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NANYTE
Buyer’s guide

BEAM vs benchtop
laser writers.

The NANYTE BEAM is a maskless lithography system that exposes an entire writefield at once by DMD projection, in a true desktop format — where benchtop laser writers scan a single spot across the substrate serially. Evaluating a Heidelberg µMLA, a Durham MicroWriter, or a Kloe DILASE? This page explains how the BEAM fits that shortlist — what it does, what to verify on any quote, and where each class of tool genuinely wins.

01 · Ground rules

How this page works

Two ground rules keep this page useful and fair. First: every number here is about BEAM, drawn from our published specifications — demonstrated figures are marked as such, and guaranteed values live in the full spec tables. Second: we don’t publish other vendors’ numbers. Specifications change with every product revision, and a stale figure is worse than none — get current datasheets and quotes from each vendor on your shortlist and compare them directly.

What we can do is tell you exactly what to ask. The checklist below is written to be applied to every system you are considering — including ours.

02 · The shortlist

The systems buyers compare

Five names come up in nearly every BEAM evaluation — established tools from serious vendors. Here is where BEAM sits relative to each, in BEAM’s numbers only.

HEIDELBERG INSTRUMENTS

µMLA / MLA / DWL series

Heidelberg Instruments is the most established name in direct-write lithography, with systems spanning benchtop maskless aligners through high-end mask writers. If you are evaluating a µMLA-class tool you are typically after photomask-free UV patterning for R&D — exactly the job BEAM was built for. Where BEAM differentiates is infrastructure: a true desktop instrument from 310 × 340 × 335 mm and 20 kg, running from a wall socket with no compressed air, gas, or cooling water, writing sub-0.4 µm features edge-to-edge across an 8-inch wafer, with 16-bit grayscale on the Advanced engine. For Heidelberg’s current numbers, request their datasheet and quote — then compare line by line.

DURHAM MAGNETO OPTICS

MicroWriter ML series

The MicroWriter ML series is a popular compact laser writer in university cleanrooms, and buyers in this class usually weigh footprint, resolution, speed, and budget. BEAM’s public answers on those axes: a desktop footprint from 20 kg, sub-0.4 µm minimum feature on the Standard and Advanced engines, writefields exposed in under 0.1 s, and a 2.5×–50× objective ladder that trades resolution against write speed in seconds. We know of no other maskless system that offers 0.4 µm at BEAM’s price point — verify that against your MicroWriter quote.

KLOE

DILASE series

Kloe’s DILASE range covers laser direct writing from research through production formats. The first architecture question to settle: DILASE tools write with a scanned laser spot, while BEAM is a DMD projection system that exposes an entire writefield at once — under 0.1 s per field — which changes how throughput scales with pattern complexity. BEAM covers substrates up to 8 inches (200 mm) with 0.5 µm through-the-lens overlay; the checklist below turns the architecture difference into concrete questions for both vendors.

MICROLIGHT3D

Smart Print UV

Microlight3D’s Smart Print UV is another compact maskless UV system aimed at labs. In this class, the separating questions are minimum feature size, patterning area, grayscale depth, and design workflow. BEAM’s public answers: sub-0.4 µm demonstrated edge-to-edge across 200 mm, 16-bit grayscale (65,536 dose levels) on the Advanced engine, dual 365 + 405 nm exposure, and native GDSII / OASIS handling with Glyph, NANYTE’s free browser-based layout editor.

POLOS® BEAM / SIMTRUM

Same tool, different label

Searching for POLOS® BEAM or Simtrum’s BEAM maskless lithography system? You’ve found the manufacturer. NANYTE (Singapore) designs and builds BEAM; the identical system is offered as POLOS® BEAM through Semiconductor Production Systems (SPS) and distributed by SIMTRUM — same hardware, same specifications. For demos and the datasheet, you can contact NANYTE directly.

03 · The checklist

A buyer’s checklist for maskless systems

Specifications only become comparable when they are quoted the same way. Each row pairs BEAM’s public answer with the question that makes any vendor’s number comparable — including ours.

CriterionNANYTE BEAMWhat to verify on any system
ArchitectureDMD projection — full writefield per exposure (<0.1 s), stepped across the substrateScanned-spot laser or DMD projection? It drives how throughput scales with pattern complexity
Minimum feature<0.4 µm (Standard / Advanced) · 1.5 µm (Lite)Quoted at which objective and write mode — and is it demonstrated or guaranteed?
Patterning areaUp to 200 × 200 mm (BEAM XL8), resolution held edge-to-edgeDoes resolution hold across the full stage travel, or only at the centre?
Overlay / alignment0.5 µm, through-the-lens · backside alignment optionalThrough-the-lens or a separate camera? Overlay spec under what conditions?
Grayscale16-bit — 65,536 dose levels (Advanced) · 8-bit (Lite / Standard)Bit depth, and whether grayscale is native dose control or a software workaround
Wavelengths365 + 405 nm, software-selectable (Advanced)Single or dual wavelength — and which resists on your list does that exclude?
FootprintFrom 310 × 340 × 335 mm and 20 kg — installs on a lab benchBench or floor-standing? Site preparation and vibration-isolation requirements
UtilitiesWall socket only — no compressed air, gas, or water · <50 WCompressed air, chiller, or gas requirements — and their running cost
File formatsGDS · OASIS · CIF · DXF · Gerber + BMP / PNG / TIFF grayscale bitmapsNative GDSII? Grayscale input path? How many conversion steps in the workflow?
Upgrade pathStage and optics engine specified independently; engine field-upgradeableCan resolution or grayscale be upgraded later, or does it mean a new tool?
Software & supportMonthly software updates · Glyph browser-based GDS editor includedUpdate cadence, licence model, and who provides local service

BEAM figures are demonstrated performance where noted; guaranteed values are in the full spec tables. Competitor columns are deliberately absent — use each vendor’s current datasheet.

04 · Honest fit

When BEAM belongs on your shortlist

BEAM earns its place on a shortlist when:

  • You need sub-micron UV direct-write on a real budget — BEAM writes <0.4 µm, and we know of no other maskless system offering that at BEAM’s price point.
  • Bench space and facilities are constraints — from 310 × 340 × 335 mm and 20 kg, powered from a wall socket, with no compressed air, gas, or water.
  • Your work needs grayscale — 16-bit dose control (65,536 levels) on the Advanced engine for micro-optics, blazed gratings, and 3D reliefs.
  • Your resist list spans both h-line and i-line — 365 + 405 nm, software-selectable.
  • Iteration speed is the point — writefields expose in under 0.1 s and there is no photomask loop.
  • You expect your needs to grow — the stage and optics engine are specified independently, and the engine is field-upgradeable.

And when it isn’t the right tool

Honest vendors say where their tool stops:

  • Volume production of a frozen design — mask-based steppers and aligners amortise the mask and win on throughput. Many labs develop maskless and scale with masks.
  • Nanostructures around 10 nm — that is electron-beam territory.
Process resources

Choosing a tool is only half the decision. NANYTE’s photoresist process library has datasheet-cited spin curves and bake, exposure, and develop parameters for 50+ commercial resists, free to use on any system. For the qualitative side of the process — cleaning, HMDS priming, coating, bakes, and development — see the photoresist processing guidelines.

05 · Common questions

Alternatives & comparison FAQ

Labs evaluating a Heidelberg maskless aligner typically also shortlist other benchtop direct-write systems, including the NANYTE BEAM. BEAM's public specifications: sub-0.4 µm features across a full 8-inch (200 mm) wafer, 16-bit grayscale on the Advanced engine, dual 365 + 405 nm exposure, and a desktop form factor from 20 kg that needs no compressed air, gas, or water. Whether it is the right alternative depends on your resolution, area, and budget — request both datasheets and compare current numbers line by line.

The MicroWriter is a well-regarded compact laser writer, and alternatives in the same class are usually judged on footprint, resolution, speed, and budget. The NANYTE BEAM is a desktop DMD system that writes sub-0.4 µm features edge-to-edge across an 8-inch wafer, exposes a writefield in under 0.1 s, and offers 16-bit grayscale on the Advanced engine. We know of no other maskless system that offers 0.4 µm at BEAM's price point — check that claim against your quotes.

Strictly, no. BEAM is a DMD (digital micromirror device) projection system: it exposes an entire writefield at once from the digital design, rather than scanning a focused laser spot across the substrate. Buyers often use 'laser writer' as the category name, and BEAM competes directly with benchtop laser writers such as the Kloe DILASE series — but the projection architecture is why a BEAM writefield exposes in under 0.1 s.

NANYTE (NANYTE Pte. Ltd., Singapore) designs and manufactures BEAM and is the OEM. The identical system is offered as POLOS® BEAM through Semiconductor Production Systems (SPS) and distributed by SIMTRUM — same hardware, same specifications. For demos and the datasheet, contact NANYTE directly at [email protected].

Insist on current datasheets and per-configuration quotes, then compare like for like: minimum feature at the same objective or write mode, resolution at the edge of the stated area rather than only at the centre, overlay measured through the lens, grayscale bit depth, wavelength coverage against your resist list, facility requirements, and the upgrade path. Demonstrated and guaranteed figures are different claims — ask which one every number is. The checklist on this page is written to be applied to every vendor, including NANYTE.

For research, prototyping, and process development — usually yes: there is no photomask to order, so a design change costs minutes instead of weeks. For high-volume production of a frozen design, mask-based tools still win on throughput; a photomask exposes the whole design in one flash and amortises its cost over the run. Many labs use both — maskless to develop, masks to produce.

Product names and trademarks belong to their respective owners; NANYTE is not affiliated with the manufacturers mentioned.

Compare the numbers yourself.

Get BEAM’s full datasheet and a configuration quote, and put them next to whatever else is on your shortlist — sub-0.4 µm across a full 8-inch wafer, 16-bit grayscale, dual 365 + 405 nm, from a wall socket.

Book a demo →