Chemical mechanical polishing equipment, wafer processing method and chemical mechanical polishing system

Abstract

The invention provides chemical mechanical polishing equipment, a wafer processing method and a chemical mechanical polishing system.The chemical mechanical polishing equipment comprises a front unit, a vertical conveying unit and a processing unit which are sequentially arranged in the length direction of the chemical mechanical polishing equipment, and the processing unit comprises a polishing area located on the lower layer and a cleaning area located on the upper layer; the polishing and cleaning devices are respectively used for polishing and cleaning wafers; the vertical transmission unit comprises a vertical transmission module, a post-cleaning chamber and a drying chamber, the drying chamber is located below the post-cleaning chamber, and the vertical transmission module is located on the same side of the post-cleaning chamber and the drying chamber and is used for post-cleaning and drying wafers respectively; the vertical transfer module takes the wafer from the cleaning area in a first direction, transfers the wafer to the post-cleaning chamber in a second direction, and transfers the wafer from the post-cleaning chamber to the drying chamber, the first direction and the second direction being orthogonal. The chemical mechanical polishing equipment is high in space utilization rate, efficient in process and high in wafer processing yield.

Description

Chemical mechanical polishing equipment, wafer processing methods and chemical mechanical polishing systems Technical Field

[0001] This invention belongs to the field of wafer cleaning technology, and more specifically, relates to a chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) device, a wafer processing method, and a CMP system. Background Technology

[0002] In the manufacturing of integrated circuits (ICs), wafers come into contact with various chemical materials during continuous processing, especially during chemical mechanical polishing (CMP), resulting in contaminants on the wafers. CMP itself also generates contaminants. To prevent these contaminants from damaging the wafers, it is necessary to clean them.

[0003] The integrated circuit industry is the core of the information technology industry, playing a crucial role in promoting the digital and intelligent transformation and upgrading of the manufacturing industry. Chips are the carriers of integrated circuits, and chip manufacturing involves processes such as integrated circuit design, wafer fabrication, wafer processing, electrical measurement, dicing, packaging, and testing. Among these, chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) is one of the five core processes in wafer fabrication.

[0004] Chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) is an ultra-precision surface finishing technique that achieves global planarization. In CMP, the wafer is typically held in place by the bottom surface of a polishing head, with the side of the wafer containing the deposited layer resting against the upper surface of a polishing pad. The polishing head, driven by a drive assembly, rotates in the same direction as the polishing pad and applies a downward load to the wafer. Polishing fluid is supplied to the upper surface of the polishing pad and distributed between the wafer and the pad, allowing the wafer to undergo chemical and mechanical polishing through a combination of chemical and mechanical processes.

[0005] During chemical mechanical polishing (CMP), wafers come into contact with various chemical materials, leading to contaminants on the wafer surface. CMP itself also generates contaminants, such as polishing slurry residue and abrasive particles. If these contaminants are not removed promptly, they can cause defects in subsequent processes, severely impacting chip yield. Therefore, CMP equipment needs to integrate a polishing module and a cleaning module. The cleaning module is used to clean the wafers that have undergone polishing in the polishing module, and it also includes a drying chamber to achieve "dry in, dry out" wafer processing.

[0006] Existing chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) equipment uses a single-layer layout, with polishing and cleaning modules arranged sequentially on the same horizontal plane. This presents the following technical problems: First, it occupies too much floor space. Polishing and cleaning units are typically arranged on the same horizontal plane, resulting in a large overall footprint. In semiconductor manufacturing plants (Fabs), cleanroom costs are extremely high, and the equipment footprint directly impacts capacity layout and output per unit area. The limited number of existing CMP equipment units available leads to poor economic efficiency.

[0007] Secondly, the polishing, cleaning, and drying processes are poorly integrated. After cleaning, the wafers need to be transported over a long distance to reach the drying chamber. During this transport, the liquid on the wafer surface easily dries, leaving water stains that affect the cleaning effect. Furthermore, the high number of wafer turnovers not only increases transport time but also poses a serious risk of cross-contamination.

[0008] Third, the transmission system is complex and costly. Existing CMP equipment typically uses multiple standard robotic arms working in tandem, each with a single function, responsible only for wafer transfer within a specific area. This approach results in an excessive number of robotic arms, leading to high equipment manufacturing and maintenance costs. Furthermore, the coordinated control between multiple robotic arms is complex, reducing system reliability.

[0009] Fourth, the flipping efficiency is low and the space required is large. Before polishing, the wafer must be flipped to face down, and after polishing, it must be flipped back to face up for subsequent processing and storage. Existing technologies typically use a separate flipping module; the wafer must first be transferred to the flipping station, flipped, and then transferred to the next process. This discrete design not only increases the additional cycle time but also requires a large operating space for the flipping operation (especially for 12-inch wafers, flipping requires at least 300mm × 300mm × 300mm of unobstructed space), severely restricting the layout optimization of other functional modules of the equipment.

[0010] Fifth, poor process compatibility and insufficient scalability. Existing CMP equipment is typically designed for specific processes (such as single-pad, dual-pad, or triple-pad polishing), making it difficult to flexibly accommodate different process requirements within the same equipment architecture. When customers need to upgrade processes or change production flows, they often need to replace equipment or carry out large-scale modifications, resulting in high equipment lifecycle costs. In addition, existing equipment is not competitive enough in the key indicator of wafers per hour (WPH), making it difficult to meet the stringent capacity requirements of advanced processes.

[0011] Sixth, low space utilization. The volume of the cleaning chamber is much smaller than that of the CMP workstation. The single-layer layout leads to wasted space under workstation alignment. At the same time, the vertical space in the existing equipment is not fully utilized. Especially for cleanrooms with sufficient height, the single-layer layout results in a waste of valuable three-dimensional space resources.

[0012] Seventh, severe vibration interference. Vibrations generated during the polishing process are transmitted to the drying module through the equipment frame, while vibrations generated by high-speed rotation during the rotary cleaning process are also transmitted back to the polishing module, affecting polishing and cleaning accuracy and drying quality. Summary of the Invention

[0013] In view of the above, the present invention provides a chemical mechanical polishing apparatus, a wafer processing method, and a chemical mechanical polishing system, thereby solving or at least alleviating one or more of the above-mentioned problems and other problems existing in the prior art.

[0014] A first aspect of the present invention provides a chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) apparatus, comprising: a pre-processing unit, a vertical transport unit, and a processing unit arranged sequentially along the length of the CMP apparatus; the processing unit includes a polishing zone located at a lower layer and a cleaning zone located at an upper layer, respectively used for polishing and cleaning a wafer; the vertical transport unit includes a vertical transport module, a post-cleaning chamber, and a drying chamber, the drying chamber being located below the post-cleaning chamber; the vertical transport module being located on the same side of the post-cleaning chamber and the drying chamber, respectively used for post-cleaning and drying the wafer; the vertical transport module picks up a wafer from the cleaning zone along a first direction, transports the wafer to the post-cleaning chamber along a second direction, and transports the wafer from the post-cleaning chamber to the drying chamber, the first direction and the second direction being orthogonal.

[0015] Optionally, the polishing zone includes at least one polishing module, and the cleaning zone includes at least one cleaning module; the cleaning module includes one or more of a pre-cleaning chamber, a roller brush cleaning chamber, and a spray cleaning chamber; the post-cleaning chamber is a rotary cleaning chamber.

[0016] Optionally, at least one side wall of the cleaning chamber is provided with an opening for picking up and putting in wafers, and all openings are at the same height.

[0017] Optionally, the drying chamber has an opening on each of its side walls facing the front unit and the vertical transmission module, and the rotating cleaning chamber has an opening on its side wall facing the vertical transmission module.

[0018] Optionally, the vertical transfer module includes a vertical moving component and a drying robot. The vertical moving component drives the drying robot to move up and down to align the openings on the sidewalls of the rotating cleaning chamber and the drying chamber facing the vertical transfer module.

[0019] Optionally, a layer plate is provided between the upper and lower layers, and an interlayer opening is provided on the layer plate. A cross-layer robot arm is provided on the layer plate near the interlayer opening for synchronously flipping and transporting the polished wafer to the cleaning area. The wafer passes through the at least one cleaning module and the rotating cleaning chamber in sequence before entering the drying chamber for drying.

[0020] Optionally, the polishing zone includes a first polishing module and a second polishing module spaced apart along the length of the chemical mechanical polishing equipment, and the cleaning zone includes a first cleaning module and a second cleaning module spaced apart along the length of the chemical mechanical polishing equipment. The interlayer opening and the cross-layer robot are disposed between the first cleaning module and the second cleaning module. The cross-layer robot passes through the interlayer opening to transfer the wafer from the second polishing module to the first cleaning module or the second cleaning module and complete the wafer flipping, and to transfer the wafer from the second cleaning module to the first cleaning module.

[0021] Optionally, the polishing zone further includes a third polishing module symmetrically arranged with respect to the first polishing module along the central plane of the chemical mechanical polishing equipment along its length; each polishing module includes two polishing discs, two loading cups, an annular track, and at least two polishing heads on the annular track for chemical mechanical polishing of the wafer; the two polishing discs of the first and third polishing modules are spaced apart along the length direction, and the two polishing discs of the second polishing module are symmetrically arranged along the central plane; the cleaning zone further includes a third cleaning module symmetrically arranged with respect to the first cleaning module along the central plane; each cleaning module includes at least two cleaning chambers for... The wafer is cleaned; at least two cleaning chambers of the first cleaning module and the third cleaning module are spaced apart along the length direction, and two cleaning chambers of the second cleaning module are symmetrically arranged along the central plane; the cross-layer robot includes a first cross-layer robot and a second cross-layer robot, which are symmetrically arranged on both sides of the interlayer opening along the central plane, and are used to perform wafer transfer, cross-layer handling and flipping of wafers on one side of the central plane; the vertical transfer unit includes two vertical transfer modules, two post-cleaning chambers and two drying chambers symmetrically arranged along the central plane of the length direction of the chemical mechanical polishing equipment to form multiple parallel process lines.

[0022] Optionally, the first cleaning module and the third cleaning module are roller brush cleaning modules, each including a first roller brush cleaning chamber and a second roller brush cleaning chamber, with the second roller brush cleaning chamber located close to the vertical transmission unit; a cleaning robot is also provided between the first roller brush cleaning chamber and the second roller brush cleaning chamber for removing the wafer from the first roller brush cleaning chamber and placing it into the second roller brush cleaning chamber; the second cleaning module includes two pre-cleaning chambers.

[0023] Optionally, the cleaning chamber and the drying chamber are located on the side of the chemical mechanical polishing equipment near the outer wall of the equipment, and a safety door is provided on the outer wall of the equipment.

[0024] Optionally, a temporary storage station is provided on the side of the second roller brush cleaning chamber away from the outer wall of the equipment. The cleaning robot is also used to remove the wafer from the second roller brush cleaning chamber and place it in the temporary storage station, and the drying robot takes the wafer from the temporary storage station.

[0025] Optionally, the front unit includes a front robotic arm for picking up dried wafers through an opening in the drying chamber facing the front unit.

[0026] Optionally, a wafer flipping device is provided below the vertical transmission module. The front-mounted robotic arm transmits the unpolished wafer to the wafer flipping device, which then synchronously flips and transports the wafer to the processing unit.

[0027] A second aspect of the present invention provides a wafer processing method using the chemical mechanical polishing equipment described in the first aspect, comprising: controlling the wafer to be transferred from the pre-processing unit to the polishing zone via the vertical transfer unit; polishing the wafer; controlling the wafer to be transferred from the polishing zone to the cleaning zone; cleaning the wafer; controlling the wafer to be transferred from the cleaning zone to the post-cleaning chamber; performing post-cleaning on the wafer; controlling the wafer to be transferred from the post-cleaning chamber to the drying chamber; and drying the wafer.

[0028] Optionally, when the post-wash chamber is a rotary wash chamber, the post-wash and drying are controlled to alternate.

[0029] A third aspect of the present invention provides a chemical mechanical polishing system, comprising: a chemical mechanical polishing apparatus as described in the first aspect and a controller, the controller being configured to perform the method as described in the second aspect.

[0030] The present invention has the following technical effects: The chemical mechanical polishing equipment of the present invention, by vertically stacking the wafer processing process and independently setting the vertical transmission unit and processing unit and the shock absorption structure, ensures that the machine vibration caused by the polishing process will not affect the drying process, thereby fundamentally solving many defects in the prior art and improving the yield of wafer production. Attached Figure Description

[0031] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention or the prior art, the drawings used in the description of the embodiments or the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments recorded in the embodiments of the present invention. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings.

[0032] Figures 1-2 are schematic diagrams of an embodiment of the chemical mechanical polishing equipment of the present invention; Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of the vertical transmission unit; Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of an embodiment of the cleaning zone; Figure 5 is a schematic diagram of the structure corresponding to the cleaning process; Figure 6 is a schematic diagram of the structure of the cross-layer robot in Figure 2; Figures 7-9 are schematic diagrams of an embodiment of the chemical mechanical polishing equipment of the present application; Figure 10 is a flowchart of the wafer processing method of the present invention. Detailed Implementation

[0033] To enable those skilled in the art to better understand the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention, the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of the present invention, and not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art should fall within the protection scope of the present invention.

[0034] In the description of this invention, it should be understood that the terms "longitudinal", "lateral", "up", "down", "front", "rear", "left", "right", "vertical", "horizontal", "top", "bottom", "inner", "outer", etc., indicate the orientation or positional relationship based on the orientation or positional relationship shown in the accompanying drawings. They are only for the convenience of describing this invention and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, or be constructed and operated in a specific orientation. Therefore, they should not be construed as limitations on this invention.

[0035] In addition, in the description of this invention, 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.

[0036] The technical solutions of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to specific embodiments and accompanying drawings. The embodiments described herein are specific implementations of the present invention, used to illustrate the concept of the present invention; these descriptions are explanatory and exemplary, and should not be construed as limiting the implementation of the present invention or the scope of protection of the present invention. In addition to the embodiments described herein, those skilled in the art can employ other obvious technical solutions based on the content disclosed in the claims and specification of the present invention. These technical solutions include those that make any obvious substitutions and modifications to the embodiments described herein.

[0037] The accompanying drawings in this specification are schematic diagrams used to illustrate the concept of the invention and to schematically show the shapes of the various parts and their interrelationships. It should be understood that, in order to clearly show the structure of the various components of the embodiments of the invention, the drawings are not drawn to the same scale, and the same reference numerals are used to indicate the same parts in the drawings.

[0038] In this invention, "upper layer" and "lower layer" refer to two modules or units that are not on the same layer in the horizontal direction, but do not limit the positional relationship between the two modules or units in the vertical direction. "Above" and "below" refer to two modules that are not only not on the same layer in the horizontal direction, but also overlap in position in the vertical direction.

[0039] In this invention, "Chemical Mechanical Polishing (CMP)" is also referred to as "Chemical Mechanical Planarization (CMP)".

[0040] In this invention, a wafer (W) is also called a substrate, crystal plate, or wafer, etc., and its meaning and actual function are equivalent.

[0041] The present invention provides a chemical mechanical polishing device 100. In one embodiment, as shown in Figures 1-2, the chemical mechanical polishing device 100 includes a front unit 3, a vertical transmission unit 2 and a processing unit 1 arranged sequentially along the length direction.

[0042] The front unit 3 is located on one side of the chemical mechanical polishing equipment and is used for loading and unloading wafers. The front unit 3 is equipped with a front-mounted robot arm, which is responsible for moving the wafers from the loading area into the equipment and moving them to the unloading area after processing.

[0043] Processing unit 1 includes a polishing zone 11 located in the lower layer and a cleaning zone 12 located in the upper layer. The polishing zone 11 includes at least one polishing unit 111 for performing chemical mechanical polishing on the wafer to planarize the wafer surface; the cleaning zone 12 includes at least one cleaning module 121 for performing a cleaning step to remove residues from the wafer surface after polishing.

[0044] The vertical transport unit 2 is located between the pre-processing unit 3 and the processing unit 1, as shown in Figure 3. The vertical transport unit 2 includes a vertical transport module 21, a post-cleaning chamber 22, and a drying chamber 23. The drying chamber 23 is located below the post-cleaning chamber 22, and the vertical transport module 21 is located on the same side of both the post-cleaning chamber 22 and the drying chamber 23. The vertical transport module 21 is used to transport the wafer in both vertical and horizontal directions. The post-cleaning chamber 22 is used for the final cleaning step of the wafer, and the drying chamber 23 is used for the wafer drying process.

[0045] The complete processing of a wafer in a chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) apparatus 100 is shown by the dashed arrow in Figure 2. That is, the wafer goes through the polishing process of the polishing unit 111 in the lower polishing zone 11, the cleaning process of the cleaning module 121 in the upper cleaning zone 12 and the post-cleaning chamber 22, and the drying process of the drying chamber 23.

[0046] After the wafer completes the cleaning step in the cleaning area 12, the vertical transfer module 21 takes the wafer from the cleaning area 12 along the first direction, transfers the wafer to the post-cleaning chamber 22 along the second direction (the second direction and the third direction are the same direction), and transfers the wafer from the post-cleaning chamber 22 to the drying chamber 23. The first direction and the second direction are orthogonal.

[0047] In this embodiment, the first direction is the length direction of the chemical mechanical polishing equipment 100, which is the X-axis direction; the second direction is the width direction of the chemical mechanical polishing equipment 100, which is the Y-axis direction.

[0048] The chemical mechanical polishing equipment 100 of the present invention achieves efficient connection of the process flow by vertically stacking the wafer processing processes executed in a horizontal sequence, significantly reducing the footprint of the wafer processing device and making full use of the three-dimensional space resources in the cleanroom; at the same time, the post-cleaning chamber for performing the final cleaning step in the cleaning process is set in the vertical transfer unit and stacked above the drying chamber, and orthogonal interactive wafer lines are set, which not only makes the connection of the cleaning process more efficient, but also improves the space utilization of the vertical transfer unit 2, and significantly increases the selectivity of the layout space of the cleaning area 12.

[0049] Optionally, the frames of the vertical transmission unit 2 and the processing unit 1 are set independently and there is a vibration damping structure between them, so that the machine vibration caused by the polishing process will not affect the drying process, and the machine vibration caused by the post-cleaning process will not affect the polishing process, thereby improving the yield of wafer production.

[0050] Preferably, the independent frames of the vertical transmission unit 2 and the processing unit 1 are assembled separately and then fixed to the bottom surface. The damping structure includes one or more of mechanical damping structures or material damping structures. Since the equipment needs to be sealed and isolated from the external environment, it is preferable to achieve the connection and sealing between the frames through a sealing material with a damping structure.

[0051] Optionally, by further controlling the air pressure in each of the pre-unit 3, vertical transmission unit 2 and processing unit 1 to decrease sequentially, the clean gas in the pre-unit 3 flows into the drying chamber 23, while the gas in the processing unit 1 that may contain contaminants has difficulty entering the vertical transmission unit 2.

[0052] In conventional chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) equipment, the drying chamber is located within the processing unit. This makes it impossible to effectively control the cleanliness inside and outside the drying chamber through airflow, leading to a risk of secondary contamination of the wafer. This embodiment reduces the possibility of contamination of the drying chamber 23 solely through air pressure control, thereby lowering the risk of secondary contamination of the wafer before, during, and after drying.

[0053] Optionally, the cleaning module in the cleaning zone includes one or more of a pre-cleaning chamber, a roller brush cleaning chamber, and a spray cleaning chamber, each used for cleaning different stages or types of residues. Of course, the specific types of cleaning chambers described above are merely illustrative; those skilled in the art can modify them to other types of cleaning modules as needed, such as ultrasonic cleaning, all of which are within the scope of this invention. Preferably, these chambers are arranged along the length of the chemical mechanical polishing equipment 100. The polished wafer sequentially passes through each module to complete a multi-stage cleaning process, thereby ensuring thorough cleaning of the wafer surface through the synergistic effect of different cleaning chambers, improving cleaning efficiency and quality.

[0054] Optionally, the post-cleaning chamber 22 is a rotary cleaning chamber, which performs the final cleaning step before wafer drying. Located after all cleaning steps in the cleaning area, it thoroughly cleans the wafer through the rotation of water flow, ensuring the cleanliness of the dried wafer surface. During the rotary cleaning process, the wafer is clamped and rotated at high speed, generating high-frequency vibrations. Because the frames of the vertical transport unit 2 and the processing unit 1 are independently set and there is a vibration damping structure between them, the vibrations generated by the rotary cleaning will not affect the polishing quality.

[0055] Outside the chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) equipment 100, wafers are placed in wafer cassettes with the front side facing up. The wafer cassettes are docked to the front unit 3, where a front-mounted robotic arm (not shown) in the front unit 3 loads and unloads the wafers. This robotic arm has no wafer flipping or lifting function, ensuring fast, accurate, and clean wafer loading and unloading. In the polishing unit 111, the wafers need to be polished with the front side facing down. Therefore, the wafers need to be flipped to face down before polishing and then flipped back to face up before exiting the front unit 3.

[0056] Optionally, a wafer flipping device 24 is provided below the vertical transport module 21. The front-mounted robot arm transports the unpolished wafer to the wafer flipping device 24, and the wafer flipping device 24 synchronously flips and transports the wafer to the processing unit 1.

[0057] Optionally, as shown in Figure 4, a shelf 13 is provided between the upper and lower layers of the chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) equipment 100, and multiple cleaning chambers of the cleaning zone are arranged on the shelf 13. The shelf 13 has interlayer openings 131, and a cross-layer robot 7 is positioned adjacent to the interlayer openings 131 to transport the polished wafers from the polishing unit 111 through the interlayer openings 131 to the cleaning module 121. During the transport process, the wafers are simultaneously flipped, eliminating the need for a separate flipping module and simplifying the layout within the CMP equipment while optimizing the wafer transport process.

[0058] Optionally, as shown in Figure 2, all cleaning chambers, namely the rotating cleaning chamber 22 and each cleaning chamber of the cleaning module 121, are provided with openings on at least one side wall for picking up and placing wafers. All openings are at the same height, so that the robotic arm that picks up and places wafers can complete the transfer of wafers between different cleaning chambers by only making horizontal movements.

[0059] Optionally, the drying chamber 23 is a horizontal drying chamber located below the rotary cleaning chamber 22, and the vertical transfer module 21 is located on the same side of the rotary cleaning chamber 22 and the drying chamber 23. Openings for picking up and placing wafers are provided on the sidewalls of the rotary cleaning chamber 22 and the drying chamber 23 facing the vertical transfer module 21. The vertical transfer module 21 uses these openings to transfer wafers into the rotary cleaning chamber 22 from the same direction, and to remove wafers from the rotary cleaning chamber 22 and transfer them into the drying chamber 23.

[0060] Optionally, the drying chamber 23 has an opening for picking up and placing wafers on the side wall facing the front unit 3. The opening is positioned directly opposite the front robot arm, so that the front robot arm can pick up the wafers from the drying chamber 23 and transport them into the wafer cassette.

[0061] Optionally, the operating times of the rotary cleaning chamber 22 and the drying chamber 23 are staggered in the production cycle, so that the vibration of the rotary cleaning chamber 22 will not affect the drying process.

[0062] Optionally, the vertical transfer module 21 includes a vertical moving component 211 and a drying robot 212. The vertical moving component 211 drives the drying robot 212 to move up and down. The drying robot 212 can extend and retract in an orthogonal first and second direction to grip the wafer. The vertical moving component 211 is preferably a slide rail. The drying robot 212 moves up and down along the slide rail, thereby aligning with the openings on the sidewalls of the rotating cleaning chamber 22 and the drying chamber 23 facing the vertical transfer module 21, so as to extend and retract into the openings and grasp or release the wafer.

[0063] As can be seen, this embodiment, through the arrangement of the vertical transmission module 21, the rotating cleaning chamber 22 and the drying chamber 23, enables the wafer to pass through the rotating cleaning chamber 22 and the drying chamber 23 sequentially during the process of being transported downwards from the upper layer in the vertical transmission unit, thus completing the final cleaning step and drying process. This further utilizes the three-dimensional space resources inside the vertical transmission unit 2, while improving transmission efficiency, reducing interaction steps, and ensuring the cleanliness of the wafer surface.

[0064] In another implementation of the present invention, the drying chamber 23 can also be a vertical lifting drying chamber. Compared with the horizontal drying chamber, the horizontal drying chamber requires the use of nozzles, and the position of the nozzles is still easily affected by vibration, resulting in a reduction in drying accuracy. The vertical lifting drying chamber is based on the liquid surface for lifting drying, does not require the setting of nozzles, allows a larger vibration window, and has better compatibility.

[0065] When the drying chamber 23 is used for vertical lifting drying, the drying chamber 23 is located below the vertical transfer module 21. The vertical transfer module 21 is preferably a retractable and flip-up lifting robot. After the lifting robot takes the wafer from the rotating cleaning chamber 22, it can flip the wafer to a vertical position and extend it from top to bottom to place the wafer into the vertical lifting drying chamber. Then it retracts from bottom to top to complete the wafer lifting.

[0066] Compared to horizontal drying, vertical lifting drying eliminates the need for a vertical moving component in the vertical transfer module 21, allowing for a smaller height and enabling the drying chamber 23 to be positioned below it. However, the drying chamber 23 cannot have an opening on its side wall facing the front unit 3 for the front robot to pick up the wafer, and it cannot complete the descent of the wafer from the upper position to the front robot position after drying. Therefore, an additional transfer unit, such as a transfer robot, is required to transfer the wafer to the front robot.

[0067] In the vertical pull-drying process, after the wafer completes the cleaning step in the cleaning zone 12, the vertical transfer module 21 takes the wafer from the cleaning zone 12 along the first direction, transfers the wafer to the post-cleaning chamber 22 along the second direction, and takes the wafer out from the post-cleaning chamber 22 along the second direction, and then transfers it to the drying chamber 23 along the third direction. The first direction and the second direction are orthogonal, and the second direction and the third direction are orthogonal.

[0068] The first direction is the length direction of the chemical mechanical polishing equipment 100, which is the X-axis direction; the second direction is the width direction of the chemical mechanical polishing equipment 100, which is the Y-axis direction; and the third direction is the height direction of the chemical mechanical polishing equipment 100, which is the Z-axis direction.

[0069] Optionally, as shown in Figures 7 and 8, the polishing area 11 is provided with three polishing units 111: a first polishing unit 111a, a second polishing unit 111b, and a third polishing unit 111c. The second polishing unit 111b is located on the side of the first polishing unit 111a and the third polishing unit 111c that is away from the front unit 3. Each polishing unit includes two polishing discs 1111, two loading cups 1112, an annular track 1113, and at least two polishing heads 1114. The polishing heads 1114 can slide along the annular track 1113 to realize the loading and unloading of wafers on the loading cups and the polishing on the polishing discs.

[0070] Understandably, the surface of the polishing pad 1111 is provided with a polishing pad, and the polishing pad 1111 is also equipped with a dressing device, a liquid supply device, and a rinsing device; among them, the dressing device is responsible for dressing the surface of the polishing pad to maintain the polishing characteristics of the polishing pad; the fixed base of the liquid supply device is set on both sides of the polishing pad, and the liquid supply arm on it can swing to the top of the polishing pad to supply polishing liquid between the polishing pad and the wafer; the rinsing device has a similar structure to the liquid supply device, and it is mainly responsible for rinsing the contaminants on the surface of the polishing pad. At the same time, it can also adjust the temperature of the surface of the polishing pad to adjust the material removal rate on the wafer surface.

[0071] Optionally, the first polishing unit 111a and the third polishing unit 111c are symmetrically arranged along the central plane L of the equipment length direction. The two polishing discs of the first polishing unit 111a are spaced apart and aligned along plane L, and two loading cups are located between the two polishing discs and are also spaced apart and aligned along plane L. The annular track is configured so that the polishing head can dock with the two polishing discs and the two loading cups. The two polishing discs can be used to perform rough polishing and fine polishing processes, respectively. The two polishing discs, two loading cups, and annular track of the second polishing unit 111b are symmetrically arranged along plane L. The two loading cups are aligned with the loading cups of the first polishing unit 111a and the second polishing unit 111a, respectively. Thus, the wafer can be transferred from the front unit to the loading cups of the three polishing units, and between the loading cups of the two polishing units, through two sliding transfer units 16 symmetrically arranged along plane L.

[0072] Optionally, the sliding transfer unit 16 is located at the bottom of the polishing area 11, that is, below the polishing disk 1111, along the length of the device. The sliding transfer unit 16 transfers the wafer directly below the loading cup 1112. The loading cup 1112 can be raised and lowered, lifting the wafer from the sliding transfer unit 16 to an interaction position with the polishing head, so that the polishing head can pick up the wafer and complete the polishing process. The vertical transfer unit 2 also includes a wafer flipping device 24, which is located below the vertical transfer module 21 or the drying chamber 23, to receive the unit from the front robot and flip the wafer. The flipped wafer is then transferred to the sliding transfer unit 16.

[0073] Optionally, the three polishing units can form 1-3 independent CMP two-pad process lines (suitable for memory chips, i.e., rough polishing and fine polishing processes), or 1-2 independent CMP three-pad process lines (suitable for logic chips, i.e., rough polishing, fine polishing, and ultra-fine polishing processes). This increases the equipment's adaptability to different wafer processing requirements while further optimizing space utilization and increasing capacity. In particular, multiple parallel process lines have doubled wafer capacity, improving economic efficiency.

[0074] Optionally, as shown in Figures 4, 7, and 9, the cleaning zone 12 is provided with three cleaning modules 121: a first cleaning module 121a, a second cleaning module 121b, and a third cleaning module 121c. The second cleaning module 121b is located on the side of the first cleaning module 121a and the third cleaning module 121c away from the front unit 3. Each cleaning module 121 includes at least two cleaning chambers, which can be used for different processes such as pre-cleaning and brushing. The cleaning chambers are set on the shelf 13, and cleaning components corresponding to the corresponding cleaning processes are provided inside the cleaning chambers. Openings for the robot arm to enter and exit are provided on the side walls of the cleaning chambers.

[0075] Optionally, the first cleaning module 121a and the third cleaning module 121c are roller brush cleaning modules symmetrically arranged along the central plane L of the equipment length direction. The first cleaning module 121a includes a first roller brush cleaning chamber A1 and a second roller brush cleaning chamber A2 spaced apart and aligned along the plane L. Both roller brush cleaning chambers are equipped with cleaning components such as roller brushes and nozzles for the horizontal brushing process of wafers. The roller brush cleaning module brushes the wafer surface through the rotation of the roller brushes and the rinsing of water. The brush rotation speed and water pressure can be adjusted according to the wafer material and the type of residue after polishing. The second roller brush cleaning chamber, based on the first roller brush cleaning chamber, performs a more refined brushing to further remove residues from the wafer surface.

[0076] A wafer-transferring robot 122 is positioned between the two cleaning chambers, and openings for picking up and placing wafers are provided on the side walls of the chambers facing the robot 122. A wafer storage station 123 is also located beside the second roller brush cleaning chamber A2, near the vertical transfer unit 2. Wafers retrieved by the robot 122 from the second roller brush cleaning chamber A2 are placed in the storage station 123. The storage station 123 is equipped with a component for spraying and moisturizing the wafers, aligned with the vertical transfer module 21 along the length of the equipment. The vertical transfer module 21 picks up the wafers from the storage station 123 and transfers them to the rotating cleaning chamber 22.

[0077] Optionally, the second cleaning module 121b is a pre-cleaning module, including two pre-cleaning chambers C1 and C2 symmetrically arranged along plane L. Each pre-cleaning chamber contains a cleaning component for pre-cleaning the wafer, preferably a wafer wiping component, used to initially remove polishing slurry residue and larger particles from the wafer surface. The pre-cleaning module is optional; when selected, it is the initial step in the cleaning process.

[0078] Optionally, the cleaning chamber, rotary cleaning chamber, and drying chamber in the cleaning module 121 are located on the side of the chemical mechanical polishing equipment 100 near the outer wall of the equipment. A safety door is installed on the outer wall of the equipment to facilitate maintenance of the cleaning module, rotary cleaning chamber, and drying chamber. The safety door serves as a maintenance access point for the chemical mechanical polishing equipment, allowing personnel to open it for maintenance of the internal modules, such as checking for faults and replacing consumables, making maintenance convenient.

[0079] Optionally, the interlayer opening 131 is located between the two pre-cleaning chambers of the second cleaning module 121b and the two adjacent first roller brush cleaning chambers of the first cleaning module 121a and the third cleaning module 121c (i.e., between A1, B1, C1, and C2). The first cross-layer robot 7a and the second cross-layer robot 7b are symmetrically installed on both sides of the outer periphery of the interlayer opening 131, near the edge of the opening. The first roller brush cleaning chamber has wafer pick-and-place openings on both side walls along the front-rear direction of the equipment. The pre-cleaning chamber has wafer pick-and-place openings on the side walls opposite to the first roller brush cleaning chamber. The cross-layer robot 7b can not only put polished wafers into the pre-cleaning chamber or the first roller brush cleaning chamber according to processing requirements, but also put pre-cleaned wafers into the first roller brush cleaning chamber, thereby realizing the reuse of the cross-layer robot, reducing the number of robots, and improving the utilization rate of the cross-layer robot.

[0080] In other words, in this embodiment, the first cross-layer robot 7a is used for wafer transfer between the second polishing unit 111b and the first cleaning module 121a (cross-layer transfer), the second polishing unit 111b and the second cleaning module 121b (cross-layer transfer), and the first cleaning module 121a and the second cleaning module 121b (horizontal transfer); the second cross-layer robot 7b is used for wafer transfer between the second polishing unit 111b and the third cleaning module 121c (cross-layer transfer), the second polishing unit 111b and the second cleaning module 121b (cross-layer transfer), and the third cleaning module 121c and the second cleaning module 121b (horizontal transfer).

[0081] The two cross-layer robots operate alternately when performing cross-layer transfers, and can operate in parallel when at least one is performing a horizontal transfer, without interfering with each other. Preferably, by controlling the two symmetrical production lines to have different production cycles, one of the two cross-layer robots can perform a cross-layer transfer while the other performs a horizontal transfer, thus preventing a decrease in production efficiency due to waiting for the alternation.

[0082] By symmetrically arranging the cleaning modules and cross-layer robots in the cleaning zone, two parallel wafer post-cleaning process lines can be formed. The cross-layer robots can also be used to transfer wafers between the two cleaning modules, thereby optimizing space utilization and increasing throughput. Furthermore, by selecting or equipping a pre-cleaning module, the cleaning zone 12 can be adapted to various cleaning scenarios, thus aligning with the production processes of the polishing zone 11. For example, cleaning 7nm and below logic chips is challenging, especially requiring the removal of cerium dioxide as polishing abrasive; in this case, a pre-cleaning module with good cleaning performance can be selected. Conversely, cleaning memory chips or 28nm logic chips is less challenging; in this case, the pre-cleaning module 31 can be omitted, and the cross-layer robots can bypass the pre-cleaning module and directly transfer the wafers into the roller brush cleaning process chamber without requiring modifications to the flow path structure, significantly increasing the equipment's adaptability to different wafer processing needs.

[0083] Optionally, corresponding to the symmetrically arranged cleaning chambers in the cleaning zone 12, the vertical transfer unit 2 includes two vertical transfer modules 21, two post-cleaning chambers 22, and two drying chambers 23 symmetrically arranged along the central plane L of the length direction of the chemical mechanical polishing equipment 100. Therefore, this embodiment, through the symmetrical layout of the working unit and the vertical transfer unit (the front unit is also symmetrically arranged), allows at least two independent process lines to operate in parallel, each processing one wafer, increasing the throughput by more than double. Simultaneously, the horizontal projected area of ​​the cleaning chamber is much smaller than the horizontal projected area of ​​the polishing pad. The two rows of cleaning chambers are arranged near the outer wall of the chemical mechanical polishing equipment, and safety doors are provided on the outer wall. This arrangement not only facilitates the maintenance of the cleaning chambers but also creates a larger space between the two rows of cleaning chambers. This design fully utilizes the gaps between the four cleaning chambers and the space between the upper and lower layers to accommodate interlayer openings and the installation and movement of cross-layer robotic arms. It avoids encroaching on the crowded space at the bottom of the lower layer and reduces the number of transfer robotic arms between cleaning modules. This minimizes the impact on the layout of other modules in the lower and upper layers and helps to keep the length, width, and height of the equipment within a reasonable range. Furthermore, even if one of the robotic arms malfunctions or only one process line needs to operate due to production or maintenance requirements, it can be independently controlled without interference, further enhancing the flexibility of production and maintenance.

[0084] Next, taking the three-disk process as an example, the transfer path of the wafer in the chemical mechanical polishing equipment 100 will be briefly described for understanding. The processing flow of the wafer in the upper layer is shown by the dashed arrow in Figure 4.

[0085] The front-end robotic arm of the front unit 3 transfers the wafers in the wafer cassette to the wafer flipping device of the vertical transfer unit 2; the wafer flipping device rotates to flip the held wafers so that the surface to be polished is facing down; the clamping device of the sliding transfer unit 16 receives the wafers from the wafer flipping device and moves horizontally to the first polishing module 111a near the loading cup 1112 of the front unit 3; the loading cup 1112 descends in advance to below the clamping device of the sliding transfer unit 16, and lifts the wafers from the sliding transfer unit 16 to the interaction position with the polishing head; the polishing head 1114 moves along the annular track 214 to above the loading cup 1112, and descends to the interaction position to adsorb the wafers on the loading cups onto the underside of the polishing head 1114; the polishing module loaded with wafers... The polishing head 1114 moves above the polishing pad 1111 to perform chemical mechanical polishing (rough polishing) on ​​the wafer. After the polishing head 1114 completes polishing on one of the polishing pads 1111, it moves along the annular track 1113 to another polishing pad 1111 to continue chemical mechanical polishing (fine polishing) on ​​the other polishing stage. After the wafer has completed polishing in one polishing unit, the polishing head 1114 moves to the loading cup near the second polishing module 111b and descends to an interactive position to place the wafer adsorbed below the polishing head 1114 onto the loading cup. The loading cup descends below the clamping device of the sliding transfer unit 16 to place the wafer onto the clamping device of the sliding transfer unit 16. The wafer is moved horizontally to the same side of the loading cup 1112 directly below the second polishing module 111b; the second polishing module 111b performs similar interactive polishing operations (ultra-fine polishing), and the polished wafer is released onto the same loading cup 1112; the wafer cross-layer transfer robot 7 enters the lower layer through the interlayer opening 131 and picks up the wafer from the loading cup 1112, then lifts and flips the wafer synchronously through the interlayer opening 131, and places it horizontally into the pre-cleaning chamber of the second cleaning module 121b to complete the pre-cleaning of the wafer; after the wafer in the pre-cleaning module has completed the pre-cleaning, the cross-layer transfer robot 7 transfers the wafer to the first roller brush cleaning chamber to complete the first step of brushing the wafer surface; after the wafer has completed the first step of brushing, the cleaning machine... The robot arm 122 transfers the wafer from the first roller brush cleaning chamber to the second roller brush cleaning chamber to continue brushing the wafer surface. After the wafer in the second roller brush cleaning chamber has finished brushing, the cleaning robot arm 122 transfers the wafer to the temporary storage station 123. The vertical transfer module 21 picks up the wafer from the temporary storage station 123 along the X-axis and transfers it to the rotary cleaning chamber 22. After the wafer has finished rotary cleaning, the vertical transfer module 21 picks up the wafer from the rotary cleaning chamber 22 along the Y-axis, moves vertically along the Z-axis, and transfers the wafer along the Y-axis to the drying chamber 23. Finally, the front robot arm picks up the dried wafer from the drying chamber 23 along the X-axis and transfers it to the wafer cassette, thus completing the "dry in, dry out" process and obtaining wafers that meet the process requirements.

[0086] Optionally, as shown in Figure 6, the cross-layer manipulator 7 includes a joint portion 72, an arm portion 73, and a retaining hand 74. The joint portion 72 consists of multiple joints, and the arm portion 73 consists of multiple arm segments. The multiple arm segments of the arm portion 73 are sequentially connected in series with the multiple joints of the joint portion 72. The retaining hand 74 is connected to the last joint at the end of the cross-layer manipulator 7, and each joint is rotatable about its axis. The retaining hand 74 is used to hold a wafer and is provided with a wafer holding assembly (not shown). The specific form of the wafer holding assembly is not limited and can be a vacuum chuck, mechanical clamp, or other wafer holding mechanism known in the art. When the joint portion of the cross-layer manipulator 7 rotates, the retaining hand 74, some joints, and the arm move from the upper layer to the lower layer. The retaining hand 74 holds the wafer to lift it to the upper layer and causes the wafer to begin flipping around the axes corresponding to at least two joints before entering the upper layer, and to complete the flipping after entering the upper layer.

[0087] Optionally, the cross-layer robot 7 is a six-axis robot and also includes a base 71. The base 71 is fixed to the shelf 13 by bolts and integrates a drive motor and control system interface. The cross-layer robot 7 is mounted on the upper shelf through the base 71.

[0088] The joint 72 includes six rotary joints, namely, the first joint J1, the second joint J2, the third joint J3, the fourth joint J4, the fifth joint J5, and the sixth joint J6. Each joint can rotate independently about its axis. The first joint J1 is disposed in the base 71, so that the arm 73 can rotate about the axis of the base.

[0089] The arm 73 is composed of five rigid arm sections connected together, specifically including the first arm A1, connecting the first joint J1 and the second joint J2 in the base 71, as well as the second arm A2 (connecting J2 and J3), the third arm A3 (connecting J3 and J4), the fourth arm A4 (connecting J4 and J5), and the fifth arm A5 (connecting J5 and J6).

[0090] The retainer 74 is directly mounted on the output end of the sixth joint J6, and its structure can be selected according to the wafer type. For standard silicon wafers, the retainer 74 can use a vacuum chuck array, with a preferred chuck diameter of 20-30 mm and a number of at least three, evenly distributed around the circumference to ensure adsorption stability. For wafers with greater warpage or glass substrates, the retainer 74 can use a mechanical gripper structure, with the inner side of the grippers lined with a flexible material (such as PFA or PEEK) to avoid damaging the wafer edges. The wafer gripping surface 741 of the retainer 74 has different orientations at different positions, which is key to achieving cross-layer handling and flipping.

[0091] The rotation range of joint 72, the length of arm 73, and the length of holding hand 74 are determined based on joint kinematic calculations to ensure that the robotic arm can cover all operating positions on both the upper and lower layers. The drive motors for each joint are preferably servo motors equipped with high-precision encoders to achieve precise angle control, thereby ensuring that the wafer begins rotating around the axes corresponding to at least two joints before entering the upper layer, and completes flipping after entering the upper layer, achieving precise and rapid wafer flipping and transfer. The arm material is preferably aluminum alloy or carbon fiber composite material, reducing weight while ensuring rigidity and improving the dynamic response performance of the robotic arm.

[0092] The working process of the interlayer robotic arm 7 is as follows: In the initial state, the overall structure of the interlayer robotic arm 7, as shown by the solid line in Figure 1, is located on the upper layer. When it is necessary to grasp the wafer on the lower layer, the controller sends a command, and the joints 72 rotate in coordination, so that the third joint J3 to the sixth joint J6, the corresponding part of arm A2 and the entirety of A3-A5, and the holding hand 74 pass through the interlayer opening 131 to enter the lower layer. During this process, the rotation angle of each joint is calculated in real time through the inverse kinematics algorithm to ensure that the end effector of the robotic arm moves smoothly along the predetermined trajectory and avoids collision with the edge of the interlayer opening 131.

[0093] Upon entering the lower layer, the cross-layer robotic arm 7, as shown by the dotted line in Figure 1, maintains its hand 74 in a horizontally upward posture and moves to the wafer gripping position in the first processing area 11. It then activates vacuum adsorption or closes the mechanical grippers to complete wafer gripping. The gripping force needs to be precisely controlled. For 12-inch wafers, the vacuum pressure is preferably -60 to -80 kPa, and the mechanical gripping force is preferably 5-10 N, which ensures stable gripping without damaging the wafer.

[0094] After grasping, the interlayer robot 7 begins its return motion to the upper layer. In this invention, the wafer flipping operation is not performed independently on the lower or upper layer, but synchronously during interlayer transport. Specifically, before the wafer passes through the interlayer opening 131, the controller initiates the flipping program, causing the wafer to begin rotating around at least two joint axes. In this embodiment, it is preferable to rotate collaboratively around the axes of the fifth joint J5 and the sixth joint J6. This multi-joint linkage method enables more precise trajectory control compared to single-joint flipping.

[0095] When the wafer enters the interlayer opening 131, its orientation is close to vertical (with an angle of 85-95 degrees to the horizontal plane). This orientation has two significant advantages: First, the projected area of ​​the wafer in the vertical direction is minimized, which is only π×(d / 2)²×sin(θ), where d is the wafer diameter and θ is the tilt angle. When θ≈90°, the projected area is minimized, the opening area required to pass through the interlayer opening is minimized, and the wafer can avoid sliding and colliding with the interlayer opening. Second, the vertical orientation facilitates the functioning of the cleaning nozzles described later, and at the same time makes the range of droplets falling on the wafer surface under the action of gravity and inertia more controllable.

[0096] After the main body of the wafer enters the upper layer while remaining vertical, the cross-layer robot 7 continues to flip the wafer. Once the wafer is fully inside the upper layer, the entire flipping process is completed, and the wafer's orientation changes from face-down in the lower layer to face-up. Preferably, after the cross-layer robot passes the interlayer opening along the wafer's horizontal centerline, it continues to synchronously lift and rotate the wafer until the flipping is complete. At this point, the robot 74 maintains a horizontal downward posture and then places the wafer at the target station in the second work area, completing one full cross-layer handling and flipping cycle.

[0097] In this embodiment, the entire cycle time T for the cross-layer robotic arm to transport and flip wafers across layers can be controlled within 8-12 seconds, achieving efficient cross-layer transport without the need for additional flipping stations. Furthermore, since the flipping action is completed within the cross-layer area, the layout of stations on the upper and lower layers is minimally affected; in particular, the lower layer does not require additional space for flipping, significantly improving space utilization.

[0098] Optionally, the time the wafer spends in a vertical position is less than the time it spends in a non-vertical position. Specifically, during the entire interlayer transport cycle T, the duration of the vertical position, t_vertical, satisfies: t_vertical < 0.3×T, preferably t_vertical = 0.1×T to 0.2×T. This time allocation ensures both rapid passage through the interlayer opening and the stability of the liquid on the wafer surface for most of the time, avoiding contamination caused by droplets accumulating and splashing in undesirable directions.

[0099] Optionally, the cross-layer robotic arm 7 also includes a cleaning nozzle 75 (not shown) facing the held wafer. The cleaning nozzle 75 is preferably mounted at the sixth joint J6, facing the wafer-holding position of the holding hand 74, and can cover both sides of the wafer simultaneously. When the wafer is rotated to an upright position during cross-layer transport and has not yet entered the upper layer, the nozzle 75 begins to spray a clean airflow, sweeping the wafer surface in a downward direction. This sweeping effectively removes residual droplets and attached microparticles from the wafer surface, preventing these contaminants from dripping or spreading to other areas during subsequent flipping and transport, especially not to the upper layer. The nozzle 75 is connected to a clean air source in the cleanroom via a flexible air tube. The sweeping duration is preferably 0.5-1.5 seconds, i.e., the period when the wafer is in an upright position, and the air source pressure is preferably 0.3-0.5 MPa to ensure that droplets on the wafer surface are blown downwards without splashing.

[0100] Optionally, the motion trajectory of the joint 72 is carefully planned so that the angular velocity ω of the wafer is not constant during the flipping process. Specifically, the angular velocity reaches its peak ω_max before and after approaching the vertical position; while it decreases to ω_min when approaching the horizontal position, where the ratio of ω_max / ω_min is preferably 2:1 to 4:1. This variable-speed flipping strategy further shortens the duration of the vertical position, while providing smoother motion in the non-vertical position, reducing the risk of wafer slippage.

[0101] The present invention also provides a wafer processing method using a chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) apparatus 100. In one embodiment, as shown in FIG10, the control method includes: S1. controlling the wafer to be transferred from the pre-processing unit 3 to the polishing zone 11 via the vertical transfer unit 2; S2. polishing the wafer; S3. controlling the wafer to be transferred from the polishing zone 11 to the cleaning zone 12; S4. cleaning the wafer; S5. controlling the wafer to be transferred from the cleaning zone 12 to the post-cleaning chamber 22; S6. post-cleaning the wafer; S7. controlling the wafer to be transferred from the post-cleaning chamber 22 to the drying chamber 23; S8. drying the wafer.

[0102] Optionally, when the post-cleaning chamber 22 is a rotary cleaning chamber, the post-cleaning and drying are controlled to alternate in steps S6 to S8 to prevent the vibration generated by the rotary cleaning from causing a reduction in the drying quality.

[0103] The present invention also provides a chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) system, including a CMP apparatus 100 and a controller. The controller is used to execute a wafer processing method using the CMP apparatus 100 in any embodiment of the present invention.

[0104] The controller in this embodiment includes a processor, a memory, and a computer program stored in the memory and executable on the processor. When the processor executes the computer program, it implements the steps described in the various embodiments of the processing method above.

[0105] In the description of this specification, the references to terms such as "one embodiment," "some embodiments," "illustrative embodiment," "example," "specific example," or "some examples," etc., indicate that a specific feature, structure, material, or characteristic described in connection with that embodiment or example is included in at least one embodiment or example of the invention. In this specification, the illustrative expressions of the above terms do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment or example. Furthermore, the specific features, structures, materials, or characteristics described may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments or examples.

[0106] The above embodiments are only used to illustrate the embodiments of the present invention, and are not intended to limit the embodiments of the present invention. Those skilled in the art can make various changes and modifications without departing from the spirit and scope of the embodiments of the present invention. Therefore, all equivalent technical solutions also fall within the scope of the embodiments of the present invention, and the patent protection scope of the embodiments of the present invention should be defined by the claims.

Claims

1. A chemical mechanical polishing device, characterized in that, include: The chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) equipment includes a pre-processing unit, a vertical transport unit, and a processing unit arranged sequentially along its length. The processing unit comprises a lower polishing zone and an upper cleaning zone, used for polishing and cleaning the wafer, respectively. The vertical transport unit comprises a vertical transport module, a post-cleaning chamber, and a drying chamber. The drying chamber is located below the post-cleaning chamber. The vertical transport module is located on the same side of the post-cleaning chamber and the drying chamber, used for post-cleaning and drying the wafer, respectively. The vertical transport module picks up the wafer from the cleaning zone along a first direction, transports the wafer to the post-cleaning chamber along a second direction, and transports it from the post-cleaning chamber to the drying chamber along a third direction. The first and second directions are orthogonal, and / or the second and third directions are orthogonal.

2. The chemical mechanical polishing equipment as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The polishing zone includes at least one polishing module, and the cleaning zone includes at least one cleaning module; the cleaning module includes one or more of a pre-cleaning chamber, a roller brush cleaning chamber, and a spray cleaning chamber; the post-cleaning chamber is a rotary cleaning chamber.

3. The chemical mechanical polishing equipment as described in claim 2, characterized in that, At least one side wall of the cleaning chamber is provided with an opening for placing and removing wafers, and all openings are at the same height.

4. The chemical mechanical polishing equipment as described in claim 3, characterized in that, The drying chamber has an opening on its side wall facing both the front unit and the vertical transmission module, and the rotating cleaning chamber has an opening on its side wall facing the vertical transmission module.

5. The chemical mechanical polishing equipment as described in claim 4, characterized in that, The vertical transfer module includes a vertical moving component and a drying robot. The vertical moving component drives the drying robot to move up and down to align the openings on the side walls of the rotating cleaning chamber and the drying chamber facing the vertical transfer module.

6. The chemical mechanical polishing apparatus according to any one of claims 2-5, characterized in that, A layer plate is provided between the upper and lower layers, and an interlayer opening is provided on the layer plate. A cross-layer robot arm is provided on the layer plate near the interlayer opening, which is used to synchronously flip and transport the polished wafer to the cleaning area. The wafer passes through the at least one cleaning module and the rotating cleaning chamber in sequence before entering the drying chamber for drying.

7. The chemical mechanical polishing equipment as described in claim 6, characterized in that, The polishing zone includes a first polishing module and a second polishing module spaced apart along the length of the chemical mechanical polishing equipment. The cleaning zone includes a first cleaning module and a second cleaning module spaced apart along the length of the chemical mechanical polishing equipment. The interlayer opening and the cross-layer robot are disposed between the first cleaning module and the second cleaning module. The cross-layer robot passes through the interlayer opening to transfer the wafer from the second polishing module to the first cleaning module or the second cleaning module and completes wafer flipping, and transfers the wafer from the second cleaning module to the first cleaning module.

8. The chemical mechanical polishing equipment as described in claim 7, characterized in that, The polishing zone further includes a third polishing module symmetrically arranged with respect to the first polishing module along the central plane of the chemical mechanical polishing equipment along its length; each polishing module includes two polishing discs, two loading cups, an annular track, and at least two polishing heads on the annular track for chemical mechanical polishing of the wafer; the two polishing discs of the first and third polishing modules are spaced apart along the length direction, and the two polishing discs of the second polishing module are symmetrically arranged along the central plane; the cleaning zone further includes a third cleaning module symmetrically arranged with respect to the first cleaning module along the central plane; each cleaning module includes at least two cleaning chambers for cleaning the wafer. The wafer is cleaned; at least two cleaning chambers of the first and third cleaning modules are spaced apart along the length direction, and two cleaning chambers of the second cleaning module are symmetrically arranged along the central plane; the cross-layer robot includes a first cross-layer robot and a second cross-layer robot, which are symmetrically arranged on both sides of the interlayer opening along the central plane, and are used to perform wafer transfer, cross-layer handling and flipping on one side of the central plane; the vertical transfer unit includes two vertical transfer modules, two post-cleaning chambers and two drying chambers symmetrically arranged along the central plane of the length direction of the chemical mechanical polishing equipment to form multiple parallel process lines.

9. The chemical mechanical polishing equipment as described in claim 8, characterized in that, The first cleaning module and the third cleaning module are roller brush cleaning modules, each including a first roller brush cleaning chamber and a second roller brush cleaning chamber, with the second roller brush cleaning chamber located close to the vertical transmission unit; a cleaning robot is also provided between the first roller brush cleaning chamber and the second roller brush cleaning chamber for removing the wafer from the first roller brush cleaning chamber and placing it into the second roller brush cleaning chamber; the second cleaning module includes two pre-cleaning chambers.

10. The chemical mechanical polishing apparatus as described in claim 9, characterized in that, The cleaning chamber and drying chamber are located on the side of the chemical mechanical polishing equipment near the outer wall of the equipment, and a safety door is provided on the outer wall of the equipment.

11. The chemical mechanical polishing apparatus as described in claim 10, characterized in that, A temporary storage station is provided on the side of the second roller brush cleaning chamber away from the outer wall of the equipment. The cleaning robot is also used to remove the wafer from the second roller brush cleaning chamber and place it in the temporary storage station. The drying robot takes the wafer from the temporary storage station.

12. The chemical mechanical polishing apparatus as described in claim 4, characterized in that, The front unit includes a front robotic arm for picking up dried wafers through an opening in the drying chamber facing the front unit.

13. The chemical mechanical polishing apparatus as described in claim 12, characterized in that, Below the vertical transport module is a wafer flipping device. The front-mounted robotic arm transports the unpolished wafer to the wafer flipping device, which then simultaneously flips and transports the wafer to the processing unit.

14. A wafer processing method using the chemical mechanical polishing equipment as described in any one of claims 1-13, characterized in that, include: Control the transfer of the wafer from the front-end unit to the polishing area via the vertical transfer unit; Polish the wafer; control the transfer of the wafer from the polishing area to the cleaning area; The wafer is cleaned; the wafer is controlled to be transferred from the cleaning area to the post-cleaning chamber; Post-cleaning of the wafer; Control the transfer of the wafer from the post-cleaning chamber to the drying chamber; The wafer is dried.

15. The wafer fabrication method as described in claim 14, characterized in that, include: When the post-cleaning chamber is a rotary cleaning chamber, the post-cleaning and drying processes are controlled to alternate.

16. A chemical mechanical polishing system, characterized in that, include: The chemical mechanical polishing apparatus and controller according to any one of claims 1-13, wherein the controller is used to perform the wafer processing method according to any one of claims 14-15.

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