Wafer cleaning method, apparatus and equipment

Abstract

The present invention discloses a wafer cleaning method, device and equipment, belonging to the technical field of chip manufacturing. The wafer cleaning device includes a chuck, a clamping member, a clamping member cleaning mechanism, a liquid spraying mechanism and a rotating mechanism. The wafer cleaning method is realized by the wafer cleaning device as described above. The chuck is driven to rotate by the rotating mechanism, and the clamping jaws are sequentially rotated to the cleaning station for cleaning; fluid is sprayed onto the clamping jaws located at the cleaning station through a nozzle for cleaning. The wafer cleaning equipment includes the wafer cleaning device as described above. By adopting the above technical solutions, automatic cleaning of the clamping member can be achieved, manual operation can be reduced, and the cleaning efficiency can be improved, especially having significant advantages in industrial scale applications; the device can perform cleaning without stopping the machine, and the cleaning can be completed only during the interval of replacing the wafer, which helps to improve the overall production efficiency and reduce the downtime.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention relates to a wafer cleaning method, device and equipment, and belongs to the technical field of chip manufacturing. Background Art

[0002] Wafer cleaning is a crucial step in the chip manufacturing process because it directly affects the quality and yield of the final chip. The purpose of wafer cleaning is to remove various contaminants that may remain during the manufacturing process, such as particles, organic matter, metal ions and oxides. If these contaminants are not removed in time, they will affect the smoothness of the wafer surface and thus affect the effect of subsequent process steps, such as lithography, doping and metallization.

[0003] Wet cleaning is the most common cleaning method, which uses chemical solutions to clean wafers. During the wet cleaning process, the wafer must first be clamped to ensure the stability of the wafer during the cleaning process, avoid mechanical stress or damage, and ensure that the cleaning solution can evenly cover the wafer surface, thereby achieving the best cleaning effect.

[0004] Wafer clamping methods generally include mechanical clamping, rotational clamping, contactless clamping and adsorption clamping. The wafer cleaning mechanism of the mechanical clamping method generally includes a chuck, a clamping member, a rotating mechanism and a liquid recovery mechanism. The chuck is mounted on the rotating mechanism, the support member is arranged on the chuck, and the clamping member is used to clamp and fix the wafer. The chuck, the clamping member and the wafer can rotate synchronously through the driving of the rotating mechanism.

[0005] During the wafer rotation process, the cleaning liquid is sprayed on the wafer by the liquid spraying mechanism for cleaning. The rotation of the wafer can cause the cleaning liquid to be thrown radially outward under the action of centrifugal force. The liquid recovery mechanism is arranged in a ring shape on the radial outside of the chuck to form an isolation ring, which is used to receive the cleaning liquid thrown outward by the rotation of the wafer. Generally, different chemical cleaning liquids are used to clean the wafer to achieve a particle removal rate, and multi-layer isolation rings are used to collect different liquids.

[0006] During the wafer cleaning process, the cleaning liquid will adhere to the surface of the clamping member. If it cannot be effectively removed, the cleaning liquid remaining on the surface of the clamping member will affect the cleaning effect of the edge part of the wafer, especially in the area where the wafer contacts the clamping member, resulting in incomplete cleaning. Moreover, the residual cleaning liquid may contain particles, contaminants or chemical components shed during the previous cleaning process. During the next cleaning, these residues will contaminate the new wafer, causing cross-contamination. In addition, some cleaning liquids are corrosive. Long-term attachment to the surface of the clamping member may cause corrosion or aging of the clamping member material, affecting the life and stability of the equipment. At the same time, the long-term retention of the cleaning liquid on the clamping member may cause a change in the surface friction coefficient of the clamping member, accelerating the wear of the clamping member, especially the wear at the contact part during wafer rotation is more obvious. If the surface of the clamping member is attached by the cleaning liquid for a long time, it may cause the clamping member to jam or operate inflexibly, thus affecting the clamping effect of the wafer and even causing the wafer to displace or fall off during rotation.

[0007] Generally, the methods for cleaning the residual cleaning liquid on the clamping member include manual wiping, immersion cleaning and ultrasonic cleaning. A large amount of manual operation is required for manual cleaning, which is time-consuming and laborious. Especially when cleaning clamping members with a large cleaning area or complex shapes, the operation difficulty of wiping such clamping members increases; compared with automated methods, manual cleaning has a lower efficiency and is suitable for small-batch cleaning, making it difficult to meet the needs of large-scale industrial cleaning. Immersion cleaning usually requires a certain amount of time to dissolve the residual cleaning liquid on the surface of the clamping member. Compared with other methods, the cleaning speed is slower and the efficiency is lower. Both ultrasonic cleaning and immersion cleaning require the clamping member to be disassembled and placed in a dedicated device for cleaning, which increases the processes of disassembling and installing the clamping member, and the downtime is longer, affecting the cleaning efficiency of the wafer. Summary of the Invention

[0008] Therefore, the purpose of the present invention is to provide a wafer cleaning method, device and equipment. By setting a clamping member cleaning mechanism in the wafer cleaning equipment, the clamping member can be automatically cleaned, effectively improving the cleaning efficiency of the clamping member, and the cleaning of the clamping member can be completed only during the interval when the wafer is replaced without stopping the machine, which is beneficial to improving the cleaning effect of the wafer.

[0009] To achieve the above object, a wafer cleaning device of the present invention includes:

[0010] A chuck;

[0011] A clamping member, including a plurality of jaws, the plurality of jaws are circumferentially distributed on the chuck and are used for clamping and fixing the wafer;

[0012] A liquid spraying mechanism for spraying a cleaning liquid onto the wafer for cleaning;

[0013] A clamp cleaning mechanism, comprising a spray head, on which at least one spray channel is provided, and the spray head is used to spray a fluid toward a cleaning station;

[0014] The rotating mechanism is connected to the chuck and is used for rotating the clamping claw to the cleaning station and then driving the chuck to rotate back and forth, thereby causing the clamping claw located at the cleaning station to swing back and forth.

[0015] There are multiple injection channels, and the multiple injection channels are used to inject fluid toward different positions on the swing path of the claw.

[0016] Each of the injection channels is correspondingly connected to an independent injection pipe, and each of the injection pipes is provided with a valve that can be independently controlled to open and close.

[0017] The clamp cleaning mechanism also includes a follow-up drive assembly, which is used to drive the nozzle to move according to a preset path when the clamping claw swings back and forth, so as to align the clamping claw with the spray fluid in real time.

[0018] The follower drive assembly includes a first universal ball, a second universal ball, a transverse motor screw drive device and a longitudinal motor screw drive device; the nozzle is in the shape of a straight rod, which passes through the first universal ball and the second universal ball in sequence, and the nozzle is slidably connected to the first universal ball and fixedly connected to the second universal ball; the first universal ball is installed on the first universal ball seat, and the second universal ball is installed on the second universal ball seat; the transverse side and longitudinal side of the first universal ball seat are respectively provided with a transverse slide bar and a longitudinal slide bar, and the transverse slide bar, the longitudinal slide bar and the nozzle are perpendicular to each other; the transverse motor screw drive device includes a transverse motor, a transverse screw and a transverse nut threadedly connected to the transverse screw, and the longitudinal slide bar is slidably installed on the transverse nut; the longitudinal motor screw drive device includes a longitudinal motor, a longitudinal screw and a longitudinal nut threadedly connected to the longitudinal screw, and the transverse slide bar is slidably installed on the longitudinal nut.

[0019] The spray head is located radially outside the rotation track of the claw and sprays obliquely toward the cleaning station.

[0020] The angle between the liquid outlet angle of the nozzle and the horizontal plane is 45° to 85°.

[0021] The wafer cleaning device also includes:

[0022] The liquid recovery mechanism comprises an isolation ring arranged in a ring shape on the radial outer side of the chuck, and is used for receiving the liquid thrown outward when the wafer rotates.

[0023] The liquid recovery mechanism further includes a lifting drive device, which is used to drive the isolation ring to rise to a position where the top of the inner wall of the isolation ring is 3 mm to 8 mm above the top of the chuck before the chuck cleaning mechanism cleans the chuck.

[0024] The fluid includes liquid and / or gas.

[0025] The chuck cleaning mechanism further includes an adjustable bracket, and the nozzle is arranged on the adjustable bracket.

[0026] The adjustable bracket includes a rotatable arm and a mounting seat. The nozzle is located on the rotatable arm. The rotatable arm is mounted on the mounting seat through a mounting shaft and can lock the rotation angle and height through a locking device.

[0027] The mounting shaft is fixed on the mounting seat. The rotatable arm is provided with a shaft hole for the mounting shaft to pass through. A slot is arranged at the end of the rotatable arm. The slot divides the end of the rotatable arm to form a first clamping plate part and a second clamping plate part. A part of the shaft hole is located on the first clamping plate part, and the other part is located on the second clamping plate part. The locking device includes fastening bolts installed at the ends of both the first clamping plate part and the second clamping plate part.

[0028] The mounting seat is provided with an adjusting long hole, and the fixing bolt for fixing the mounting seat passes through the adjusting long hole.

[0029] The adjusting long hole extends along the radial direction of the chuck.

[0030] A spray pipe is arranged inside the rotatable arm. The nozzle is threadedly connected to the end of the rotatable arm. The spray pipe is inserted into the receiving cavity of the nozzle. A spray channel is arranged on the nozzle, and the spray channel communicates with the receiving cavity.

[0031] The present invention also provides a wafer cleaning method, which is realized by the wafer cleaning device as described above, and includes:

[0032] Wafer cleaning step: driving the chuck to drive the wafer to rotate through the rotating mechanism, and spraying cleaning liquid on the wafer by the liquid spraying mechanism for cleaning;

[0033] Chuck cleaning step: driving the chuck to rotate through the rotating mechanism, rotating the chuck to the cleaning station in sequence, and spraying fluid on the chuck located at the cleaning station by the nozzle for cleaning; when the nozzle sprays the fluid, driving the chuck to rotate reciprocally through the rotating mechanism to make the chuck located at the cleaning station swing reciprocally.

[0034] The nozzle cleans the clamping jaws by spraying liquid. The nozzle cleans the clamping jaws by spraying liquid; before cleaning, the lifting drive device raises the isolation ring until the top of the inner side wall of the isolation ring is 3 mm to 8 mm above the top of the clamping jaws. After cleaning, the lifting drive device continues to move the isolation ring upward, and the chuck is rotated by the rotating mechanism to throw the liquid outward and collect it through the isolation ring.

[0035] A plurality of spray channels are provided on the nozzle for spraying fluid toward different positions on the swinging path of the clamping jaws; when the clamping jaws swing to the position opposite to any one of the spray channels, the valve of that spray channel is opened, and the valves of the remaining spray channels are closed.

[0036] A single spray channel is provided on the nozzle; when the clamping jaws reciprocally swing, the nozzle is driven by the following drive assembly to move according to a preset path so as to spray fluid onto the clamping jaws in real time.

[0037] The clamping jaws are air-dried by spraying gas through the nozzle.

[0038] The present invention further provides a wafer cleaning device, including the wafer cleaning device as described above, and further including:

[0039] A liquid spraying control system, connected to the liquid spraying mechanism, for controlling the liquid spraying mechanism to spray cleaning liquid onto the wafer when the chuck drives the wafer to rotate;

[0040] A cleaning control system, connected to the clamping member cleaning mechanism, for controlling the clamping member cleaning mechanism to spray fluid onto the cleaning station;

[0041] A chuck drive control system, connected to the rotating mechanism, for controlling the rotating mechanism to drive the chuck to rotate, for controlling the rotating mechanism to drive the chuck to rotate the clamping jaws to the cleaning station, and for controlling the rotating mechanism to drive the chuck to rotate reciprocally so that the clamping jaws located at the cleaning station reciprocally swing.

[0042] When a plurality of spray channels are provided on the nozzle, the cleaning control system is further used for controlling the valve of one of the plurality of spray channels to open and the valves of the remaining spray channels to close when the clamping jaws swing to the position opposite to one of the plurality of spray channels.

[0043] When a single spray channel is provided on the nozzle, the cleaning control system is further used for controlling the following drive assembly to drive the nozzle to move according to a preset path so as to spray fluid onto the clamping jaws in real time when the clamping jaws reciprocally swing.

[0044] The wafer cleaning device further includes:

[0045] The lifting control system is connected to the lifting drive device, and is used to control the lifting drive device to lift the isolation ring to a position where the top of the inner wall of the isolation ring is 3 mm to 8 mm above the top of the claw before cleaning the claw, and to control the lifting drive device to continue to move the isolation ring upward after cleaning the claw. By adopting the above technical solution, the wafer cleaning method, device and equipment of the present invention have the following beneficial effects compared with the prior art:

[0046] a. By setting up a fixture cleaning mechanism, the fixture can be automatically cleaned, reducing manual operations and improving cleaning efficiency, which has significant advantages in industrial-scale applications. At the same time, it avoids the need to open the chamber for manual cleaning, which causes secondary pollution, and no longer requires running the equipment empty after scrubbing. The device can clean without stopping the machine, and can be cleaned only during the interval between wafer changes, which helps to improve overall production efficiency and reduce downtime.

[0047] b. Spraying liquid and gas to the clamp through the nozzle can effectively remove the residual liquid attached to the surface of the clamp, improve the cleaning effect of the edge of the wafer, and reduce the risk of cross contamination;

[0048] c. The nozzle is equipped with multiple independent injection channels, and the fluid ejected from the nozzle repeatedly cleans the fixture at multiple different angles, ensuring that all areas of the fixture can be cleaned, especially parts with complex shapes, improving the uniformity and thoroughness of cleaning, and further improving the cleaning effect;

[0049] d. When the nozzle is configured with a single injection channel, the follower drive assembly is used to drive the nozzle to spray fluid at the surface of the claw, and the two universal ball groups and two screw motor drive devices are used to realize free and flexible control of the nozzle angle, thereby overcoming the defect that the fluid sprayed by the nozzle cannot be aligned with the real-time position of the claw when the claw swings back and forth; when multiple injection channels are set on the nozzle, different injection channels can also be used to spray separately at different positions on the claw swing trajectory, so that the spray liquid can be accurately sprayed to the surface of the claw during the claw swing process, so as to control the range of the sputtering area and avoid the spray range being too wide;

[0050] e. The annular liquid recovery mechanism can recover the liquid splashed back from the clamping part during the cleaning process, that is, by driving the isolation ring to rise above the claws, the liquid droplets splashed after the liquid beam sprayed by the nozzle hits the claws can fall to the inner wall of the isolation ring and slide down, so as not to destroy the overall atmosphere in the box; at the same time, the isolation ring can also effectively receive the liquid thrown out during the rotation process, reducing liquid waste and preventing environmental pollution, which is conducive to the effective management of waste liquid;

[0051] f. The design of the adjustable bracket and the rotatable arm enables the cleaning parameters to be adjusted according to specific needs, increasing the flexibility and adaptability of the device in use. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0052] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application or the prior art, the following will briefly introduce the drawings required for use in the description of the embodiments or the prior art. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some of the embodiments recorded in the embodiments of the present application. For those of ordinary skill in the art, other drawings can also be obtained based on these drawings.

[0053] Figure 1 Schematic diagram of a wafer cleaning device provided by an embodiment of the present invention;

[0054] Figure 2 Schematic diagram of the clamping member cleaning mechanism in an operating state provided by an embodiment of the present invention;

[0055] Figure 3 For Figure 2 Schematic diagram of the isolation ring in the embodiment continuing to move upward;

[0056] Figure 4 Schematic diagram of the clamping member cleaning mechanism provided by the first embodiment of the present invention;

[0057] Figure 5 For Figure 4 Cross-sectional view of the clamping member cleaning mechanism in the embodiment;

[0058] Figure 6 Schematic diagram of the clamping member cleaning mechanism provided by the second embodiment of the present invention;

[0059] Figure 7 Oblique cross-sectional view of the nozzle in the second embodiment of the present invention;

[0060] Figure 8 Schematic diagram of the clamping member within the swing range during the cleaning process;

[0061] Figure 9 Schematic diagram of the use state of the clamping member cleaning mechanism provided by the third embodiment of the present invention;

[0062] Figure 10 For Figure 9 Schematic diagram of the following drive assembly in the embodiment;

[0063] Figure 11 Assembly diagram of the nozzle with the first universal ball and the second universal ball;

[0064] Figure 12 Schematic diagram of the clamping member cleaning mechanism spraying and cleaning the jaws;

[0065] Figure 13 Schematic diagram of a clamping member provided by an embodiment of the present invention;

[0066] Figure 14 Flow chart of a wafer cleaning method provided by an embodiment of the present invention. Detailed implementation manners

[0067] In order to enable those skilled in the art to better understand the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application, the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be clearly and completely described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in the embodiments of the present application. Obviously, the described embodiments are only a part of the embodiments of the present application, rather than all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments in the embodiments of the present application, all other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art shall fall within the protection scope of the embodiments of the present application.

[0068] The terms used in the present application are only for the purpose of describing specific embodiments, and are not intended to limit the present application. The singular forms of "a", "the" and "said" used in the present application and the appended claims are also intended to include the plural forms, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It should also be understood that the term "and / or" used herein refers to and includes any or all possible combinations of one or more of the associated listed items.

[0069] It should be understood that although the terms "first", "second", "third", etc. may be used in the present application to describe various information, such information should not be limited to these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish the same type of information from each other. For example, without departing from the scope of the present application, the first information may also be referred to as the second information, and similarly, the second information may also be referred to as the first information. Thus, the features defined with "first" and "second" may explicitly or implicitly include one or more of such features. In the description of the present application, "a plurality" means two or more, unless otherwise specifically defined.

[0070] In the present invention, a wafer is also called a substrate, and their meanings and actual functions are equivalent.

[0071] The present invention will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific implementation manners.

[0072] Figure 1 Schematic diagram of a wafer cleaning device provided by an embodiment of the present invention. A wafer cleaning device includes a box body 1, a chuck 2 arranged in the box body 1, a clamping member, a clamping member cleaning mechanism 4, a rotating mechanism 5, a liquid recovery mechanism, and a liquid spraying mechanism 7.

[0073] The chuck 2 is mounted on the rotating mechanism 5, the clamping member is arranged on the chuck 2, and the clamping member includes a plurality of claws 3, and the plurality of claws 3 are evenly distributed along the circumference of the chuck 2. Of course, in other embodiments, the claws 3 may also be unevenly distributed to properly cooperate with the robot to pick up and place the wafer. The plurality of claws 3 are used to horizontally clamp and fix the wafer, and the chuck 2, the clamping member and the wafer can be driven by the rotating mechanism 5 to rotate synchronously.

[0074] During the wafer rotation, the liquid spraying mechanism 7 sprays cleaning liquid onto the wafer for cleaning. The rotation of the wafer can cause the cleaning liquid to be thrown radially outward under the action of centrifugal force. The liquid recovery mechanism is arranged in an annular shape radially outward of the chuck 2 to receive the cleaning liquid thrown outward by the rotation of the wafer.

[0075] In this embodiment, the liquid recovery mechanism includes an isolation ring 6 and a lifting drive device (not shown), and the lifting drive device can drive the isolation ring 6 to descend to below the chuck 2, and drive the isolation ring 6 to rise above the claw 3 to match the wafer cleaning process.

[0076] In the first embodiment, the clamp cleaning mechanism 4 includes an adjustable bracket and a nozzle 41 ( Figure 4 ), the adjustable bracket is mounted on the side wall of the box body 1, and the nozzle 41 is arranged at the front end of the adjustable bracket. The nozzle 41 is used to spray fluid toward the cleaning station, and the rotating mechanism 5 can rotate the claw 3 to the cleaning station, so that the surface of the claw 3 is cleaned by the clamping member cleaning mechanism 4. It should be noted that the cleaning station in the present invention refers to the position corresponding to the claw 3 during the cleaning process.

[0077] In the present invention, the design of the adjustable bracket allows the position and angle of the nozzle 41 to be adjusted as needed, ensuring that the fluid can be accurately sprayed to the cleaning station. The nozzle 41 is directly facing the cleaning station, and can efficiently and centrally spray the fluid to comprehensively clean the claws 3 and improve the cleaning effect. The adjustable bracket is installed on the side wall of the box body 1 to effectively utilize the space and reduce the area occupied by the equipment. The adjustable bracket cooperates with the rotating mechanism 5 to realize automatic cleaning of the claws 3, improve production efficiency and reduce labor costs. The independence of the clamp cleaning mechanism 4 helps to prevent cross contamination during the cleaning process and maintain high quality standards for wafer cleaning.

[0078] In this embodiment, the adjustable bracket includes a rotatable arm 42 and a mounting seat 43. Figure 4 As shown, the spray head 41 is located at the front end of the rotatable arm 42. The rotatable arm 42 is fixed to the mounting seat 43 through the mounting shaft 44 and the rotation angle can be locked by a locking device.

[0079] Specifically, the mounting shaft 44 is fixed on the mounting base 43. The rotatable arm 42 is provided with a shaft hole 421 for the mounting shaft 44 to pass through. A slot 422 is provided at the end of the rotatable arm 42, and the slot 422 divides the end of the rotatable arm 42 to form a first clamping plate portion 423 and a second clamping plate portion 424; a part of the shaft hole 421 is located on the first clamping plate portion 423, and the other part is located on the second clamping plate portion 424; the locking device is a fastening bolt 45, which is installed at the ends of both the first clamping plate portion 423 and the second clamping plate portion 424.

[0080] During installation, loosen the fastening bolt 45, coaxially sleeve the shaft hole 421 of the rotatable arm 42 on the mounting shaft 44, so that the first clamping plate portion 423 and the second clamping plate portion 424 clamp the mounting shaft 44, and then adjust the rotatable arm 42 to an appropriate angle, and screw the fastening bolt 45 to make the first clamping plate portion 423 and the second clamping plate portion 424 clamp the mounting shaft 44 for locking.

[0081] Furthermore, an adjustment long hole 431 is provided on the mounting base 43 to facilitate the fixing bolt 46 to pass through Figure 4 The shown adjustment long hole 431 extends along the radial direction of the chuck 2. By adjusting the position of the fixing bolt 46 in the adjustment long hole 431, the distance between the mounting base 43 and the chuck 2 can be adjusted, so as to accurately adjust the horizontal position of the nozzle 41.

[0082] In the present invention, the design of the rotatable arm 42 allows the nozzle 41 to be flexibly adjusted in angle after installation, ensuring the precise positioning of the sprayed fluid and improving the cleaning effect. Through the locking device, the position of the rotatable arm 42 can be firmly locked, avoiding the change of the position of the nozzle 41 due to vibration or other factors during the operation process, and ensuring the consistency of cleaning. The tightening and loosening operation of the fastening bolt 45 is simple, facilitating quick installation and adjustment, and adapting to different working requirements. The segmented clamping design, the first clamping plate portion 423 and the second clamping plate portion 424 make the clamping force on the mounting shaft 44 more uniform, enhancing the stability of the installation and reducing the wear caused by uneven clamping force. At the same time, different installation height adjustments can be achieved by adjusting the position of the rotatable arm 42 fixed on the mounting shaft 44. The adjustment long hole 431 on the mounting base 43 provides a larger adjustment range, and can conveniently adjust the distance between the nozzle 41 and the chuck 2 according to actual needs, improving the flexibility of the structure. The above design of the adjustable bracket is compact, makes rational use of space, is suitable for use in a limited working environment, and combined with the flexibility of the rotating mechanism 5, can achieve an efficient cleaning process, adapt to various shaped clamping parts, and ensure comprehensive cleaning.

[0083] Figure 5In the illustrated embodiment, a jet pipe 47 is disposed inside the rotatable arm 42. The nozzle 41 is threadedly connected to the end of the rotatable arm 42. The jet pipe 47 is inserted into the receiving cavity 412 of the nozzle 41. An injection channel 411 is provided on the nozzle 41, and the injection channel 411 communicates with the receiving cavity 412 to spray the cleaning liquid toward the jaw 3 in the box body 1.

[0084] Further, the jet pipe 47 is connected to a liquid source or a gas source, and can also be switched between connecting the liquid source or the gas source through a valve, so that the liquid or gas can flow into the nozzle 41 through the jet pipe 47 and be ejected outward through the injection channel 411. When using liquid to clean the jaw 3, the liquid can be selected as a chemical agent according to actual needs, or can be deionized water; when using gas to clean the jaw 3, or when drying after cleaning the jaw 3 with deionized water, the gas can be nitrogen or other inert gases.

[0085] In the present invention, the design of the structures of the jet pipe 47 and the nozzle 41 can flexibly select liquid or gas according to the cleaning requirements, support multiple cleaning schemes, and improve the adaptability of cleaning. The rapid switching between the liquid source and the gas source is realized through a valve, with simple operation, time and labor saving, and improved work efficiency. When using liquid cleaning, different chemical agents or deionized water can be selected according to specific conditions to meet specific cleaning requirements and improve the cleaning effect. After liquid cleaning, gas is used for air drying to ensure that the jaw 3 is quickly dried, avoid water residue, and reduce the risk of cross-contamination. In addition to meeting the need of flexibly selecting liquid or gas, the design of the injection channel 411 can also ensure uniform ejection of the fluid, improve the cleaning effect and coverage range, especially suitable for clamping parts with complex shapes, and can use nitrogen or other inert gases for cleaning and air drying, reducing the impact on the environment, and the gas cleaning can effectively remove residues. The internal installation structure design of the jet pipe 47 and the nozzle 41 saves space, makes the overall equipment more compact, and adapts to different working environments.

[0086] In the second embodiment, a plurality of injection channels 411, such as 3, are provided on the nozzle 41 of the clamping member cleaning mechanism 4, as Figure 6 and Figure 7 shown. Correspondingly, each injection channel 411 corresponds to a jet pipe 47. By spraying in different directions through the plurality of injection channels 411, when the jaw 3 swings reciprocally in a small amplitude, different positions on its swing trajectory can be sprayed by different injection channels 411, avoiding the defect that a single injection channel 411 cannot clean the jaw 3 from multiple angles, thereby achieving a better cleaning effect. On the other hand, as the jaw 3 swings to different positions and is directionally sprayed through the corresponding injection channels 411, the sputtering area range can also be controlled to avoid unnecessary sputtering caused by too wide a spraying range.

[0087] In this embodiment, the angle θ between the spray channels 411 on both sides and the middle spray channel 411 is equal. As Figure 7 shown, the angle θ is the angle between the centerlines of adjacent spray channels 411.

[0088] The spray channel 411 is inclined with respect to the central axis of the nozzle 41, that is, the spray channel 411 forms an angle α with the horizontal plane ( Figure 12 shown), because the central axis of the nozzle 41 is horizontally arranged. In order to better show the internal structure of the spray channel 411, the cross-section is deliberately passed through the centerline of the spray channel 411.

[0089] Preferably, the angle θ between the spray channels 411 on both sides and the middle spray channel 411 is 5° - 30°, so that the sprayed cleaning liquid can better cover the surface of the chuck 3 to achieve precise and efficient cleaning.

[0090] Figure 13 This is a schematic diagram of a clamping member provided in an embodiment of the present invention. The clamping member includes a clamping seat 31, which is fixed on the chuck 2. A chuck 3 is provided on the clamping seat 31. The chuck 3 is usually configured with a pair of top pins 32. When the chuck 3 is opened, the top pins 32 horizontally support the wafer, so that the manipulator can grasp the wafer from below the wafer.

[0091] Further, the chuck 3 is generally a rectangular rod structure, which includes a chuck back surface 3a and a chuck side surface 3b. Figure 6 and Figure 7 The multiple spray channels 411 shown can be used to wash the chuck back surface 3a and the chuck side surface 3b to prevent particulate matter from remaining on the surface of the chuck 3 due to inaccurate coverage of the sprayed liquid.

[0092] Specifically, by controlling the small rotation of the rotation mechanism 5 to adjust the position of the chuck 3, so that the spray channels 411 on the nozzle 41 can accurately align with the chuck back surface 3a and the chuck side surface 3b to prevent unnecessary sputtering caused by spraying onto parts such as the top pins 32.

[0093] In the third embodiment, a structure is further provided that can drive the nozzle 41 to freely rotate in the left - right direction and the up - down direction. As Figure 8 shown, since the rotation trajectory L of the chuck 3 is circular, when the chuck 3 reciprocates, its running trajectory is arc - shaped. The chuck 3 swings between the first station S1 and the second station S2, and the chuck 3 sweeps out an arc - shaped trajectory between the first station S1 and the second station S2. Since the nozzle 41 is arranged above the outside of the chuck 3, when the nozzle 41 is driven to swing left - right by a single power source, it cannot achieve the effect of following the running trajectory of the chuck 3. The nozzle 41 must satisfy the combined action of left - right swing and front - back swing. Therefore, the clamping member cleaning mechanism further includes Figures 9 to 11The shown following driving assembly 9 is used to drive the nozzle 41 to act according to a preset path in real time to spray fluid onto the jaw 3 when the jaw 3 swings reciprocally.

[0094] It can be understood that when the clamping member cleaning mechanism 4 cleans the jaw 3, the jaw 3 makes a small swing driven by the rotating mechanism 5; Figure 8 Only for better showing that the rotation trajectory of the jaw 3 is an arc line, the actual swing amplitude of the jaw 3 is 5° to 20°.

[0095] Figure 10 The figure shows a schematic diagram of the following driving assembly 9 provided by an embodiment of the present invention. It includes a first universal ball 91, a second universal ball 92, a transverse motor screw driving device 95 and a longitudinal motor screw driving device 96. The following driving assembly 9 further includes a shielding cover (not shown) to isolate the first universal ball 91, the second universal ball 92 and other above-mentioned components from the environment in the box body 1, so as to prevent the following driving assembly 9 from being affected by the environment with a lot of particulate matter and water in the box body 1.

[0096] Further, the nozzle 41 is in a straight rod structure, and its end extends outwards within the shielding cover. The nozzle 41 sequentially passes through the first universal ball 91 and Figure 11 the shown second universal ball 92. And the nozzle 41 is slidably connected to the first universal ball 91 and fixedly connected to the second universal ball 92. The first universal ball 91 is installed on the first universal ball seat 910, and the second universal ball 92 is installed on the second universal ball seat 920. The second universal ball seat 920 is fixedly installed on the equipment frame. The first universal ball seat 910 is movably arranged. One end of the nozzle 41 is connected to a hose (equivalent to the jet pipe 47) that provides fluid. The nozzle 41 can rotate in all directions with the second universal ball 92 as a reference. At the same time, the nozzle 41 can also slide relative to the second universal ball 92.

[0097] Further, a lateral slide bar 93 and a longitudinal slide bar 94 are respectively arranged on the lateral side part and the longitudinal side part of the first universal ball seat 910. The lateral slide bar 93, the longitudinal slide bar 94 and the nozzle 41 are perpendicular to each other in pairs. The lateral motor screw drive device 95 includes a lateral motor 951, a lateral lead screw 952 and a lateral nut 953 threadedly connected to the lateral lead screw 952. The longitudinal slide bar 94 is slidably mounted on the lateral nut 953. The longitudinal motor screw drive device 96 includes a longitudinal motor 961, a longitudinal lead screw 962 and a longitudinal nut 963 threadedly connected to the longitudinal lead screw 962. The lateral slide bar 93 is slidably mounted on the longitudinal nut 963. Through two sets of mutually perpendicular motor screw drive devices, the first universal ball seat 910 can be driven to move reciprocally in the lateral direction and the longitudinal direction respectively. During the swinging process of the claw 3, as the claw 3 moves to different positions, the lateral motor 951 and the longitudinal motor 961 can cooperate with the rotating mechanism 5 to drive the nozzle 41 to act according to a preset stroke, so that the nozzle 41 meets the requirement of facing the claw 3, thereby being able to follow the swinging of the claw 3 to perform spray cleaning on it.

[0098] Meanwhile, the present invention provides a wafer cleaning method, and its flow chart is as Figure 14 shown. The wafer cleaning method includes:

[0099] Wafer cleaning step (S1): Driving the chuck 2 to drive the wafer to rotate through the rotating mechanism 5, and the liquid spraying mechanism 7 sprays a cleaning liquid onto the wafer for cleaning;

[0100] It should be noted that the "cleaning" here is a relatively macroscopic cleaning, which includes the cleaning and drying of the wafer surface to obtain a wafer with a clean and dry surface. The liquid spraying mechanism 7 can spray a cleaning chemical liquid and / or a drying chemical liquid.

[0101] Clamping member cleaning step (S2): Driving the chuck 2 to rotate through the rotating mechanism 5, and sequentially rotating the claw 3 to the cleaning station, and the nozzle 41 sprays a fluid onto the claw 3 located at the cleaning station for cleaning; when the nozzle 41 sprays the fluid, driving the chuck 2 to rotate reciprocally through the rotating mechanism 5, so that the claw 3 located at the cleaning station swings reciprocally to repeatedly wash the surface of the claw 3 to achieve efficient cleaning.

[0102] In the present invention, the clamping member cleaning step and the wafer cleaning step are separated. Usually, when there is no wafer in the box body 1, the clamping member is cleaned to prevent the contaminants attached to the claw 3 from splashing onto the wafer surface to form secondary pollution.

[0103] When cleaning the clamping member, the nozzle 41 cleans the claw 3 through the spray channel 411; before cleaning, the isolation ring 6 is raised by the lifting drive device to a position where the top of the inner side wall of the isolation ring 6 is 3 mm to 8 mm above the top of the claw; after cleaning, the lifting drive device continues to move the isolation ring 6 upward, asFigure 3 As shown, the chuck 2 is rotated by the rotating mechanism 5 to throw the liquid outwards and collect it through the isolation ring 6, so as to prevent cleaning liquid from remaining on the surface of the jaws 3.

[0104] In some embodiments, a plurality of injection channels 411 are provided on the nozzle 41 for injecting fluid towards different positions on the swinging path of the jaws 3; when the jaws 3 swing to the position opposite to any one of the injection channels 411, the valve of this injection channel 411 is opened, and the valves of the remaining injection channels 411 are closed, so as to avoid unnecessary liquid splashing caused by the remaining injection channels 411 injecting onto other components of the box body 1.

[0105] Figure 6 and Figure 7 In the illustrated embodiment, the injection channel 411 in the middle and one of the side injection channels 411 are opened simultaneously to clean the back surface 3a of the jaws and one of the side surfaces 3b of the jaws, so as to accurately deliver the injection channel 411 to the outer side surface of the jaws 3, and further remove the contaminants on the surface of the jaws 3.

[0106] Figure 4 and Figure 5 In the illustrated embodiment, a single injection channel 411 is provided on the nozzle 41; when the jaws 3 reciprocate, the nozzle 41 is driven by the Figure 10 shown following drive assembly 9 to act according to a preset path, so as to spray fluid onto the jaws 3 in real time.

[0107] In addition, the present invention also provides a wafer cleaning device, which includes the above-mentioned wafer cleaning device, and further includes:

[0108] A liquid spraying control system, connected to the liquid spraying mechanism, for controlling the liquid spraying mechanism to spray cleaning liquid onto the wafer when the chuck 2 drives the wafer to rotate;

[0109] A chuck drive control system, connected to the rotating mechanism 5, for controlling the rotating mechanism 5 to drive the chuck 2 to rotate, for controlling the rotating mechanism 5 to drive the chuck 2 to rotate the jaws 3 to the cleaning station, and for controlling the rotating mechanism 5 to drive the chuck 2 to rotate reciprocally, so that the jaws 3 at the cleaning station reciprocate;

[0110] A cleaning control system, connected to the clamping member cleaning mechanism 4, for controlling the clamping member cleaning mechanism 4 to spray fluid towards the cleaning station, and for controlling the lateral motor 951 and the longitudinal motor 961 to act, so as to drive the nozzle 41 to spray fluid towards the position where the jaws 3 are located when the jaws 3 swing, and for controlling the lateral motor 951 and the longitudinal motor 961 to drive the nozzle 41 to act according to a preset stroke;

[0111] The lifting control system is connected to the lifting drive device and is used to control the lifting drive device to raise the isolation ring 6 to a position where the top of the inner side wall of the isolation ring 6 is 3 mm to 8 mm above the top of the chuck 3 before cleaning the chuck 3, and is also used to control the lifting drive device to continue to move the isolation ring 6 upward after cleaning the chuck 3.

[0112] In the present invention, when a plurality of injection channels 411 are provided on the nozzle 41, the cleaning control system is further configured to control the opening of the valve of one of the plurality of injection channels 411 and the closing of the valves of the remaining injection channels when the chuck 3 swings to a position opposite to one of the plurality of injection channels 411; when a single injection channel 411 is provided on the nozzle 41, the cleaning control system is further configured to control the follow-up drive assembly 9 to drive the nozzle 3 to act according to a preset path in real time to spray fluid onto the chuck 3 when the chuck 3 swings back and forth. Since the nozzle 41 is located radially outside the rotation trajectory of the chuck 3 and above the isolation ring 6, and the injection channels 411 are inclined, it can spray obliquely downward toward the cleaning station. The angle α between the liquid outlet angle of the nozzle 41 and the horizontal plane is 45° to 85°, as Figure 12 shown; when the chuck 3 holds the wafer, the nozzle 41 is located outside the wafer, so it can effectively prevent the liquid droplets remaining at the end of the nozzle 41 from dripping downward onto the area where the wafer to be cleaned is located, avoiding the reattachment of these contaminated liquids to the wafer surface and affecting the wafer cleaning effect.

[0113] In the present invention, the rotating mechanism 5 can drive each chuck 3 to rotate to the cleaning station in sequence for separate cleaning, and is also used to drive the chuck table 2 to rotate back and forth within a small angle range when cleaning the chuck 3, so that the chuck 3 located at the cleaning station swings back and forth. During this process, the fluid ejected from the nozzle 41 can act on the surface of the chuck 3 from multiple angles repeatedly, enhancing the coverage of the fluid ejected from the nozzle 41 on the chuck 3, ensuring that all areas of the chuck 3 are cleaned, especially the parts with complex shapes, ensuring cleaning without dead angles; through dynamic cleaning, the accumulation of the cleaning liquid in a certain area is avoided, enhancing the uniformity of the distribution of the cleaning liquid; by combining reciprocating swing and multi-angle spraying, the thoroughness of cleaning is significantly improved, ensuring the removal of residues and contaminants and enhancing the cleanliness of the chuck 3.

[0114] When cleaning the clamping member, first, the rotating mechanism 5 drives the chuck table 2 to rotate, rotates one of the chucks 3 to the cleaning station for cleaning, and sprays fluid onto the chuck 3 located at the cleaning station through the nozzle 41. When the nozzle 41 sprays fluid, the rotating mechanism 5 drives the chuck table 2 to rotate back and forth, so that the chuck 3 located at the cleaning station swings back and forth.

[0115] When there are relatively light residues on the surface of the chuck 3, nitrogen can be selected as the jet fluid to blow away the liquid medicine on the surface of the chuck 3. Of course, deionized water as described above can be selected to spray and wash the chuck 3 at any time. When using a liquid to spray and wash the chuck 3, before spraying and washing, the isolation ring 6 needs to be raised above the chuck 3 through the lifting drive device, as Figure 2 shown. In this state, after the liquid ejected from the nozzle 41 impacts the surface of the chuck 3, it will splash outward, and the splashed liquid droplets can be blocked and collected by the isolation ring 6.

[0116] As Figure 12 shown, the distance H between the top of the inner side wall of the isolation ring 6 above the top of the chuck 3 is 3 mm to 8 mm. The inner side surface of the isolation ring 6 includes an annular surface 61, a first conical surface 62, and a second conical surface 63. Among them, the annular surface 61 is the radial inner end surface closest to the chuck 3, the first conical surface 62 is connected to the lower end of the annular surface 61 and extends outward, and the horizontal inclination angle of the connection between the second conical surface 63 and the end of the first conical surface 62 decreases.

[0117] Before cleaning the chuck 3, move the isolation ring 6 up to this working position. The top of the inner side wall of the isolation ring 6 is close to the liquid beam ejected from the nozzle 41. When the liquid beam impacts the chuck 3 and forms back splash, most of the back-splashed liquid droplets impact on the first conical surface 62, and the liquid droplets roll down along the first conical surface 62 under the action of inertia, so as to realize the directional collection of the back-splashed liquid droplets.

[0118] To sum up, the wafer cleaning device of the present invention can regularly remove the liquid medicine residues on the surface of the clamping member, reduce the wear of the clamping member caused by the adhesion of the liquid medicine, and extend the service life of the equipment. At the same time, this wafer cleaning equipment integrates functions such as clamping, cleaning, and recycling, simplifies the operation process, improves the overall operation efficiency, and meets the requirements of modern production. This improved wafer cleaning device and method not only improve the cleaning efficiency of the clamping member, but also improve the cleaning quality, reduce the operation complexity, and meet higher industrial requirements.

[0119] Obviously, the above embodiments are only examples clearly described and not limitations on the implementation manners. For those of ordinary skill in the art, other different forms of changes or modifications can be made on the basis of the above description. It is not necessary and impossible to list all the implementation manners here. And the obvious changes or modifications derived therefrom are still within the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A wafer cleaning device, characterized in that, Comprising: A chuck; A clamping member including a plurality of jaws, the plurality of jaws being circumferentially distributed on the chuck for clamping and fixing a wafer; A liquid spraying mechanism for spraying a cleaning liquid onto the wafer for cleaning; A clamping member cleaning mechanism including a nozzle provided with at least one spraying channel, the nozzle being used for spraying a fluid towards a cleaning station; A rotating mechanism connected to the chuck for rotating the jaws to the cleaning station and then driving the chuck to reciprocally rotate, so that the jaws located at the cleaning station reciprocally swing; The clamping member cleaning mechanism further includes an adjustable bracket mounted on a side wall of a box body, and the nozzle is provided at a front end of the adjustable bracket; There are a plurality of the spraying channels for spraying the fluid towards different positions on a swinging path of the jaws; each of the spraying channels is correspondingly connected to an independent spray pipe, and an independently controllable valve is provided on each of the spray pipes; as the jaws swing to different positions, the corresponding spraying channels are opened to control the sputtering area range and avoid unnecessary sputtering; An included angle between the spraying channels on two sides and the spraying channel in the middle is 5° - 30°, so that the sprayed cleaning liquid covers the surface of the jaws to achieve precise and efficient cleaning; The nozzle is located radially outside a rotation trajectory of the jaws and obliquely sprays towards the cleaning station; an included angle between an outlet angle of the nozzle and a horizontal plane is 45° - 85°; It further includes a liquid recovery mechanism which includes a separation ring annularly arranged radially outside the chuck for receiving liquid flung outwards by the rotating wafer; an inner side surface of the separation ring includes an annular surface, a first conical surface and a second conical surface, the annular surface is a radially inner end surface closest to the jaws, the first conical surface is connected to a lower end of the annular surface and extends outwards, and a horizontal inclination angle of a connection between the second conical surface and an end of the first conical surface decreases.

2. The wafer cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein: The clamping member cleaning mechanism further includes a following driving assembly for driving the nozzle to act according to a preset path to spray the fluid onto the jaws in real time when the jaws reciprocally swing.

3. The wafer cleaning device according to claim 2, wherein: The following driving assembly includes a first universal ball, a second universal ball, a transverse motor screw driving device and a longitudinal motor screw driving device; the nozzle is in a straight rod shape and sequentially passes through the first universal ball and the second universal ball, and the nozzle is slidably connected to the first universal ball and fixedly connected to the second universal ball; the first universal ball is mounted on a first universal ball seat, and the second universal ball is mounted on a second universal ball seat; a transverse slide bar and a longitudinal slide bar are respectively provided on a transverse side portion and a longitudinal side portion of the first universal ball seat, and the transverse slide bar, the longitudinal slide bar and the nozzle are perpendicular to each other in pairs; the transverse motor screw driving device includes a transverse motor, a transverse screw and a transverse nut threadedly connected to the transverse screw, and the longitudinal slide bar is slidably mounted on the transverse nut; the longitudinal motor screw driving device includes a longitudinal motor, a longitudinal screw and a longitudinal nut threadedly connected to the longitudinal screw, and the transverse slide bar is slidably mounted on the longitudinal nut.

4. The wafer cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein: The liquid recovery mechanism further includes a lifting drive device, which is used to drive the isolation ring to rise to a position where the top of the inner side wall of the isolation ring is 3 mm to 8 mm above the top of the chuck before the chuck cleaning mechanism cleans the chuck.

5. A wafer cleaning method, characterized in that, Using the wafer cleaning device according to any one of claims 1 to 4 to perform wafer cleaning, including: Wafer cleaning step: driving the chuck to drive the wafer to rotate through the rotation mechanism, and the liquid spraying mechanism sprays cleaning liquid onto the wafer for cleaning; Chuck cleaning step: driving the chuck to rotate through the rotation mechanism, rotating the chuck to the cleaning station in sequence, and the nozzle sprays fluid onto the chuck located at the cleaning station for cleaning; when the nozzle sprays fluid, driving the chuck to rotate reciprocally through the rotation mechanism to make the chuck located at the cleaning station swing reciprocally.

6. The wafer cleaning method according to claim 5, wherein: The nozzle cleans the chuck by spraying liquid; before cleaning, the lifting drive device raises the isolation ring to a position where the top of the inner side wall of the isolation ring is 3 mm to 8 mm above the top of the chuck; after cleaning, the lifting drive device continues to move the isolation ring upward, driving the chuck to rotate through the rotation mechanism, and throwing the liquid outwards and collecting it through the isolation ring.

7. The wafer cleaning method according to claim 5, characterized in that: A plurality of spraying channels are arranged on the nozzle for spraying fluid towards different positions on the swinging path of the chuck; When the chuck swings to the position opposite to any one of the spraying channels, the valve of this spraying channel is opened, and the valves of the remaining spraying channels are closed.

8. The wafer cleaning method according to claim 5, wherein: A single spraying channel is arranged on the nozzle; when the chuck swings reciprocally, the following drive assembly is driven to drive the nozzle to act according to a preset path to spray fluid onto the chuck in real time.

9. A wafer cleaning device, characterized in that, Including the wafer cleaning device according to any one of claims 1-4, further including: A liquid spraying control system, connected to the liquid spraying mechanism, for controlling the liquid spraying mechanism to spray cleaning liquid onto the wafer when the chuck drives the wafer to rotate; A cleaning control system, connected to the chuck cleaning mechanism, for controlling the chuck cleaning mechanism to spray fluid onto the cleaning station; A chuck drive control system, connected to the rotation mechanism, for controlling the rotation mechanism to drive the chuck to rotate, for controlling the rotation mechanism to drive the chuck to rotate the chuck to the cleaning station, and for controlling the rotation mechanism to drive the chuck to rotate reciprocally to make the chuck located at the cleaning station swing reciprocally.

10. The wafer cleaning equipment according to claim 9, characterized in that: When a plurality of spraying channels are arranged on the nozzle, the cleaning control system is further used to control the valve of this spraying channel to open and the valves of the remaining spraying channels to close when the chuck swings to the position opposite to one of the plurality of spraying channels.

11. The wafer cleaning equipment according to claim 9, wherein: When a single spraying channel is arranged on the nozzle, the cleaning control system is further used to control the following drive assembly to drive the nozzle to act according to a preset path to spray fluid onto the chuck in real time when the chuck swings reciprocally.

12. The wafer cleaning device according to claim 9, wherein, The wafer cleaning equipment further includes: A lifting control system, connected to the lifting drive device, for controlling the lifting drive device to raise the isolation ring to a position where the top of the inner side wall of the isolation ring is 3 mm to 8 mm above the top of the chuck before cleaning the chuck, and for controlling the lifting drive device to continue to move the isolation ring upward after cleaning the chuck.

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