Brewer Science Cee 200X spin coater

Where the Cee 200X fits

The Brewer Science Cee 200X is a benchtop spin coater for photoresist, polyimide, spin-on glass and other liquid films. It stores multi-step recipes, holds substrates from small pieces up to 200 mm wafers on vacuum chucks, and is one of the most common coaters in university cleanrooms. Labs look for a used Cee 200X when they want a second coater dedicated to one material, so that a contaminating or hard-to-clean resist does not share a bowl with everything else.

It is a coater, not a full track: baking happens on separate hotplates, and develop is usually done in another bowl or a wet bench. Some Cee bowls are set up as developers; we confirm which role a used unit was built for.

The two set-ups differ in their plumbing. A developer bowl typically carries spray or puddle dispense for developer and a deionised-water rinse, with a drain suited to aqueous waste. A coater bowl is built around resist dispense, solvent-resistant parts and solvent waste. Moving a unit from one role to the other means changing the dispense, the drain routing and sometimes bowl parts, and keeping developer and resist in separate bowls avoids cross-contamination, so buy the role you need. For exposure after coating, see the mask aligners in our lithography range.

Typical wear and what we check

Spin coaters are simple, and the faults are predictable:

• Spindle motor and seal: speed accuracy across the range, vibration at high speed and wear of the shaft seal, which lets solvent reach the motor.
• Vacuum chuck: flatness, scratches and leaks that let wafers slip or fly off.
• Bowl and drain: resist build-up, cracked liners and blocked drain lines.
• Lid and interlocks: the lid interlock must stop spinning when opened; we test it every time.
• Controller: display, keypad, stored recipes and the speed readout.
• Dispense: syringe or automatic dispense function, depending on configuration.

The inspection report gives measured speed at several set points, the chucks included and photos of the bowl and seal area.

Refurbishment and service

Refurbishing a used coater means a deep clean of the bowl and drain, a new spindle seal where needed, replacement of worn chuck O-rings or chucks, a check of the interlocks and a speed calibration. A repair and troubleshooting visit for a coater already in your lab usually covers the same items, plus a fix for whatever stopped the tool. We source parts from third-party and used stock and are independent of Brewer Science.

Facilities

• Single-phase mains power
• Vacuum for the chuck, from house vacuum or a small pump
• Nitrogen, depending on configuration and dispense option
• Exhaust through the hood or a bowl exhaust connection
• Solvent waste drain or collection bottle

Buying advice

A coater's age matters less than its seal, chuck and interlock condition. Ask which chucks come with it, what materials it has coated and whether the controller still holds recipes. If it will run a single dedicated material, an older unit is usually fine. For a primary coater that many users share, consider service history carefully and plan for preventive maintenance, because a worn spindle seal is the most common cause of a sudden failure.