Electroplating equipment

Abstract

The embodiment of the invention provides electroplating equipment which comprises an electroplating bath, a clamping piece and a lifting mechanism, and the electroplating bath is used for containing electroplating liquid. The clamping piece is arranged above the electroplating bath and is used for horizontally clamping a substrate; the lifting mechanism is connected with the clamping piece and used for driving the clamping piece to ascend and descend so as to lift the base plate. The lifting mechanism comprises a cross beam and two lifting assemblies, the cross beam is connected with the clamping piece, and the two lifting assemblies are hinged to the two ends of the cross beam respectively. The electroplating equipment disclosed by the invention can be used for electroplating a large-size substrate.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of semiconductor technology, and more specifically, to an electroplating apparatus. Background Technology

[0002] Chip manufacturing processes include electroplating, which typically involves contacting the front side of a substrate with an electroplating solution to deposit a metal film. Electroplating includes vertical and horizontal processes. Vertical electroplating requires the substrate to be fully immersed in the electroplating solution in a vertical orientation, resulting in high solution consumption, a deeper plating tank, and higher overall equipment cost and manufacturing complexity. Horizontal electroplating, on the other hand, only requires the substrate to be in contact with the plating solution horizontally. Therefore, horizontal electroplating equipment requires a shallower tank, consumes less plating solution, and has a lower overall size and manufacturing cost. Consequently, horizontal electroplating equipment is becoming the mainstream choice.

[0003] Currently, the mainstream substrate sizes are typically 6 inches, 8 inches, or 12 inches. However, with technological advancements, substrate sizes are continuously increasing, making the safe and stable control of substrate contact with the plating solution a pressing issue. Summary of the Invention

[0004] Embodiments of this application provide an electroplating apparatus that can at least partially protect the back side of a wafer.

[0005] This application provides an electroplating device, including an electroplating tank for containing electroplating solution; a clamping member disposed above the electroplating tank for horizontally clamping a substrate; and a lifting mechanism connected to the clamping member for driving the clamping member to lift and lower the substrate; wherein the lifting mechanism includes a crossbeam and two sets of lifting components, the crossbeam being connected to the clamping member, and the two sets of lifting components being hinged to both ends of the crossbeam respectively.

[0006] Specifically, the two sets of lifting components are configured to lift synchronously.

[0007] Specifically, the electroplating equipment also includes a controller with coupling function, which is communicatively connected to the two sets of lifting components and is used to send the same command to the two sets of lifting components simultaneously.

[0008] Specifically, the driving component of the lifting assembly includes a lifting motor, the controller is electrically connected to the lifting motor, and the controller is configured to obtain the number of rotations of the lifting motor and calculate the lifting height of the lifting assembly based on the number of rotations of the lifting motor.

[0009] Specifically, the electroplating equipment also includes an alarm, and the controller is configured to acquire the lifting height of each of the two sets of lifting components, calculate the lifting height difference between the two sets of lifting components, and activate the alarm in response to the lifting height difference exceeding a set difference value.

[0010] Specifically, the clamping member is hinged to the crossbeam.

[0011] Specifically, the clamping member is positioned at half the length of the crossbeam.

[0012] Specifically, the crossbeam is provided with reinforcing ribs, which are symmetrical about the clamping member.

[0013] Specifically, the crossbeam has weight-reducing holes, which are symmetrical about the clamping member.

[0014] Specifically, the electroplating equipment further includes a blade plate disposed in the electroplating tank, and at least one drive motor is disposed on each side of the blade plate, the drive motor being used to drive the blade plate to perform linear reciprocating motion in the electroplating tank.

[0015] Specifically, the controller is communicatively connected to multiple drive motors and is used to send the same command to the multiple drive motors simultaneously.

[0016] In the electroplating equipment of this application, the clamping component is connected to the crossbeam, and the lifting mechanism includes two sets of lifting components for lifting the clamping component. The two sets of lifting components are respectively hinged to both ends of the crossbeam, which can stably lift the clamping component and thus stably lift the substrate.

[0017] Other features and advantages of this application will become apparent from the following detailed description, or may be learned in part from practice of this application.

[0018] It should be understood that the above general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory only, and do not limit this application. Attached Figure Description

[0019] The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and form part of this specification, illustrate embodiments consistent with this application and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of this application. It is obvious that the drawings described below are merely some embodiments of this application, and those skilled in the art can obtain other drawings based on these drawings without any inventive effort. In the drawings:

[0020] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of an electroplating apparatus according to an embodiment of this application is shown;

[0021] Figure 2A schematic diagram of a beam structure according to an embodiment of this application is shown.

[0022] Among them, 1. clamping component, 2. electroplating tank, 3. lifting mechanism, 31. crossbeam, 311. reinforcing rib, 312. weight reduction hole, 32. lifting assembly, 321. lifting motor, 322. connecting rod, 323. connecting block, 4. first hinge structure, 5. second hinge structure, 6. position sensor, 7. blade plate, 71. drive motor. Detailed Implementation

[0023] Exemplary embodiments will now be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, these exemplary embodiments can be implemented in many forms and should not be construed as limited to the examples set forth herein; rather, these embodiments are provided to make this application more comprehensive and complete, and to fully convey the concept of the exemplary embodiments to those skilled in the art.

[0024] Furthermore, the described features, structures, or characteristics can be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments. In the following description, numerous specific details are provided to give a thorough understanding of embodiments of this application. However, those skilled in the art will recognize that the technical solutions of this application can be practiced without one or more of the specific details, or other methods, components, apparatuses, steps, etc., can be employed. In other instances, well-known methods, apparatuses, implementations, or operations are not shown or described in detail to avoid obscuring various aspects of this application.

[0025] This embodiment provides an electroplating device that can safely and stably raise and lower a substrate, thereby ensuring that the substrate is uniformly electroplated.

[0026] like Figure 1 As shown, the electroplating equipment includes a clamping member 1 and an electroplating tank 2 for containing the electroplating solution. The clamping member 1 is positioned above the electroplating tank 2 and is used to horizontally clamp the substrate. The horizontal electroplating equipment also includes a lifting mechanism 3, which is connected to the clamping member 1. The lifting mechanism 3 moves the clamping member 1 up and down to immerse or move the substrate away from the electroplating solution.

[0027] like Figure 1As shown, the lifting mechanism 3 includes a crossbeam 31 and two sets of lifting components 32. In some embodiments, both sets of lifting components 32 are fixed to a fixed frame (not shown), and the crossbeam 31 is positioned between the two sets of lifting components 32. The two ends of the crossbeam 31 are hinged to the two sets of lifting components 32 respectively. The crossbeam 31 is also connected to the clamping member 1. The two sets of lifting components 32 drive the crossbeam 31 to rise and fall, thereby driving the clamping member 1 to rise and fall, which is more stable than a single set of lifting components 32 driving the crossbeam 31 to rise and fall. Simultaneously, because the crossbeam 31 is hinged to the two sets of lifting components 32, when the heights of the two ends of the crossbeam 31 are inconsistent, the crossbeam 31 can rotate relative to the lifting components 32 through the hinge structure, causing the crossbeam 31 to tilt, thus preventing deformation of the crossbeam 31 due to inconsistent lifting heights at both ends. In some embodiments, the clamping member 1 is positioned at half the length of the crossbeam, so that the two sets of lifting components 32 can evenly distribute the weight of the clamping member 1, further stabilizing the lifting and falling of the substrate.

[0028] like Figure 1 As shown, the crossbeam 31 and the clamping member 1 are hinged together by the first hinge structure 4. When the crossbeam 31 tilts, the first hinge structure 4 allows relative rotation between the crossbeam 31 and the clamping member 1, and the clamping member 1 can still keep the substrate horizontal under the action of gravity. Figure 2 As shown, the crossbeam 31 is provided with reinforcing ribs 311 to increase its load-bearing capacity. Weight-reducing holes 312 are provided on the crossbeam 31 to avoid the reinforcing ribs 311, thereby reducing the weight of the lifting mechanism 3. In some embodiments, the reinforcing ribs 311 are symmetrical about the clamping member 1, which can effectively increase the load-bearing capacity of the crossbeam 31. The weight-reducing holes 312 are symmetrically arranged about the clamping member 1 to avoid affecting the stability of the crossbeam 31's load-bearing capacity.

[0029] Refer again Figure 1 Each lifting assembly 32 includes a lifting motor 321, a connecting rod 322, and a connecting block 323. The lifting drive is fixed to a fixed frame and drives the connecting rod 322 to rise and fall. The connecting rod 322 is connected to the crossbeam 31 via the connecting block 323. In some embodiments, the connecting block 323 is connected to the end of the crossbeam via a second hinge structure 5. When the lifting heights of the two ends of the crossbeam 31 are inconsistent, the second hinge structure 5 allows the crossbeam 31 to rotate relative to the connecting block 323, causing the crossbeam 31 to tilt and preventing deformation of the crossbeam 31 due to inconsistent lifting heights at both ends. In other embodiments of this application, the lifting motor 321 is replaced by a cylinder or other driving component, and the connecting rod 322 is replaced by a lead screw or other lifting component. In other embodiments of this application, the connecting block 323 is replaced by a connecting piece or other connecting structure.

[0030] In some embodiments, the electroplating equipment also includes a controller, which is communicatively connected to two lifting motors 321. The controller has a coupling function, enabling it to simultaneously control both lifting motors 321 with a single command, thus synchronizing their operation. The controller is also electrically connected to the encoders of the lifting motors 321 to acquire the number of rotations of the two motors 321. Based on the number of rotations of the two motors 321, the lifting height of the two connecting blocks 323 is calculated. Based on the lifting height of the two connecting blocks 323, the height difference between the two ends of the crossbeam 31 is calculated. If the height difference exceeds a set value, an alarm is triggered to prevent excessive tilting of the crossbeam 31, which could lead to deformation.

[0031] like Figure 1 As shown, in some embodiments, the lifting mechanism 3 further includes a position sensor 6 for detecting whether the connecting block 323 has reached its limit position. The position sensor 6 is electrically connected to the controller. If the position sensor 6 detects that the connecting block 323 has reached its limit position, the position sensor 6 sends a signal to the controller, and the controller activates the alarm based on the signal.

[0032] like Figure 1 As shown, in some embodiments, the electroplating equipment further includes a paddle plate 7, which comprises multiple parallel stirring bars. The paddle plate 7 is mounted inside the electroplating tank 2 via two supports erected at the opening of the tank. Each support is connected to a drive motor 71, which drives the paddle plate 7 to reciprocate in a horizontal direction perpendicular to the stirring bars, thereby causing the paddle plate 7 to reciprocate linearly within the electroplating tank 2 to stir the electroplating solution.

[0033] Each drive motor 71 is electrically connected to a controller. The controller controls both drive motors 71 simultaneously via a single command, enabling them to operate synchronously and improving stirring efficiency. In other embodiments of this application, the lifting motor 321 and the drive motors 71 are controlled by different controllers.

[0034] Other embodiments of this application will readily occur to those skilled in the art upon consideration of the specification and practice of the embodiments disclosed herein. This application is intended to cover any variations, uses, or adaptations of this application that follow the general principles of this application and include common knowledge or customary techniques in the art not disclosed herein.

[0035] It should be understood that this application is not limited to the precise structure described above and shown in the accompanying drawings, and various modifications and changes can be made without departing from its scope. The scope of this application is limited only by the appended claims.

Claims

1. An electroplating device, characterized in that, include: Electroplating tank, used to hold electroplating solution; A clamping member is disposed above the electroplating tank for horizontally clamping the substrate; A lifting mechanism, connected to the clamping member, is used to drive the clamping member to lift and lower the substrate; The lifting mechanism includes a crossbeam and two sets of lifting components. The crossbeam is connected to the clamping member, and the two sets of lifting components are respectively hinged to both ends of the crossbeam.

2. The electroplating equipment according to claim 1, characterized in that, The two sets of lifting components are configured to lift synchronously.

3. The electroplating equipment according to claim 2, characterized in that, The electroplating equipment also includes a controller with coupling function, which is communicatively connected to the two sets of lifting components and is used to send the same command to the two sets of lifting components simultaneously.

4. The electroplating equipment according to claim 3, characterized in that, The lifting assembly includes a lifting motor, and the controller is electrically connected to the lifting motor. The controller is configured to obtain the number of rotations of the lifting motor and calculate the lifting height of the lifting assembly based on the number of rotations.

5. The electroplating equipment according to claim 4, characterized in that, It also includes an alarm, wherein the controller is configured to acquire the lifting height of each of the two sets of lifting components, calculate the lifting height difference between the two sets of lifting components, and activate the alarm in response to the lifting height difference exceeding a set difference value.

6. The electroplating equipment according to claim 1, characterized in that, The clamping member is hinged to the crossbeam.

7. The electroplating equipment according to claim 1, characterized in that, The clamping element is positioned at half the length of the crossbeam.

8. The electroplating equipment according to claim 1, characterized in that, The crossbeam is provided with reinforcing ribs, which are symmetrical about the clamping member.

9. The electroplating equipment according to claim 1, characterized in that, The crossbeam has weight-reducing holes, which are symmetrical about the clamping member.

10. The electroplating equipment according to claim 3, characterized in that, It also includes a blade plate disposed in the electroplating tank, and at least one drive motor is disposed on each side of the blade plate, the drive motor being used to drive the blade plate to perform linear reciprocating motion in the electroplating tank.

11. The electroplating equipment according to claim 10, characterized in that, The controller is communicatively connected to multiple drive motors and is used to send the same command to the multiple drive motors simultaneously.

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