Oh, sorry.? I missed this message which provides the context I was looking for.? ?I can't think of any reason one would build a plasma etcher out of something that is particularly toxic, BUT, I would be more concerned about what someone could etch in a plasma etcher.? Gallium Arsenide comes to mind.? But looking that up now on Wikipedia, it's debateably carcinogenic.? ?Just the same, I wouldn't play scratch and sniff with the stuff.? ?Wash your hands really well, and try not to inhale anything as you chip away or grind or sand.? Better yet, wear a mask.? ?
None of the soft heavy metals and going to kill you instantaneously.? ?You'll just have to get them recycled properly.? ?You can burn a chip of the stuff to see if it melts or burns at a low temperature to try to identify it.? Definietly don't breath those vapors.
First guess, without knowing more about this system is that it's some sort of a protective alumina/ceramic plate glued onto the aluminum cover plate of the etcher, to protect if from etching.? ?Just a guess.? You can measure the density of the metal plate once you clean it up.
? Dan
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On Sunday, December 2, 2018, 3:17:09 PM EST, John Griessen <john@...> wrote:
It's parts of a plasma etcher that are in the high vacuum area.? The ceramic plate had wafer lifting pins and was bonded
to a thick aluminum plate with low temp metal brazing.
I can gouge it easily at a temperature of 60 deg F and the tool feels sticky.? A push and twist captures the tool and holds its
cantilevered weight.
Could this be Woods metal?? Gallium?? Toxic Mercury Cadmium Lead amalgam?
I am thinking it must have been stable in vacuum with some warm temperatures when the etcher was running...
