Inside Intel's D1D fab -- through the looking glass

Silicon wafers are loaded into various chip-making tools -- some of which cost more than $10 million each -- through a complex routing system that runs on mechanized tracks above the tools. D1D uses what's known as a "ballroom" design, meaning the clean room floor is wide open, lacking walls within the facility where dirt can gather, Horwath said. The air within the clean room is constantly refreshed and maintained at a cleanliness level known as Class 10, Horwath said. The air is even cleaner within the stackers, which transport silicon wafers from tool to tool. That air is kept at Class 1 status, meaning only three particles of dirt measuring 0.3 microns in size are allowed within a cubic foot of air.