MOCVD Control System Retrofit: A Qualtx Technology & Leonardo DRS Engineering Partnership

Project Overview

Leonardo DRS operates a dual-chamber MOCVD (Metal-Organic Chemical Vapor Deposition) system at its Dallas, Texas cleanroom that DRS engineers designed and built in-house decades ago. The tool's original controls — electromechanical relays, toggle switches, and timers — had reached the point where continued operation depended on aging, increasingly unsupportable hardware. Leonardo DRS asked Qualtx Technology to replace the controller and IO system while DRS retained ownership of the process hardware it knew best: the vacuum gauging and gas metering equipment.

Qualtx Technology handled the complete control system retrofit: IO hardware, rack computer, DC power supplies, signal wiring, the IO panel, and custom MOCVD System Software — delivered as an engineering design collaboration with the DRS engineering team, not a boxed product dropped off and walked away from.

The Requirement

The original MOCVD controller ran on relays, switches, and timers with no automated sequencing and no data logging. Every process step was triggered manually, and the operator used a stopwatch to time the transitions between steps — a method that left every run exposed to human error and made inefficient use of skilled operator time. Leonardo DRS needed the relay-and-timer sequencer replaced with a modern, non-proprietary control system capable of automated recipes, without disturbing the vacuum subsystem hardware — the Pirani, ION, TC, and Baratron gauges and the mass flow controllers — that DRS had already invested in and understood.

A Shared Scope, Not a Turnkey Handoff

This was structured and delivered as an Engineering Design Project: the scope covered not only the system controller but the relay and mechanical subsystems that control valves, gas flow, pressure, and temperature reading. Work at that scope takes considerably more time to deliver than a simple controller swap, because of the wiring, software development, testing, and documentation involved — and it only works when both sides bring their own expertise to the table.

Every DRS-supplied gauge or subsystem interfaces to the Qualtx-provided controller through one of four standard signal types — 0–10 VDC linear analog input, 0–10 VDC linear analog output, 24 VDC relay, and 24 VDC digital input — so that any instrument DRS chose to install could be read and controlled without custom one-off wiring for each gauge.

System Architecture

Qualtx Technology replaced the relay sequencer with a rack-mount PC, non-proprietary IO hardware, and purpose-built process control software — while the tool's dual-chamber layout, gas delivery, and vacuum pumping stayed exactly where the DRS engineering team had built it:

How the Retrofit Was Executed

Because the new IO hardware had to control the same valves, gauges, and pumps as the original relay panel, the migration was done as a documented, one-for-one remapping rather than a from-scratch rebuild:

1. Remove: The original proprietary sequencer and IO electronics were pulled from the rack, leaving the through-panel gas valves, gauges, and vacuum equipment that Leonardo DRS retained in place.
2. Remap IO: Qualtx Technology built a channel-by-channel cross-reference, mapping every original relay and valve designation — V1A, V2B, PV1 through PV13, and the rest — to its new IO relay output and signal name (chamber isolation, cryo isolation, gas purge, gas bypass, and more).
3. Rewire: Every control valve was rewired from the old panel to the new IO system using that map, confirming each channel before moving to the next so nothing was left unaccounted for.
4. Install: A new rack-mounted computer and monitor were installed in the same rack, running the Qualtx Technology MOCVD System Software over the newly wired IO.
5. Commission: Qualtx Technology and DRS engineers commissioned the system together on-site in the Dallas cleanroom, tuning recipes and confirming automated sequencing matched the process the DRS team had run manually for decades.

Qualtx Technology also delivered wiring diagrams, IO lists, and OEM documentation for every IO module used, and provided software modifications and enhancements at no charge for twelve months after installation while the system was tuned for speed and efficiency in production use.

Before, During, and After

Results

• Qualtx Technology installed a new open-standards IO control system and replaced all of the signal cabling and DC power supplies feeding the MOCVD tool.
• The stopwatch-and-relay method is gone: process sequencing, timing, and data logging now run automatically under software control.
• The new control software supports multi-user login, manual mode, fully automated mode, data logging, unlimited recipe storage, and alarms.
• The new IO and software were installed and commissioned on-site in the DRS cleanroom in Dallas, Texas.
• Qualtx Technology provided software modifications at no charge for twelve months, tuning the system for speed and efficiency alongside the DRS engineering team.
• This project extended a working relationship between Qualtx Technology and Leonardo DRS that goes back to a 2008 engineering design retrofit of three Veeco ion mill systems — two of which remain in use at DRS today.

Scope of Work

Qualtx Technology delivered its half of the engineering design partnership:

• Rack-mount control computer, monitor, and keyboard/trackpad
• Non-proprietary IO hardware and IO panel, sized for the existing electronics rack
• New +/-15 VDC and +24 VDC control power supplies
• Complete signal cabling and control wiring for the full retrofit
• Channel-by-channel IO remapping from the original relay panel to the new system
• Custom MOCVD System Software: Configuration Manager, Recipe Editor, and system control GUI
• On-site installation, wiring, and commissioning at the DRS Dallas cleanroom
• Wiring diagrams, IO lists, and OEM documentation for all IO modules used
• Customer training on the new control system software
• Twelve months of complimentary software modifications and enhancements

About Qualtx Technology

Qualtx Technology has been providing turnkey automated control solutions for the semiconductor and nanotechnology industries since 1997. Over nearly three decades, Qualtx has delivered control systems and retrofits for a wide range of clients, including AMD, the US Navy, NASA's JPL, NIST, MIT, Texas Instruments, Raytheon, Micron Technology, Cornell, Northeastern University, the University of Texas, Lockheed Martin, Microchip, and Leonardo DRS, across process tool types including RIE/RFPECVD, ECR, ion mill, ion implanter, MOCVD, and sputter deposition systems. The MOCVD retrofit builds on a relationship with Leonardo DRS that began with a 2008 engineering design project retrofitting three Veeco ion mill systems, reflecting the kind of long-term engineering partnership Qualtx Technology looks to build with every process tool customer.

Frequently Asked Questions

What was wrong with the original MOCVD control system?

The system was built in-house by DRS in the 1970s using electromechanical relays, switches, and timers. There was no automated sequencing or data logging, so the operator ran each process step manually and used a stopwatch to time transitions between steps — an approach prone to human error that made inefficient use of operator time on every run.

Who provided what in this project?

This was an engineering design partnership. Leonardo DRS provided and installed the vacuum subsystem hardware: Pirani, ION, and TC gauges, Baratron pressure gauges, mass flow controllers and their controllers, and the rack mounting hardware for that equipment. Qualtx Technology provided and installed the rack-mount control computer, monitor, non-proprietary IO hardware, DC power supplies, signal wiring, the IO panel, and the control software — plus the wiring diagrams and IO documentation to go with it.

What does the new control software do?

The Qualtx Technology MOCVD System Software runs on a rack-mounted PC and gives operators a live schematic of the gas and vacuum system, with Manual (Service) and Automatic (Run) modes, a Configuration Manager for component parameters, a Recipe Editor supporting an unlimited number of stored recipes, multi-user login, data logging, and alarms — replacing the stopwatch-and-relay method entirely.

How was the old relay wiring migrated without losing functionality?

Qualtx Technology built a channel-by-channel cross-reference mapping every original relay and valve designation (such as V1A, V2B, and PV1 through PV13) to its new IO relay output and signal name, then rewired every control valve to the new IO hardware using that map — preserving one-to-one functional parity between the old panel and the new system before any recipe or automation logic was written.

Why is this classified as an Engineering Design Project?

The scope went beyond replacing a controller: it included replacing the relay and mechanical subsystems that control valves, gas flow, pressure, and temperature reading. Work of that scope requires substantially more time to deliver and install because of the wiring, software development, testing, and documentation involved, so Qualtx Technology classifies projects like this as Engineering Design Projects rather than standard controller swaps.

Who built the new MOCVD control system?

Qualtx Technology, Inc., a Plano, Texas-based automation integrator serving the semiconductor and nanotechnology industries since 1997, was contracted by Leonardo DRS to design and install the new IO system, rack computer, and control software for the dual-chamber MOCVD system at DRS's Dallas, Texas cleanroom, working directly alongside the DRS engineering team.