and your tool. You get the handling method and a starting material — our engineers confirm it against your drawing before anything is cut.
1May the wafer's back side be touched?
2What is the wafer like?
3Where does the blade run?
Vacuum End Effector
Vacuum pads hold the wafer for the strongest grip and the fastest moves. Rubber pads seat in machined recesses, so pad height stays repeatable and worn pads are replaced without scrapping the blade — we can supply the pad 3D models for your design.
Engineering Capability and Selection Reference
A selection reference for a custom ceramic wafer end effector. Values marked typical are our standard capability rather than a fixed catalogue item — the finished blade is defined by your drawing, your robot interface and your slot pitch.
| Technical Item | Capability |
|---|---|
| Product type | Ceramic wafer end effector / robot blade — vacuum, edge-grip, full-support, friction-pad or Bernoulli configuration. |
| Wafer sizes | 150, 200 and 300 mm standard; 100 mm, 450 mm and rectangular panel / FOPLP carriers on request. |
| Blade thickness | 1.5–4.0 mm TYPICAL Thinner tip sections where cassette pitch is tight — a stiffness-versus-clearance trade-off we run for you. |
| Blade length / reach | Up to approx. 500 mm overall TYPICAL Longer reach quoted case by case with a deflection review. |
| Flatness (seating plane) | ≤ 0.05 mm TYPICAL Lapped and inspected; tighter on request — specify on the drawing. |
| Tip deflection | Designed to stay within your slot envelope at full extension with a 300 mm wafer. Send slot pitch and reach and we confirm material and section. |
| Wafer contact | Rubber vacuum pads in machined recesses, full-support grooved face, edge-grip stops with front pusher, passive friction pads, or non-contact Bernoulli. |
| Vacuum interface | Internal drilled channel closed by a cover plate machined from the same ceramic as the body — no ceramic-to-metal expansion mismatch and no metal in the vacuum path. Rear port, hose barb, threaded fitting or robot-matched flange; multi-zone on request. |
| ESD / electrical | Insulating alumina by default · Anti-Static Ceramic body, volume resistivity 10⁶–10⁹ Ω·cm · ESD coating, surface resistance 10⁶–10⁹ Ω · anti-static rubber pads, volume resistivity 10⁶–10⁹ Ω·cm. |
| Service temperature | Ceramic paddles for use up to 400 °C; SiC is the usual choice for continuous hot-wafer transfer. Confirm chamber temperature and atmosphere with us. |
| Surface finish | As-ground, lapped or polished contact zones; edges chamfered and deburred against wafer scratching and particle nucleation. |
| Mounting interface | Machined to your robot wrist pattern — bolt circle, dowel location and blade datum reproduced from drawing or sample. |
| Customisation | Build to drawing · reverse engineering from a new or broken part · Bernoulli design service · rubber pad 3D models · prototypes from one piece. |
Three Ceramics, Chosen by Reach, Heat and Charge
All three are formed and sintered in our own plant, then machined on 5-axis CNC, lapped and measured in house. The blade material sets deflection, temperature limit and electrical behaviour.
Alumina — the default
Best value for 150/200 mm atmospheric transfer and moderate 300 mm reach. Stable, clean and machinable into thin sections with internal vacuum channels.
Silicon Carbide — reach & heat
Choose when a 300 mm blade at full extension must not sag, or when the blade lives in a hot chamber. The highest stiffness-to-weight of the three, with excellent thermal behaviour.
Anti-Static Ceramic — ESD
Specify when the device side is charge sensitive or the fab has a blade resistivity window. Dissipative — neither insulating nor fully conductive.
| Property | Alumina | SiC | ATC |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grade / purity | 99% · 99.5% | Sintered SiC | Anti-static ceramic |
| Density | ≈ 3.9 g/cm³ | 3.15 g/cm³ | 3.7 g/cm³ |
| Specific stiffness | Good | Highest | Good |
| Fracture toughness | 3–4 MPa·m½ | 3–4 MPa·m½ | 3–4 MPa·m½ |
| Electrical | Insulating | Conductive | 10⁶–10⁹ Ω·cm |
| High-temp service | Very good | Excellent | Good |
| Relative cost | $ | $$$ | $$ |
Three Ways to Make a Blade ESD-Safe
Bulk Anti-Static Ceramic — the body itself is dissipative, volume resistivity 10⁶–10⁹ Ω·cm. Nothing to wear through, so it holds its window at high cycle rates and in hot areas.
ESD coating on alumina — surface resistance 10⁶–10⁹ Ω on a dense alumina body, at lower cost. The coating is a surface layer, so continuous contact thins it over time.
Anti-static rubber pads — vacuum pads at 10⁶–10⁹ Ω·cm volume resistivity, so the contact point dissipates charge too.
Representative values for typical sintered grades, for selection guidance only — final properties are confirmed against the grade quoted for your part.
More Than Machining to Print
Most of our end effectors are designed with the customer, not picked from a catalogue. Three ways we help before the first blade is made.
RUBBER VACUUM PADSRubber pad 3D models for your own design
Our vacuum blades use rubber pads seated in machined recesses, so pad height — and the wafer plane — stays repeatable across a set, and a worn pad is replaced without scrapping the blade.
Designing the blade yourself? We provide 3D models of our rubber vacuum pads to drop straight into your CAD, so the recess is designed around a real part. Anti-static pads at 10⁶–10⁹ Ω·cm volume resistivity are available.
Request the pad 3D models →
BERNOULLI DESIGNBernoulli blades designed for your wafer
A Bernoulli blade only works when nozzle count, position and air path are balanced — otherwise lift is uneven and a thin wafer bends locally. We design that layout in house and machine the gas channels inside the ceramic body.
Send the wafer, the robot interface and your air supply. The air flow stays adjustable, so the hold can be tuned on your own tool.
▶ See how Bernoulli lift worksFrom a new part — or a broken one
No drawing? Send us the blade you are running — a new spare, or one that has already broken. We measure it on our own metrology equipment and rebuild the profile, mounting pattern, vacuum port and pad positions.
We confirm the reconstructed drawing with you before any ceramic is cut, then build the replacement in the material you specify.
Precision Measurement →The arm closes the gap. The wafer floats on the film.
A Bernoulli arm works with the wafer above it or below it. Either way it is the white ceramic arm that moves, slowly, and the wafer is held on a thin air film from six paddles — the wafer surface does not touch the blade. Black anti-static PEEK stoppers around the edge keep it centred, and the air flow is adjustable.
Tell us the wafer, the robot and the problem. Whether you need a pad 3D model, a Bernoulli design or a copy of a broken blade, send what you have — a drawing, a 3D file, photos or the part itself — and we will come back with a design review before quoting.
Ceramic Wafer End Effectors We Have Made
Parts built at LONGYI in alumina, silicon carbide and anti-static ceramic — full-support paddles, vacuum pad blades, Bernoulli non-contact blades and all-ceramic vacuum structures, produced to customer drawings and samples.
CLICK ANY PHOTO TO ENLARGE →
Product Videos
How a Bernoulli arm handles a wafer, end effectors we built to drawing, a blade running in production, and how one is made on our own floor.
Bernoulli Wafer Arm — Wafer Above or Below the Arm
A short animation of both Bernoulli modes: the arm closes the gap slowly from below or from above, and the wafer floats on a thin air film without touching the blade. Anti-static PEEK stoppers keep it centred.
Wafer End Effector FAQ
Common questions from equipment builders, refurbishers and fab engineers specifying a replacement or custom blade.
01What is a ceramic end effector?
A ceramic end effector is the blade or fork at the tip of a wafer transfer robot, made from technical ceramic — alumina, silicon carbide or anti-static ceramic — instead of metal or plastic. It is the only part of the robot that touches the wafer, so it defines how the wafer is held (vacuum, edge grip, friction pad or a non-contact Bernoulli air film) and largely determines particles, placement repeatability and breakage. “Wafer end effector” is the general name; a ceramic end effector is the version chosen when stiffness, cleanliness and heat matter.
02Why use a ceramic end effector instead of metal?
Because no bare metal touches the wafer, and the blade stays stiff, flat and stable when hot. Our 99% alumina has a Young's modulus of 360 GPa and our SiC 430–440 GPa, so a thin 300 mm blade droops less at full extension and stays clear of the slot below. Ceramic does not outgas, its dense surface sheds far fewer particles than a coated or anodised metal blade, and our ceramic paddles are used at up to 400 °C. Metal blades remain reasonable for short-reach, cold, non-critical handling.
03Which ceramic materials are used for wafer end effectors?
Mainly three. Alumina (99% or 99.5%) is the best value for 150/200 mm and moderate 300 mm reach, and is electrically insulating (>10¹⁴ Ω·cm). Silicon carbide (99.8%) gives the highest stiffness and thermal performance for long 300 mm blades and hot-wafer transfer — note that SiC is not an insulator. Anti-Static Ceramic is specified when the blade must sit in a 10⁶–10⁹ Ω·cm dissipative window for ESD-sensitive devices. We sinter our own ceramics in house.
Alumina material page → Silicon Carbide (SiC) material page →
04Do you make vacuum-groove or porous ceramic end effectors?
Vacuum-groove blades, yes: grooves, holding holes and concentric rings are machined into the blade face, or our snap-in rubber vacuum cups are fitted instead of grooves. For porous ceramic, we make porous ceramic vacuum chucks in house, so a porous vacuum area in a blade can be reviewed for your wafer — send the drawing and we confirm feasibility before quoting.
05Which wafer sizes do you support?
150, 200 and 300 mm wafers (6, 8 and 12-inch), including 300 mm framed wafers. 100 mm, 450 mm and panel formats are made on request, and extra-large ring, fork and paddle blades are built to drawing.
06Can you make an end effector from my drawing?
Yes — most of our end effectors are built to the customer's drawing. Send a 2D/3D file; every drawing is reviewed before machining and critical dimensions are 100% inspected. No drawing? Send the blade you are running — a new spare or a broken one — and we measure it, reconstruct the drawing and confirm it with you before cutting material.
07Should I choose a vacuum, edge-grip or Bernoulli end effector?
It depends on what the wafer back side allows. Vacuum blades give the strongest hold and the fastest motion, but touch the back side and need a vacuum line. Edge-grip forks touch only the bevel, which suits patterned or bonded back sides and vacuum environments. Friction-pad blades are the simple, robust choice inside vacuum transfer modules and hot chambers. Bernoulli blades do not touch the wafer surface and suit very thin, warped or fragile substrates.
08Does a Bernoulli end effector touch the wafer?
No — the wafer surface does not touch the blade. Whether the wafer sits above the arm or below it, the arm closes the gap slowly and the wafer is held on a thin air film created by the nozzles. Anti-static PEEK stoppers around the edge keep it centred, and the air flow is adjustable, so the holding force is tuned to the wafer and to the robot motion.
We design the nozzle layout and air path in house, and our ceramic paddles can be used at up to 400 °C.
09Can you supply 3D models of the rubber vacuum pads?
Yes. Our snap-in vacuum cups ESD-ND-11, ESD-ND-12 and ESD-ND-15 can be downloaded as STEP models from the cup table on this page, so you can place them in your CAD and design the blade around a real part. Anti-static pads with a volume resistivity of 10⁶–10⁹ Ω·cm are also available.
10Do you supply ESD-safe or anti-static end effectors?
Yes, three ways. A bulk Anti-Static Ceramic body with a volume resistivity of 10⁶–10⁹ Ω·cm — nothing to wear through, so it holds its window at high cycle rates. An ESD coating on alumina with a surface resistance of 10⁶–10⁹ Ω at lower cost. And anti-static rubber vacuum pads at 10⁶–10⁹ Ω·cm. Tell us your resistivity window, cycle rate and temperature and we recommend the route.
11What is the minimum order quantity and lead time?
We accept single-piece prototypes and small replacement batches as well as production quantities. Lead time depends on material, blade size and whether tooling is needed; send the drawing or sample and we confirm a schedule with the quotation.
12What information do you need to quote a wafer end effector?
Ideally: wafer size and material; handling method; reach and cassette slot pitch; maximum blade thickness; robot wrist mounting pattern; operating temperature and atmosphere; any ESD or particle specification — and for a Bernoulli blade, your air supply. A 2D/3D file or a physical sample covers most of this in one step.
Also Known As
Buyers and equipment engineers ask for this part under many names. A LONGYI wafer end effector is the same component described as:
If the drawing in front of you uses a different term, send it over — the part is almost certainly one we build.
Related Products
Materials Used for End Effectors
Engineering Capabilities
Porous Ceramic Vacuum Chucks
The wafers your end effector transfers still have to be held flat for grinding, dicing, laser processing and inspection. LONGYI manufactures porous ceramic vacuum chucks in house — one precision-ceramic partner for both handling and holding.
Have a Drawing — or a Broken Blade — to Replace?
Send it to our engineers. We review the wafer, the robot and the environment, recommend the handling method and material, and quote — prototypes from one piece.
LONGYI | Advanced Ceramic Manufacturer
