Reliability in electronics is never accidental. It is shaped through countless decisions made long before production begins, in environments where precision, consistency, and long‑term performance leave no room for compromise.
Every day, billions of electronic devices depend on semiconductor chips to work smoothly and without failure. What most people never see are the inspection systems used during production to safeguard this quality, and the components inside them that must keep working reliably, hour after hour. Building this kind of reliability is complex. It demands the right materials, careful manufacturing and assembly, and repeated checks to ensure everything performs as expected. When MPS Micro Precision Systems (MPS) prepared to take the next step in this area, it turned to CSEM for additional support.
MPS is a Swiss company that designs and manufactures highly precise components for demanding industries. Building a new production line for semiconductor inspection components meant entering a highly regulated environment, where parts must perform under ultra-high-vacuum, high magnetic fields, and mechanical stress, while meeting strict qualification requirements before use. “We already had strong expertise in this domain,” explains Grégoire Bagnoud, Business Development Director, MPS Microsystems. “But creating a new production line meant going further, understanding how materials and manufacturing choices behave over time and making sure reliability was built in from the start.”
To bring this new production line to life, CSEM worked alongside MPS on several critical aspects of the process. The first focus was understanding potential defects and long-term reliability risks, i.e. how and why components might fail and how to prevent it. “Our role was to help turn open questions into measurable facts,” explains Massoud Dadras, former researcher at CSEM. “By testing materials and assemblies under realistic conditions, we could identify potential failure mechanisms early and reduce uncertainty before production scaled up.”
CSEM also supported MPS in evaluating and qualifying material suppliers through targeted testing, with a strong focus on Swiss sources in order to minimize transport distances and environmental impact. “Supplier qualification is critical in semiconductor manufacturing,” Dadras notes. “It is not just about availability. We want to ensure materials behave consistently and meet required standards over time.”
Together, MPS and CSEM established a complete production process, from early assembly steps to final checks. With CSEM’s input, MPS selected and qualified suitable materials, developed the assembly process including brazing, a method for permanently joining metal parts, and defined clear quality control procedures. Each stage was designed to anticipate risks and embed reliability into the product from the ground up.
Validation was the final cornerstone. Components were tested for strength and durability, and advanced imaging techniques were used to confirm that internal structures met industry requirements. These steps ensured the components could meet strict reliability and qualification expectations before entering production.
By combining MPS’s industrial vision with CSEM’s scientific expertise and testing infrastructure, the partners transformed a complex, high-risk effort into a qualified, production-ready capability. “This collaboration allowed us to move forward with confidence,” says Bagnoud. “It gave us a solid technical foundation for a production line that needed to perform reliably, day after day.”
Beyond technical achievements, the collaboration delivers broader value. More reliable inspection components help reduce waste and rework during chip production, supporting more efficient use of materials and energy. By strengthening local know-how and prioritizing Swiss supply chains, the project contributes to a more resilient and responsible industrial ecosystem. Ultimately, this work supports the dependable electronics people rely on every day, powering communication, healthcare, mobility, and countless aspects of modern life.
As we developed a new production line, CSEM supported us with advanced testing, materials expertise, and manufacturing insight to validate our decisions. Their contribution helped reduce uncertainty early and reinforce the long-term reliability we built into our production process.
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