Cubic Advanced Gas Sensing Solutions Power Precision Environmental Control in Flat Panel Manufacturing

Ensuring Environmental Stability with Cubic High-Performance Optical Particle Counter and HVAC Controller

Rising Monitoring Demand for Flat Panel Manufacturing

Flat panel displays have become essential components of modern electronic systems, supporting applications across smartphones, laptops, televisions, automotive displays, and other advanced electronics. As display products evolve toward higher resolution, larger size, and thinner structures, the underlying technologies and manufacturing processes are becoming increasingly complex. Even microscopic particle contamination can directly affect product quality and production yield, placing greater demands on contamination control in precision manufacturing. The contamination-sensitive requirements directly influence each stage of the production process, from thin-film deposition and photolithography to etching and cell assembly.

The production of flat panel displays involves a series of highly sophisticated processes, including thin-film deposition, photolithography, etching, and cell assembly. The processes operate at micron and sub-micron scales, where even minimal environmental disturbances can have a significant impact. In particular, airborne particles represent one of the most critical sources of contamination. Sub-micron particles can interfere with pattern transfer during photolithography, cause defects in thin-film structures, or become trapped between layers during assembly, ultimately leading to product defects. Therefore, effective control of airborne particles is essential for ensuring manufacturing process reliability and stability.

In practice, flat panel manufacturing is typically carried out in highly controlled environments, including clean-rooms, designed to minimize airborne contamination. In addition, international standards have been established to define and regulate the manufacturing environment, with the ISO 14644 series serving as the global benchmark. For example, ISO 14644-1 defines air cleanliness levels based on particle concentration, while ISO 14644-2 specifies the testing requirements needed to demonstrate and maintain compliance. The standards emphasize the importance of continuous monitoring and control of environmental conditions through defined framework.

Cubic Advanced Monitoring Solutions for Flat Panel Manufacturing

In response to the industry demand, Cubic, a leading manufacturer of gas sensors and analyzers, has developed the online optical particle counter based on light-scattering technology platform. The optical particle counter adopts high-power industrial-grade laser and photoelectric conversion technology for precise measurement of the airborne particles in real time across wide measurement range. In addition, the optical particle counter features 5-channel output at 0.3 μm, 0.5 μm, 1.0 μm, 5.0 μm, and 10 μm, allowing detailed insights into particle size distribution across multiple size thresholds. The capability is essential for understanding contamination sources and evaluating clean-room performance in accordance with ISO 14644 standards, while supporting continuous monitoring in critical production areas. Other than the core features, the online optical particle counter has a 3.5-inch multilingual touch screen and supports both RS485 and MQTT protocols for flexible integration.

Beyond the particles, the physical and chemical properties of OLED organic materials are highly sensitive to changes in temperature and humidity. So temperature fluctuations can affect the evaporation rate of organic materials, leading to variations in film thickness and uniformity, while excessive humidity may cause electrode corrosion and reduced luminous efficiency. Therefore, in flat panel manufacturing environment, the temperature is typically controlled at 23 ± 1°C, and the relative humidity is maintained at 40% ± 5% RH. In response, Cubic offers HVAC controller based on NDIR, light scattering, and MEMS MOX technology for real-time monitoring of CO2, PM, VOC, temperature and humidity. The HVAC controller support accurate and reliable wireless monitoring, making installation flexible and reducing the need for on-site calibration. With a built-in touch screen, users can easily view data and adjust settings.

As the flat panel manufacturing industry continues to evolve, the demand for precise and comprehensive monitoring solutions remains essential. With a strong foundation in core sensor development and customer-driven innovation, Cubic delivers industrial sensing solutions that emphasize measurement accuracy, long-term stability, and alignment with international standards, supporting controlled facility environments throughout the entire manufacturing process.

For more detailed information, please visit https://en.gassensor.com.cn/LaserParticleCounter/list.html or contact us via [email protected]