Abstract: The invention described here relates to a gas injector for use in a semiconductor etching process or other processes involving aggressive gases or gas plasmas, and more particularly to a gas injector and gas conduits having extended usage life, and exhibiting less etching and particle generation with usage. In most semiconductor manufacturing processes for the etching of a semiconductor wafer, the uppermost portion of a wafer is selectively removed through holes formed in a photoresist layer in the processes' etching step. The etching process is carried out in a sealed chamber into which gases or gas plasmas such as, for example, CF4, CHF3, O2, NF3, He, and argon gas are injected. Commonly, a gas supplying device and a gas injector are required to provide the gas(es) to the reaction chambers and to exhaust the gas(es) from the chamber once the process is completed. In addition to being exposed to the gases, these components may be exposed to the plasma etch process.

Abstract: The invention provides a wafer boat for housing a semiconductor or a solar wafer that includes at least one wafer support member containing at least one slot capable of receiving at least a portion of a peripheral edge of a wafer, wherein in the wafer support member comprises silicon carbide; and at least one structural member for conveying the wafer boat into and out of a processing device connected to the wafer support member , wherein the structural member is comprised of a ceramic material that is not silicon carbide. Also included are methods of manufacturing a wafer boat having increased durability and/or chip resistance.