Contact type measurer and wafer thinning equipment

By setting up a protective air curtain and liquid curtain between the measuring rod and the mounting hole, the problem of silicon powder and slag accumulation was solved, and high-precision thickness measurement and accurate control of grinding wheel feed were achieved in the wafer thinning equipment.

CN120985536APending Publication Date: 2025-11-21HWATSING (BEIJING) TECH CO LTD
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Patent Information

Application Number
CN202511067640.9
Authority / Receiving Office
CN · China
Patent Type
Applications(China)
Current Assignee / Owner
Filing Date
2025-04-08
Publication Date
2025-11-21

AI Technical Summary

Technical Problem

During wafer thinning, silicon powder and slag generated during grinding can easily accumulate in the probe mounting holes, preventing the probe from descending properly and affecting the normal operation of the equipment and the accuracy of thickness measurement.

Method used

A protective air pipe and a protective liquid pipe are installed between the measuring rod and the mounting hole to form an air curtain and a liquid curtain, which prevents machining debris from entering the mounting hole and ensures the normal lifting and lowering of the measuring rod and the accuracy of the measurement.

Benefits of technology

It significantly reduces the accumulation of machining debris in the mounting holes, improves the working efficiency of the contact measuring instrument and the accuracy of thickness measurement, and ensures precision control during the grinding process.

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Abstract

The invention provides a contact type measurer and wafer thinning equipment. The contact-type measurer includes: a first mounting seat configured with a mounting hole; the first measuring rod is mounted in the mounting hole and horizontally extends to the position above the bearing table, a first measuring head is arranged at the tail end of the first measuring rod, and the first measuring rod can ascend and descend in the mounting hole so that the first measuring head can make contact with the wafer and ascend and descend along with the change of the thickness of the wafer; the protective air pipe is provided with a vent groove which extends along the length of the protective air pipe and is provided with a downward opening, the protective liquid pipe is provided with a liquid groove which extends along the length of the protective liquid pipe and is provided with a downward opening, and the vent groove discharges air downwards to form an air curtain so as to prevent machining chippings from entering the mounting hole; the liquid flowing groove discharges liquid downwards to form a liquid curtain so as to prevent machining chippings penetrating through the air curtain from entering the mounting hole. According to the technical scheme, accumulation of chippings at the mounting hole can be effectively reduced, interference to movement of the measuring rod is avoided, and therefore the measuring accuracy is improved.
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Description

[0001] This application is a divisional application of the invention patent application No. 2025104284975, filed on April 8, 2025, entitled "Contact type measuring device and wafer thinning equipment". TECHNICAL FIELD

[0002] The present application relates to the technical field of semiconductor wafer processing, in particular to a contact type measuring device and wafer thinning equipment. BACKGROUND

[0003] In the back-end-of-line (BEOL) stage of integrated circuit (IC) manufacturing, in order to reduce the packaging height, reduce the chip package size, improve the thermal diffusion efficiency, electrical performance, mechanical performance of the chip, and reduce the processing amount of scribing, the wafer needs to be thinned on the back side before subsequent packaging.

[0004] In the process of the above-mentioned back side thinning, a set of wafer thickness online detection device is generally used to measure the thickness of the wafer, so as to correct the feed amount of the spindle in the thinning process. The thickness online detection device generally uses a contact type measuring module. In the process of grinding thinning, a large amount of silicon powder and slag will be generated, and under the high-speed rotation of the spindle, part of the silicon powder will be blown into the mounting hole at the root of the mounting rod. After a period of accumulation, the problem of the measuring rod being unable to normally descend will be caused, thereby affecting the normal operation of the equipment. SUMMARY

[0005] The present application provides a contact type measuring device and wafer thinning equipment to solve or alleviate at least some of the above-mentioned problems.

[0006] According to one aspect of the present application, a contact type measuring device configured to contact a surface of a wafer in a wafer thinning equipment to measure the thickness of the wafer, comprises:

[0007] A first mounting seat is provided on the side of a carrying table carrying the wafer, and is configured with a mounting hole;

[0008] A first measuring rod is mounted to the mounting hole and extends horizontally above the carrying table, and the end of the first measuring rod is provided with a first probe extending vertically, and the first measuring rod is configured to be able to rise and fall in the mounting hole so that the first probe contacts the wafer and rises and falls with the change of the thickness of the wafer during wafer processing;

[0009] A protective gas pipe and a protective liquid pipe are located between the mounting hole and the first probe, extend horizontally above the first measuring rod perpendicularly to the first measuring rod, and the protective gas pipe is closer to the first probe than the protective liquid pipe; the protective gas pipe is configured with a gas venting groove extending along its length and opening downward, and the protective liquid pipe is configured with a liquid venting groove extending along its length and opening downward, the gas venting groove is configured to form a gas curtain downward to block the machining debris from entering the mounting hole, and the liquid venting groove is configured to form a liquid curtain downward to block the machining debris passing through the gas curtain from entering the mounting hole.

[0010] Optionally or alternatively, the contact type measuring device comprises a base fixedly mounted to a base table of the wafer thinning device, and the first mounting seat is mounted to a side of the base facing the carrier table of the wafer thinning device; a support extending above the first mounting seat is fixedly connected to the top of the base, and a flow distribution block is mounted on the support, and the protective gas pipe and the protective liquid pipe are mounted to the flow distribution block and are in fluid communication with a flow distribution gas path and a flow distribution liquid path in the flow distribution block, respectively.

[0011] Optionally or alternatively, the protective gas pipe is electrically connected to an actuator configured to actuate the protective gas pipe to rotate around its axis based on the pressure of the airflow carrying the machining debris to adjust the included angle between the gas venting groove and the vertical plane.

[0012] Optionally or alternatively, the protective gas pipe is fluidly connected to a gas supply source, and a gas pressure regulator is arranged between the protective gas pipe and the gas supply source, and the gas pressure regulator is configured to adjust the gas outlet pressure of the gas venting groove based on the pressure of the airflow carrying the machining debris.

[0013] Optionally or alternatively, the protective liquid pipe is fluidly connected to a liquid supply source, and a flow rate regulator is arranged between the protective liquid pipe and the liquid supply source, and the flow rate regulator is configured to adjust the liquid outlet speed of the liquid venting groove based on the pressure of the airflow carrying the machining debris.

[0014] Optionally or alternatively, the contact type measuring device comprises a pressure sensor arranged on the first probe, and the pressure sensor is arranged towards the incoming direction of the airflow carrying the machining debris and is configured to detect the pressure of the airflow carrying the machining debris.

[0015] Optionally or alternatively, the gas outlet pressure of the gas venting groove is 0.3 to 0.7 MPa; and / or the liquid outlet flow rate of the liquid venting groove is 1-2 L / min.

[0016] Optionally or alternatively, the wall surface of the gas venting groove is configured to be inclined away from the first mounting seat by 0 to 15 degrees to form a head-on collision with the airflow carrying the machining debris flowing towards the first mounting seat.

[0017] Optionally or alternatively, the protective gas pipe and the protective liquid pipe are both positioned higher than the mounting hole, and the height of the protective gas pipe is equal to or higher than the height of the protective liquid pipe.

[0018] Optionally or alternatively, the carrier table is fixed by vacuum adsorption, and a projection of an axis of the protective liquid pipe on the surface of the carrier table is tangent to a projection of an outer circumference of the wafer on the surface of the carrier table, so that the liquid curtain flushes the machining debris at the contact between the edge of the wafer and the carrier table.

[0019] Optionally or alternatively, the contact type measurer further comprises a second protective gas pipe arranged between the protective liquid pipe and the first mounting seat, the second protective gas pipe extends horizontally and perpendicularly above the first measuring rod, the second protective gas pipe is configured with a second air venting groove extending downwards along the length thereof, the second air venting groove vents air downwards to form an air curtain to block machining debris and liquid droplets from entering the mounting hole.

[0020] Optionally or alternatively, the second protective gas pipe is positioned higher than the mounting hole, and the positions of the second protective gas pipe, the protective liquid pipe and the protective gas pipe are sequentially raised.

[0021] Optionally or alternatively, the first mounting seat is configured with an air outlet channel in fluid communication with the mounting hole, and the air outlet channel is configured to blow air to the mounting hole to blow out machining debris or liquid droplets entering the mounting hole.

[0022] Optionally or alternatively, the mounting hole is configured as a gradually expanding hole towards the carrier table in cross section, and the bottom wall thereof gradually slopes downward to facilitate the discharge of machining debris or liquid droplets.

[0023] Optionally or alternatively, the contact type measurer comprises a second mounting seat identical in structure to the first mounting seat and a second measuring rod identical in structure to the first measuring rod, the end of the second measuring rod is provided with a vertically extending second probe, the second probe is configured to contact the carrier table to measure the height of the surface of the carrier table, and the contact type measurer obtains the thickness of the wafer based on the difference between the height of the surface of the wafer measured by the first probe and the height of the surface of the carrier table measured by the second probe.

[0024] According to another aspect of the present application, a wafer thinning device is provided, which comprises a grinding module, the grinding module comprising: a rotary table provided with a carrier table for carrying a wafer; a grinding device for grinding the wafer; and a contact type measurer as described in the foregoing aspect.

[0025] Optionally or alternatively, the rotary table has three of the carrier tables arranged in a ring array, the rotary table rotates to make two of the three carrier tables be located at two processing positions under the grinding device, and the wafer thinning apparatus includes two of the contact gauges arranged between the two processing positions, the two contact gauges are arranged to face away from each other to be respectively used for thickness measurement of the wafers on the two carrier tables at the two processing positions.

[0026] According to the contact gauge and the wafer thinning apparatus, the protective gas pipe and the protective liquid pipe are arranged to form at least two protective curtains between the mounting hole and the probe, the airflow carrying the processing debris is sequentially blocked by the air curtain and the liquid curtain when flowing towards the mounting seat, the accumulation of the processing debris in the mounting hole is significantly reduced, the interference or obstruction of the processing debris to the lifting of the probe is avoided, the pollution near the root of the probe is reduced, the working effectiveness of the contact gauge and the accuracy of the thickness measurement of the wafer grinding are effectively improved, accurate basis for the grinding feed control or the grinding residual time control in the grinding process is provided, the processing precision of the wafer is ensured, and the sub-nanometer or nanometer processing precision of the wafer grinding and thinning is realized. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0027] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application or the prior art, the drawings needed to be used in the embodiments or prior art description will be briefly introduced. Obviously, the drawings in the following description are only some embodiments described in the embodiments of the present application, and other drawings can also be obtained by those skilled in the art according to these drawings.

[0028] Figure 1 a perspective view of a wafer thinning apparatus according to an embodiment of the present application is shown;

[0029] Figure 2 a measurement principle diagram of a contact gauge is shown, Figure 2 a diagram of zero setting before measurement in FIG. Figure 2 a diagram during measurement in FIG.

[0030] Figure 3 a diagram of the contact gauge in FIG. Figure 2 a diagram of the contact gauge in operation in FIG.

[0031] Figure 4 a partial perspective view of the contact gauge in FIG. Figure 2

[0032] a top view of the contact gauge according to an embodiment of the present application is shown; Figure 5

[0033] ​Figure 6 a schematic view of the protective gas pipe of the contact measuring device in Figure 5 a schematic view of the protective gas pipe of the contact measuring device in

[0034] Figure 7 a schematic view of the contact measuring device in Figure 5 a schematic view of the contact measuring device in

[0035] Figure 8 a schematic view of the contact measuring device in Figure 5 a schematic view of the contact measuring device in

[0036] Figure 9 a schematic view of the contact measuring device in

[0037] Reference signs:

[0038] W, wafer; 1, wafer thinning device; 2, grinding device; 21, rough grinding part; 211, rough grinding wheel; 22, fine grinding part; 221, fine grinding wheel; 31, rotary table; 32, bearing table; 5, cleaning unit; 6, mechanical hand; 4, measuring unit; 100, contact measuring device; 110, first mounting seat; 1101, mounting hole; 111, first measuring rod; 112, first measuring head; 120, second mounting seat; 121, second measuring rod; 122, second measuring head; 10, base; 11, flow divider; 20, bracket; 30, flow dividing block; 130, protective gas pipe; 131, air slot; 140, protective liquid pipe; 201, air curtain; 202, liquid curtain; 101, pressure sensor; 151, first spraying pipe; 152, second spraying pipe. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0039] In order to make the personnel in the art 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 combination with the drawings in the embodiments of the present application. Obviously, the described embodiments are only part of the embodiments of the present application, not all embodiments. All other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art based on the embodiments in the embodiments of the present application shall belong to the scope of protection of the embodiments of the present application.

[0040] In the description of the present application, it should be understood that the terms "longitudinal", "transverse", "upper", "lower", "front", "rear", "left", "right", "vertical", "horizontal", "top", "bottom", "inner", "outer" and the like indicate the orientation or positional relationship shown in the drawings, and are only for the purpose of facilitating the description of the present application and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a particular orientation, be constructed and operated in a particular orientation, therefore it cannot be understood as a limitation of the present application.

[0041] In addition, in the description of this application, unless otherwise specified and limited, it should be noted that the terms "installation", "connection" and "linking" should be interpreted broadly. For example, they can refer to mechanical or electrical connections, or internal connections between two components. They can be direct connections or indirect connections through an intermediate medium. Those skilled in the art can understand the specific meaning of the above terms according to the specific circumstances.

[0042] Figure 1 A schematic perspective view illustrates a wafer thinning apparatus 1 provided in an embodiment of the present invention, comprising: a rotary table 31, which is rotatable and supports a plurality of support stages 32; support stages 32, which vacuum-adhere and hold a wafer W and can drive the wafer W to rotate; and a grinding device 2, which includes a spindle unit and a grinding wheel connected to the spindle unit, the grinding wheel abutting against the wafer W to perform grinding and thinning processing on the wafer W, the spindle unit being capable of vertical and / or horizontal feed and adjustable forward / backward or left / right tilt to adjust the feed amount of the grinding wheel. Specifically, the grinding device 2 may include a rough grinding section 21 and a fine grinding section 22, the rough grinding section 21 including a rough grinding spindle unit and a rough grinding wheel 211, and the fine grinding section 22 including a fine grinding spindle unit and a fine grinding wheel 221.

[0043] Specifically, the rotary table 31 is equipped with multiple support platforms 32 for holding and rotating the wafer W. The rotary table 31 can rotate around its vertical central axis, causing the rotary table 31 to drive the multiple support platforms 32 to rotate and move as a whole, thereby realizing the position change of the support platforms 32 between different workstations. Each support platform 32 can also rotate on its own axis. Figure 1 As shown, in one possible implementation, three rotatable support platforms 32 are evenly distributed on the rotary table 31, each equipped with a suction cup for adsorbing the wafer W. The three suction cups can be porous ceramic suction cups to achieve vacuum adsorption of the wafer W. The three support platforms 32 form a ring array centered on the rotary table 31, with adjacent support platforms 32 forming a 120° angle. The three support platforms 32 correspond to three workstations: a rough grinding station, a fine grinding station, and a loading / unloading station. The rough grinding station and the fine grinding station are two processing stations, located below the rough grinding section 21 and the fine grinding section 22 of the grinding device 2, respectively. The remaining station is used for loading, unloading, and cleaning the wafer W. The rotation of the rotary table 31 allows the three support platforms 32 to switch between these three workstations, enabling the support platforms 32 to carry the wafer W in a cyclical movement following the sequence of loading / unloading station - rough grinding station - fine grinding station - loading / unloading station. This embodiment achieves fully automated loading, unloading, continuous grinding, and cleaning of wafer W through repeated cycles. Using a rotary table 31 for wafer W grinding offers advantages such as high material removal rate, minimal surface damage to wafer W, and ease of automation.

[0044] The wafer thinning apparatus 1 can further include a cleaning unit 5, which includes a first cleaning part for cleaning and polishing the chuck 32 with an oil stone, and a second cleaning part for cleaning the wafer W with a brush. The wafer thinning apparatus 1 can further include a robot 6 for placing the wafer W on the chuck 32 in the loading and unloading position, and taking the wafer W from the chuck 32 after the grinding and cleaning are completed for subsequent transmission. As an implementation, the robot 6 is internally provided with a pipeline for vacuum suction to achieve vacuum adsorption of the wafer W. In addition, in a specific implementation, the wafer thinning apparatus 1 further includes a grinding fluid supply unit for spraying grinding fluid to the surface of the wafer W to assist in grinding during rough grinding and / or fine grinding, and the grinding fluid can be deionized water.

[0045] As shown in Figure 1 , the wafer thinning apparatus 1 further includes a measuring unit 4, which can include a contact type measuring device 100 and a non-contact optical measuring device (not shown), capable of realizing online monitoring of the thickness of the wafer W. The probe of the contact type measuring device 100 contacts the surface of the wafer W to measure the thickness of the wafer W. The measuring unit 4 can include two contact type measuring devices 100 arranged back to back, respectively for measurement at the two processing positions. The non-contact optical measuring device can irradiate the wafer W with infrared light and calculate the thickness of the wafer W according to the different reflected light on the upper and lower surfaces of the wafer W.

[0046] Figure 2 The detection principle diagram of a contact type measuring device 100 is shown. The contact type sensor can include a first mounting seat 110 and a first measuring rod 111, the first mounting seat 110 is arranged on the side of the chuck 32 carrying the wafer W, and is configured with a mounting hole 1101 (see Figure 4 ). The first measuring rod 111 is mounted to the mounting hole 1101 and extends horizontally above the chuck 32, and the end of the first measuring rod 111 is provided with a vertically extending first probe 112, and the first measuring rod 111 is configured to be lifted in the mounting hole 1101 to make the first probe 112 contact the wafer W and be lifted with the change of the thickness of the wafer W during the processing of the wafer W. The contact type measuring device 100 can further include a second mounting seat 120 identical in structure to the first mounting seat 110 and a second measuring rod 121 identical in structure to the first measuring rod 111, the horizontal extension distance of the second measuring rod 121 can be less than that of the first measuring rod 111, and the end of the second measuring rod 121 is provided with a vertically extending second probe 122, and the second probe 122 is configured to contact the chuck 32 to measure the height of the surface of the chuck 32, and the contact type measuring device 100 obtains the thickness of the wafer W based on the difference between the height of the surface of the wafer W measured by the first probe 112 and the height of the surface of the chuck 32 measured by the second probe 122. Specifically, as shown in Figure 2As shown in Figure a, zeroing can be performed before measurement. Without placing a crystal on the support stage 32, both the first probe 112 and the second probe 122 should be in contact with the surface of the support stage 32, and the measurement heights of both the first probe 112 and the second probe 122 should be set to zero. Figure 2 In Figure b, during measurement, the real-time thickness of wafer W is the difference between the height measured by the first probe 112 and the height measured by the second probe 122. The grinding device 2 can adjust the grinding wheel feed rate during the thinning process based on the wafer W thickness measured by the contact measuring device 100, achieving real-time monitoring and control of the grinding and thinning process, and ensuring the processing accuracy of wafer W.

[0047] In an alternative embodiment, the second mounting base 120 and the second measuring rod 121 can be omitted, and only the first mounting base 110 and the first measuring rod 111 can be used. In this case, the first measuring rod 111 can be extended or retracted before measurement so that the first measuring head 112 contacts the surface of the support platform 32 for measurement, and the height of the surface of the support platform 32 measured is used as the reference height. Then, the first measuring rod 111 can be extended or retracted so that the first measuring head 112 contacts the surface of the wafer W for real-time measurement. The height of the surface of the wafer W measured by the first measuring head 112 minus the reference height is the real-time thickness of the wafer W.

[0048] Figure 3 It shows Figure 2 A schematic diagram of the contact measuring device 100 in operation. During the wafer grinding and thinning process, a large amount of processing debris, such as silicon powder and slag, is generated. Under the high-speed rotation of the spindle unit (e.g., a rough grinding spindle unit), the generated airflow carries the processing debris toward the contact measuring device 100, and some of the processing debris is blown into the mounting hole 1101 of the contact measuring device 100. Figure 4 It shows Figure 2 In the partial perspective view of the contact measuring device 100, it can be seen that the machining debris accumulated in the mounting hole 1101 (as shown by the solid black pattern) will hinder the normal descent of the first measuring rod 111, preventing the first measuring rod 111 from descending as the wafer W thickness decreases during the measurement process. This causes the contact measuring device 100 to malfunction, resulting in inaccurate wafer W thickness measurements. Consequently, it cannot correctly guide the grinding device 2 to control the feed rate of the grinding wheel, affecting the normal operation of the wafer thinning equipment.

[0049] Therefore, this application provides a contact measuring device 100. Figure 5 A top view schematic diagram of a contact measuring device 100 according to one embodiment of this application is shown. Figure 6 It shows Figure 5 A bottom view of the protective air tube 130 of the contact measuring device 100 in the middle. Figure 7 It shows Figure 5a partial perspective view of the contact gauge 100 in FIG. 1. Figure 5 The contact gauge 100 in FIG. 1 includes a base 10, a first mounting seat 110, a first measuring rod 111, a first measuring head 112, a second mounting seat 120, a second measuring rod 121, a second measuring head 122, etc. The base 10 can be fixedly mounted to an abutment of a wafer thinning device, and the first mounting seat 110 and the second mounting seat 120 are mounted to a side of the base 10 facing a carrier table 32 of the wafer thinning device. A bracket 20 extending above the first mounting seat 110 is fixedly connected to a top of the base 10 (see Figure 9 ), and a shunt block 30 is mounted on the bracket 20. A protective gas pipe 130 and a protective liquid pipe 140 are mounted to the shunt block 30 and can be in fluid communication with a shunt gas path and a shunt liquid path in the shunt block 30, respectively, through pipes.

[0050] Specifically, referring to Figure 7 , the first mounting seat 110 is arranged beside the carrier table 32 carrying the wafer W and is configured with a mounting hole 1101. The first measuring rod 111 extends horizontally above the carrier table 32, and a first measuring head 112 vertically extending is arranged at an end of the first measuring rod 111. The first measuring rod 111 is configured to be raised and lowered in the mounting hole 1101 so that the first measuring head 112 contacts the wafer W and is raised and lowered with the change of the thickness of the wafer W during the processing of the wafer W. The second mounting seat 120 is the same in structure as the first mounting seat 110, and the second measuring rod 121 is the same in structure as the first measuring rod 111. A second measuring head 122 vertically extending is arranged at an end of the second measuring rod 121, and the second measuring head 122 is configured to contact the carrier table 32 to measure the height of the surface of the carrier table 32. The contact gauge 100 obtains the thickness of the wafer W based on the difference between the height of the surface of the wafer W measured by the first measuring head 112 and the height of the surface of the carrier table 32 measured by the second measuring head 122.

[0051] Also as shown in Figure 7 , the protective gas pipe 130 and the protective liquid pipe 140 are located between the mounting hole 1101 and the first measuring head 112 and extend horizontally above the first measuring rod 111 and the second measuring rod 121 (not shown) perpendicular to the first measuring rod 111, i.e., from Figure 5 a top view, the protective gas pipe 130 and the protective liquid pipe 140 are parallel, and the two are cross-shaped with the first measuring rod 111 and the second measuring rod 121, respectively. The protective gas pipe 130 is closer to the first measuring head 112 than the protective liquid pipe 140. As shown in Figure 6 , the protective gas pipe 130 is configured with a gas venting groove 131 opening downward along the length thereof. Similarly, the protective liquid pipe 140 is configured with a liquid venting groove (not shown) opening downward along the length thereof. In addition, Figure 6 the pipe perpendicular to the protective gas pipe 130 shown in FIG. 1 is one embodiment of the pipe through which the protective gas pipe 130 is in fluid connection with the shunt block 30. Returning toFigure 7 As can be seen, the venting groove 131 is configured to discharge air downwards to form an air curtain 201 to prevent machining debris from entering the mounting hole 1101, and the liquid groove is configured to discharge liquid downwards to form a liquid curtain 202 to prevent machining debris passing through the air curtain 201 from entering the mounting hole 1101. It should be understood that... Figure 7 The image uses multiple parallel curves to represent the air curtain 201 and multiple parallel dashed lines to represent the liquid curtain 202. In actual implementations, both the air curtain 201 and the liquid curtain 202 are continuous curtains. Although Figure 6 The ventilation channel 131 shown is a straight, elongated channel. In optional embodiments, both the ventilation channel 131 and the liquid channel can be curved or wavy, elongated channels. The gas ejected from the ventilation channel 131 can be compressed air, and the liquid ejected from the liquid channel can be deionized water.

[0052] Figure 8 It shows Figure 5 A schematic diagram of the contact measuring device 100 in operation. As the airflow carrying machining debris flows toward the first mounting base 110 and the second mounting base 120, it is successively blocked by the air curtain 201 and the liquid curtain 202, thereby significantly reducing the accumulation of machining debris in the mounting hole 1101 and reducing contamination near the roots of the first measuring rod 111 and the second measuring rod 120. This effectively improves the cleanliness, operational efficiency, and measurement accuracy of the contact measuring device 100, facilitates the rational control of the grinding wheel feed rate during grinding, and ensures the precision of wafer W machining.

[0053] In a specific embodiment, the protective air pipe 130 is fluidly connected to an air supply source. A pressure regulator is installed between the protective air pipe 130 and the air supply source. The pressure regulator is configured to adjust the outlet pressure of the vent 131 based on the pressure of the airflow carrying machining debris. This outlet pressure can be between 0.3 and 0.7 MPa. The protective liquid pipe 140 is fluidly connected to a liquid supply source. A flow regulator is installed between the protective liquid pipe 140 and the liquid supply source. The flow regulator is configured to adjust the outlet flow rate of the liquid vent based on the pressure of the airflow carrying machining debris. This outlet flow rate can be between 1 and 2 L / min. Figure 7 The contact measuring device 100 may include a pressure sensor 101 disposed on the first probe 112 or the second probe 122. The pressure sensor 101 may be disposed toward the grinding device 2, specifically toward the direction of the airflow carrying the machining debris, preferably directly opposite the direction of the airflow carrying the machining debris, and configured to detect the pressure of the airflow carrying the machining debris, and communicate with the pressure regulator and the flow regulator to provide regulation reference information for both.

[0054] In a preferred embodiment, the protective air pipe 130 is electrically connected to an actuator which can be configured to be in communication with the pressure sensor 101 and actuate the protective air pipe 130 to rotate around its axis based on the pressure of the air flow carrying the machining debris, so as to adjust the included angle between the ventilation groove 131 and the vertical plane. In a specific implementation, a rotary joint can be used to connect the pipe between the protective air pipe 130 and the flow distribution block 30, or a flexible connection in the form of a bellows or the like can be used to connect the pipe between the protective air pipe 130 and the flow distribution block 30 and the protective air pipe 130, so as to achieve a small degree of rotatability of the protective air pipe 130 and ensure the sealing of the connection.

[0055] In a further embodiment, the wall surface of the ventilation groove 131 is configured to be inclined by 0 to 15 degrees away from the first mounting seat 110, i.e. inclined by 0 to 15 degrees towards the spindle unit, so that the air curtain 201 is inclined towards the spindle unit, and forms a head-on collision with the air flow carrying the machining debris flowing towards the first mounting seat 110, slows down the speed of the air flow carrying the machining debris, and thus reduces the machining debris passing through the air curtain 201 and the liquid curtain 202 into the mounting hole 1101. Alternatively, the wall surface of the liquid passage groove can also have an inclination angle away from the first mounting seat 110, for example, 0 to 15 degrees, preferably 1 to 10 degrees.

[0056] In terms of height, the positions of the protective air pipe 130 and the protective liquid pipe 140 are both higher than the mounting hole 1101, and the height of the protective air pipe 130 is equal to or higher than the height of the protective liquid pipe 140, so as to form a double protection structure, and avoid the machining debris on the upper side directly passing over the protective air pipe 130 due to the protective air pipe 130 being lower than the protective liquid pipe 140. Preferably, the height of the protective air pipe 130 is higher than the height of the protective liquid pipe 140, so as to facilitate the connection of the protective air pipe 130 and the protective liquid pipe 140 with the pipe of the flow distribution block 30, and avoid the interference of the protective liquid pipe 140 with the connection of the protective air pipe 130.

[0057] In a preferred embodiment, the projection of the axis of the protective liquid pipe 140 onto the surface of the bearing table 32 is tangent to the projection of the outer circumference of the wafer W onto the surface of the bearing table 32, i.e. the protective liquid pipe 140 is arranged directly above the tangent line of the outer circumference of the wafer W, so that the liquid curtain 202 flushes the machining debris at the contact between the edge of the wafer W and the bearing table 32. Since the wafer W is fixed by the bearing table 32 through vacuum suction, the machining debris is easily sucked into the porous suction plate of the bearing table 32 from the edge of the wafer W, causing the suction to be not firm or blocking the pores of the porous suction plate. By arranging the protective liquid pipe 140 directly above the tangent line of the outer circumference of the wafer W, the machining debris at the contact between the edge of the wafer W and the bearing table 32 can be flushed by the liquid curtain 202, so as to avoid the machining debris accumulating at the edge of the wafer W to scratch or contaminate the wafer, and avoid the machining debris being sucked into the bearing table 32 to cause the suction to be not firm.

[0058] In the preferred embodiment, the contact type measuring device 100 further comprises a second protective gas pipe (not shown) arranged between the protective liquid pipe 140 and the first mounting base 110, the second protective gas pipe extends horizontally above and perpendicular to the first measuring rod 111, and the second protective gas pipe is configured with a second air venting groove extending downwards along the length of the second protective gas pipe, the second air venting groove vents air downwards to form an air curtain 201 to block the machining debris and liquid droplets from entering the mounting hole 1101, that is, the second protective gas pipe and the protective gas pipe 130 can have substantially the same structure. The position of the second protective gas pipe is higher than the mounting hole 1101, and the positions of the second protective gas pipe, the protective liquid pipe 140 and the protective gas pipe 130 can be sequentially raised to form a stepped three-layer protective structure.

[0059] In the preferred embodiment, the first mounting base 110 is configured with an air outlet channel in fluid communication with the mounting hole 1101, the air outlet channel can be connected to a compressed air source, and the air outlet channel is configured to blow air into the mounting hole 1101 to actively blow out the machining debris or liquid droplets entering the mounting hole 1101.

[0060] In the preferred embodiment, the mounting hole 1101 is configured as an expanding hole with a gradually expanding cross section towards the bearing table 32, and the bottom wall of the mounting hole 1101 is gradually inclined downwards to facilitate the machining debris or liquid droplets to be discharged along the inclined bottom wall under the action of gravity.

[0061] As Figure 9 A contact type measuring device is shown, which comprises two contact type measuring devices 100 arranged back to back. The two contact type measuring devices 100 can be directly combined back to back, or as shown in Figure 9 The base 10 of each contact type measuring device 100 is integrally formed into a common base 10, and in Figure 9 The bracket 20 for supporting the flow splitter 30 can be seen, and the top of the base 10 can also be mounted with a flow splitter 11, the interface at the top of the flow splitter 11 is used to connect with the gas source or liquid source in the wafer thinning equipment, and the interface at the side of the flow splitter 11 is used to correspondingly fluidly communicate with the flow splitter gas path and the flow splitter liquid path in the flow splitter 30 through the pipes (not shown). Through the arrangement of the flow splitter 11 and the flow splitter 30, the bending, interference or winding of the pipes due to the change of direction can be reduced, the vibration of the pipes can be reduced, the stability of the contact type measuring device 100 itself can be ensured, the jitter deviation of the measurement result can be reduced, the smoothness and stability of the fluid flow in the pipes can be increased, and the occurrence of fluid turbulence in the pipes can be reduced, so that the speed or fluid pressure of the gas or liquid flowing out of the air venting groove and the liquid venting groove can be uniform and controllable.

[0062] In the preferred embodiment, as Figure 9As shown, first spray pipe 151 and second spray pipe 152 can be arranged above first measuring rod 111 and second measuring rod 121 respectively and extend in parallel with first measuring rod 111 and second measuring rod 121 respectively, so as to spray and cool first measuring rod 111 and second measuring rod 121 respectively.

[0063] The contact type measuring device 100 described above can be applied in a wafer thinning device, for example Figure 1 The wafer thinning device shown can be used as a measuring unit 4 or part of a measuring unit 4.

[0064] The above embodiments are only used to illustrate the present application, and are not intended to limit the present application. Those skilled in the art can make various changes and modifications without departing from the spirit and scope of the present application. Therefore, all equivalent technical solutions belong to the scope of the present application, and the patent protection scope of the present application should be defined by the claims.

Claims

1. A contact measuring instrument for wafer thinning equipment, characterized in that, include: A first mounting base and a first probe installed into a mounting hole in the first mounting base, the first probe extending horizontally above a support platform carrying a wafer and having a vertically extending first probe at its end; the first probe is capable of moving up and down in the mounting hole to allow the first probe to contact the wafer and moving up and down with the wafer thickness during wafer processing; The second mounting base and the second measuring rod have the same structure as the first mounting base and the first measuring rod, respectively. The end of the second measuring rod is provided with a vertically extending second measuring head, which is configured to contact the bearing platform. A protective air pipe and a protective liquid pipe are located between the mounting hole and the first probe. The protective air pipe and the protective liquid pipe are respectively constructed with a downward-opening venting groove and a liquid groove extending along their respective lengths. The venting groove is configured to discharge air downwards to form an uninterrupted air curtain to block machining debris from entering the mounting hole. The liquid groove is configured to discharge liquid downwards to form an uninterrupted liquid curtain to block machining debris passing through the air curtain from entering the mounting hole. A pressure sensor is installed on the first probe, which faces the incoming flow direction of the airflow carrying the processing debris and is configured to detect the pressure of the airflow carrying the processing debris. It is also communicatively connected to a pressure regulator that adjusts the outlet pressure of the venting groove and a flow regulator that adjusts the outlet flow rate of the liquid venting groove to provide adjustment reference information for both. The projection of the axis of the protective liquid pipe onto the surface of the support platform is tangent to the projection of the outer circumference of the wafer onto the surface of the support platform, so that the liquid curtain washes away the processing debris at the contact point between the edge of the wafer and the support platform. A first spray pipe and a second spray pipe extending parallel to each other are respectively installed directly above the first measuring rod and the second measuring rod to spray the first measuring rod and the second measuring rod.

2. The contact measuring device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The contact measuring device includes a base, which is fixedly mounted to the base of the wafer thinning equipment. A first mounting base is mounted on the side of the base facing the support platform of the wafer thinning equipment. A bracket extending above the first mounting base is fixedly connected to the top of the base. A flow divider is mounted on the bracket. A protective gas pipe and a protective liquid pipe are mounted to the flow divider and are in fluid communication with the flow divider gas path and flow divider liquid path in the flow divider, respectively.

3. The contact measuring device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The protective air duct is fluidly connected to the air supply source, and the air pressure regulator is provided between the protective air duct and the air supply source. The air pressure regulator is configured to adjust the outlet pressure of the vent based on the pressure of the airflow carrying the processing debris.

4. The contact measuring device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The protective liquid pipe is fluidly connected to the liquid supply source, and the flow regulator is provided between the protective liquid pipe and the liquid supply source. The flow regulator is configured to adjust the liquid outlet speed of the liquid passage based on the pressure of the airflow carrying the processing debris.

5. The contact measuring device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The protective air tube is electrically connected to an actuator, which actuates the protective air tube to rotate about its axis based on the pressure of the airflow carrying the processing debris, so as to adjust the angle between the vent slot and the vertical plane.

6. The contact measuring device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The first mounting base is provided with an air outlet channel that is in fluid communication with the mounting hole. The air outlet channel is configured to blow air into the mounting hole to blow out machining debris or droplets that have entered the mounting hole.

7. The contact measuring instrument according to any one of claims 1-6, characterized in that, The wall of the ventilation groove is configured to be inclined at 0 to 15 degrees away from the first mounting base, so as to counteract the airflow carrying the processing debris flowing toward the first mounting base.

8. The contact measuring instrument according to any one of claims 1-6, characterized in that, The protective air pipe and the protective liquid pipe are both positioned above the mounting hole, and the height of the protective air pipe is equal to or higher than the height of the protective liquid pipe.

9. The contact measuring instrument according to any one of claims 1-6, characterized in that, The mounting hole is configured as an enlarged hole that gradually expands toward the cross-section of the support platform, and its bottom wall gradually slopes downward to facilitate the discharge of processing debris or droplets.

10. A wafer thinning apparatus, characterized in that, The wafer thinning equipment includes: A rotary table equipped with a support platform for supporting wafers; Grinding equipment used for grinding wafers; Contact measuring device as described in any one of claims 1-9; Cleaning unit; A robotic arm for placing wafers onto or removing wafers from the carrier platform.

Citation Information

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