Wafer carrying device and semiconductor processing equipment

Abstract

The utility model discloses a wafer carrying device and semiconductor processing equipment, and the device comprises a carrying arm which is provided with a carrying end, and the carrying end is used for carrying a wafer; the plurality of limiting pins are movably arranged at the carrying end and are used for limiting the wafers in the carrying process; the cleaning ring is movably arranged on the limiting pin in a sleeving manner; in the working state, the limiting pin and the cleaning ring move relatively, so that the cleaning ring cleans the side wall of the limiting pin. According to the invention, the interference of residual glue on the side wall of the limiting pin on the wafer carrying process can be reduced, and the possibility of wafer fragmentation / falling is reduced.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of semiconductor equipment, and in particular to a wafer handling device and a semiconductor processing equipment. Background Art

[0002] During the backside process of the wafer, the main process is the thinning process. With the continuous progress of the process, the thickness of the wafer becomes thinner and thinner.

[0003] Before the wafer is thinned, the front side of the wafer is covered with a film to prevent silicon powder contamination during the thinning process. To improve the thickness uniformity of the wafer thinning and reduce the risk of chipping, there are currently various types and thicknesses of films. During the backside process, films of some thicknesses will cause glue residue on the edge of the wafer, which is sticky and may cause the risk of wafer dropping / chipping.

[0004] Therefore, it is necessary to provide a new wafer handling device and semiconductor processing equipment to solve the above problems existing in the prior art. Summary of the Invention

[0005] The purpose of the present invention is to provide a wafer handling device and a semiconductor processing equipment for handling wafers, which can reduce the interference of the residual glue on the wafer during the wafer handling process.

[0006] To achieve the above purpose, the technical solution of the present invention is as follows:

[0007] A wafer handling device includes:

[0008] A handling arm having a handling end for handling wafers;

[0009] A plurality of limit pins movably arranged at the handling end for limiting the wafer during handling;

[0010] A cleaning ring movably sleeved on the limit pins;

[0011] In the working state, the limit pins and the cleaning ring move relative to each other, so that the cleaning ring cleans the side wall of the limit pins.

[0012] By adopting the above technical solution, during the handling of the wafer, relative movement will occur between the limit pins and the cleaning ring. During the relative movement of the limit pins and the cleaning ring, the cleaning ring cleans the glue on the side wall of the limit pins, so that the handling process of the wafer will not be interfered by the residual glue.

[0013] Optionally, the inner diameter of the cleaning ring is 0.1 - 0.3 mm larger than the diameter of the limit pins.

[0014] By adopting the above technical solution, it is convenient to sleevethe cleaning ring on the limit pin, which is convenient for cleaning the glue remaining on the side wall of the limit pin. At the same time, within this range, the cleaning effect on the glue on the side wall of the limit pin is the best.

[0015] Optionally, a plurality of the limit pins are arranged in a ring and are spaced apart from each other on the handling end, and the side wall of the limit pin has a contact portion;

[0016] In the working state, the contact portions on the side walls of the plurality of limit pins are all in contact with the side wall of the wafer and are used for limiting the wafer.

[0017] By adopting the above technical solution, the side wall of the limit pin is in contact with the side wall of the wafer, thereby limiting the wafer, reducing the possibility of the wafer shifting in position during handling, and ensuring the stability of wafer transportation.

[0018] Optionally, a suction cup member for sucking the wafer is provided on the handling end, the limit pins are evenly distributed around the axis of the suction cup member, and the inner side wall of the cleaning ring is in contact with the contact portion.

[0019] By adopting the above technical solution, the suction cup member is used for sucking the wafer, and at the same time, the limit pins are evenly distributed around the axis of the suction cup member, which is convenient for limiting the wafer sucked on the suction cup member.

[0020] Optionally, the cleaning ring is arranged between the handling end and the wafer and keeps a certain distance from the wafer.

[0021] By adopting the above technical solution, since a certain distance is kept between the cleaning ring and the wafer, when the suction cup member sucks the wafer and during the handling process of the wafer, the cleaning ring will not interfere with the suction or handling of the wafer, improving the stability of wafer handling.

[0022] Optionally, the cleaning ring is fixedly arranged on the handling arm, a driving component is arranged on the handling arm, and the driving component is connected to the limit pin and is used to drive the limit pin to move axially along the cleaning ring.

[0023] By adopting the above technical solution, the cleaning ring is fixed on the handling arm, and the driving component drives the limit pin to move, so that relative movement occurs between the cleaning ring and the limit pin, which is convenient for the cleaning process of the glue remaining on the side wall of the limit pin.

[0024] Optionally, the driving component includes a driver and a transmission member, the driver is fixedly arranged on the handling arm, and the transmission member is respectively connected to the output shaft of the driver and the limit pin;

[0025] In the working state, the driver provides power, and the output shaft of the driver drives the transmission member to move, so as to drive the limit pin to move axially along the cleaning ring.

[0026] By adopting the above technical solution, the driver provides power to drive the transmission member to move, thereby driving the limit pin to move axially along the cleaning ring, facilitating the adjustment of the protruding length of the limit pin, so that the limit pin can adapt to wafers with different warpage degrees.

[0027] Optionally, the transmission member is a driving gear, the driving gear is rotatably arranged on the handling arm, one end of the limit pin is provided with a toothed transmission structure, and the transmission member meshes with the toothed transmission structure;

[0028] In the working state, the transmission member drives the toothed transmission structure to move axially along the cleaning ring, so as to drive the limit pin to move axially along the cleaning ring.

[0029] By adopting the above technical solution, the transmission member is a driving gear, and the rotation of the transmission member drives the limit pin to move. When the transmission member stops rotating, it has a positioning effect on the limit pin. At this time, the limit pin no longer moves, facilitating the limitation of the wafer and ensuring the stability of the wafer handling process.

[0030] Optionally, the toothed transmission structure is a connecting tooth opened on the side wall of the limit pin, and the toothed transmission structure is distributed along the axial direction of the limit pin.

[0031] By adopting the above technical solution, the toothed transmission structure is distributed along the axial direction of the limit pin, and at the same time, the toothed transmission structure meshes with the transmission member, so that the transmission member can drive the toothed transmission structure to move when rotating, thereby driving the limit pin to slide axially along the cleaning ring.

[0032] A semiconductor processing device includes a machine table, a carrier table and a wafer handling device. The handling arm is movably arranged on the machine table, the carrier table is arranged on the machine table, and the handling arm is used to handle the wafer on the carrier table.

[0033] By adopting the above technical solution, the above wafer handling device can be adopted on semiconductor processing devices, so that the wafer handling device can be adapted to different semiconductor processing devices.

[0034] The beneficial effects of the wafer handling device and the semiconductor processing device provided by the present invention at least include:

[0035] 1. During the handling process of the wafer, glue residues will adhere to the side wall of the limit pin, resulting in the possibility of wafer fragmentation / dropping during the wafer handling process. In the present invention, relative movement occurs between the limit pin and the cleaning ring. During the relative movement between the limit pin and the cleaning ring, the cleaning ring cleans the glue on the side wall of the limit pin, so that the wafer handling process will not be interfered by the residual glue.

[0036] 2. The transmission part is a driving gear. The rotation of the transmission part drives the limit pin to move. When the transmission part stops rotating, it has a positioning effect on the limit pin. At this time, the limit pin no longer moves, ensuring the stability of the wafer handling process. Brief Description of the Drawings

[0037] Figure 1 Schematic diagram of the cleaning ring of a wafer handling device and a semiconductor processing equipment according to an embodiment of the present invention at the handling end position;

[0038] Figure 2 Schematic diagram of the positions of the cleaning ring and the limit pin when the wafer of a wafer handling device and a semiconductor processing equipment according to an embodiment of the present invention is clamped;

[0039] Figure 3 is Figure 2 Enlarged view of part A in

[0040] Figure 4 Schematic diagram of the connection mode of the transmission part and the toothed transmission structure of a wafer handling device and a semiconductor processing equipment according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0041] Figure 5 Schematic diagram of the relative positions of the cleaning ring and the limit pin of a wafer handling device and a semiconductor processing equipment according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0042] Reference Signs:

[0043] 100, handling arm; 110, handling end; 120, limit pin; 121, toothed transmission structure; 130, cleaning ring; 140, suction cup member; 210, driver; 220, transmission part. Detailed Description of the Embodiment

[0044] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of the embodiments of the present invention clearer, the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below. Apparently, the described embodiments are some, but not all, of the embodiments of the present invention. All other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art based on the embodiments of the present invention without creative efforts shall fall within the protection scope of the present invention. Unless otherwise defined, the technical terms or scientific terms used herein shall have the ordinary meanings understood by those of ordinary skill in the art in the field to which the present invention belongs. The words such as "including" used herein mean that the elements or objects appearing before the word cover the elements or objects listed after the word and their equivalents, without excluding other elements or objects.

[0045] The following will further elaborate on the specific implementation manners of the present invention with reference to the drawings.

[0046] In the first aspect, referring to Figures 1-5。Embodiments of the present invention provide a wafer handling device, including a handling arm 100. The handling arm 100 is mainly used in semiconductor equipment. During the semiconductor processing, the position of the workpiece is transferred by the handling arm 100. The handling arm 100 can be a Bernoulli arm or other arms capable of handling workpieces. The shape of the workpiece can be circular or polygonal. Specifically, in this embodiment, the handling arm 100 adopts a Bernoulli arm, and the workpiece to be handled is circular, mainly a wafer.

[0047] Referring to Figures 1-5 , the handling arm 100 has a handling end 110. The handling end 110 is used to adsorb the wafer and handle the wafer. A suction cup member 140 is arranged on the handling end 110. The suction cup member 140 is used to adsorb the wafer. By moving the position of the handling arm 100, the position of the wafer is transferred. A limit pin 120 is arranged on the handling arm 100. Its setting method can be fixed setting or movable setting. In this embodiment, it is preferred that the limit pin 120 is slidably arranged on the handling arm 100 and can slide along its own axis direction on the handling arm 100. At the same time, the axis of the limit pin 120 is parallel to the axis of the suction cup member 140. A limit hole is formed on the handling arm 100. The limit pin 120 is inserted into the limit hole and can slide along its own axis direction in the limit hole. There are multiple limit pins 120. In this embodiment, the number of limit pins 120 is four. The limit pins 120 are used to contact the side wall of the wafer during the handling process, so as to play a role in limiting the wafer. The distribution state of the limit pins 120 on the handling end 110 is annular and spaced, and it can be evenly distributed or unevenly distributed, as long as it can achieve the limiting effect. Specifically, in this embodiment, multiple limit pins 120 are evenly distributed on the handling arm 100, so that the connection lines of the four limit pins 120 form a square. Such a setting can make the wafer handling process more stable; multiple cleaning rings 130 are arranged on the handling arm 100. The cleaning rings 130 are annular. Their setting method can be fixed setting or movable setting. Specifically, in this embodiment, the cleaning rings 130 are fixedly arranged on the handling arm 100. At the same time, the positions of the multiple cleaning rings 130 correspond to the positions of the multiple limit pins 120 one by one. Each cleaning ring 130 matches one limit pin 120. The limit pin 120 is inserted into the cleaning ring 130. The shapes of the limit pin 120 and the cleaning ring 130 can be the same or different. In this embodiment, the shape of the limit pin 120 is the same as the shape of the cleaning ring 130, and both are circular. In the working state, relative movement can occur between the limit pin 120 and the cleaning ring 130. Since there will be glue residue on the side wall of the limit pin 120, during the relative movement between the limit pin 120 and the cleaning ring 130, the glue residue on the side wall of the limit pin 120 is cleaned by the cleaning ring 130, and it will not affect the progress of the wafer handling process.

[0048] Referring to Figures 1-5 , the limit pin 120 is inserted into the cleaning ring 130. The side wall of the limit pin 120 and the inner wall of the cleaning ring 130 can be in a fitting state, a partial fitting state, or a non-fitting state. Specifically, in this embodiment, a partial fitting state is selected between the side wall of the limit pin 120 and the inner side wall of the cleaning ring 130. A plurality of limit pins 120 are evenly distributed on the handling arm 100. At the same time, the side wall of the limit pin 120 has a contact portion, and the contact portion is a part of the side wall of the limit pin 120. During the handling process, a part of the side wall of each of the plurality of limit pins 120 contacts the side wall of the wafer, and this part of the side wall of the limit pin 120 is the contact portion. Moreover, after the workpiece contacts the contact portions of the plurality of limit pins 120, its position will not shift. At the same time, the inner side wall of the cleaning ring 130 contacts the contact portion of the side wall of the limit pin 120. During the relative movement between the limit pin 120 and the cleaning ring 130, physical contact occurs between the side wall of the limit pin 120 and the side wall of the cleaning ring 130, so that the glue remaining on the side wall of the limit pin 120 is cleaned by the cleaning ring 130 and will not affect the wafer handling process; in addition, the inner diameter of the inner side wall of the cleaning ring 130 is larger than the diameter of the limit pin 120, which is convenient for inserting the limit pin 120 into the cleaning ring 130. At the same time, the inner diameter of the inner ring wall of the cleaning ring 130 is larger than the outer diameter of the limit pin 120. The inner diameter of the inner side wall of the cleaning ring 130 is 0.1 - 0.3 mm larger than the outer diameter of the limit pin 120. The gap between them can be selected as 0.1 mm or 0.3 mm, or any distance within this range, such as 0.2 mm; within this range, the cleaning effect on the glue remaining on the side wall of the limit pin 120 is the best; the cleaning ring 130 is arranged between the handling end 110 and the wafer and maintains a certain distance from the wafer. During the wafer handling process, the cleaning ring 130 will not interfere with the adsorption or handling of the wafer, improving the stability of wafer handling.

[0049] Referring to Figures 1-5, a driving component is further arranged on the handling arm 100. The driving component is connected to the limiting pin 120 and is used to drive the limiting pin 120 to move along the axis of the cleaning ring 130. Since the cleaning ring 130 is fixedly arranged at the driving end of the driving arm, when the limiting pin 120 moves, it also has the effect of cleaning the glue remaining on the side wall of the limiting pin 120; the driving component includes a driver 210 and a transmission member 220. The driver 210 can be arranged on the semiconductor device or on the driving arm. In this embodiment, the driver 210 is fixedly arranged on the driving arm. The driver 210 is a motor, and the rotating shaft of the motor is the output shaft of the driver 210. The transmission member 220 is respectively connected to the output shaft of the driver 210 and the limiting pin 120, and at the same time, the transmission member 220 is rotationally connected to the driving end through a rotating shaft. In the working state, the driver 210 is started to provide power. The output shaft of the driver 210 drives the transmission member 220 to move, so as to drive the limiting pin 120 to move axially along the cleaning ring 130; the transmission member 220 can be a gear or a connecting rod. When the driver 210 is selected as a cylinder, the transmission member 220 is a connecting rod. In this embodiment, the transmission member 220 is a gear. The output shaft of the driver 210 can be directly meshed with the gear or meshed with the transmission member 220 through other transmission structures. In this embodiment, other driving structures are also arranged between the driver 210 and the transmission member 220. Specifically, the other driving structure is a gear set. The output shaft of the driver 210 is meshed with the gear at one end of the gear set, and the transmission member 220 is meshed with the gear at the other end of the gear set, so that when the driver 210 is started, it can drive the transmission member 220 to rotate at the handling end 110.

[0050] Refer to Figures 1-5, one end of the limit pin 120 is provided with a toothed transmission structure 121, and the toothed transmission structure 121 meshes with the transmission part 220. In this embodiment, the axial direction of the transmission part 220 is perpendicular to the axial direction of the limit pin 120. When the transmission part 220 rotates, the toothed transmission structure 121 can slide axially along the cleaning ring 130, thereby driving the limit pin 120 to slide axially along the cleaning ring 130. Among them, the toothed transmission structure 121 can be a rack or a connecting tooth formed on the side wall of the limit pin 120. When the toothed transmission structure 121 is a rack, the rack is fixedly arranged at the end of the limit pin 120. In this embodiment, the toothed transmission structure 121 is a connecting tooth formed on the side wall of the limit pin 120, and at the same time, the toothed transmission structure 121 is distributed along the axial direction of the limit pin 120. In addition, the toothed transmission structure 121 will not enter the limit hole, that is, the part of the limit pin 120 provided with the connecting tooth and the part not provided with the connecting tooth are respectively placed on both sides of the side wall of the handling arm 100. During the movement of the limit pin 120, the connecting tooth will not interfere with the wafer. At the same time, due to the meshing between the transmission part 220 and the limit pin 120, when the transmission part 220 stops moving, the position of the limit pin 120 is fixed, improving the stability of the limit pin 120.

[0051] Refer to Figures 1-5 , in this embodiment, the cleaning ring 130 is fixedly arranged on the handling arm 100, and its fixing method can be bonding, clamping or bolt fixing, etc. In this embodiment, the cleaning ring 130 is specifically fixed to the handling arm 100 by bolt fixing. That is, in this embodiment, the limit pin 120 is slidably arranged, and the cleaning ring 130 is fixedly arranged. During the sliding process of the limit pin 120, the inner wall of the cleaning ring 130 cleans the glue remaining on the side wall of the limit pin 120. The material of the cleaning ring 130 can be polytetrafluoroethylene, polyimide, polyetheretherketone or other materials that can achieve the purpose of this application. Specifically in this embodiment, the material of the cleaning ring 130 is selected as polyetheretherketone. The reason for selecting the material of the cleaning ring 130 as polyetheretherketone is mainly because the polyetheretherketone material has the following advantages: it has high mechanical strength and rigidity, can withstand the force during handling without deformation; it has high temperature resistance and can adapt to the high temperature environment in semiconductor processing; it has good chemical stability and can resist the chemical substances that may be contacted in semiconductor processing; it has a low friction coefficient and reduces the friction loss during cleaning; it is easy to be processed into precise shapes to meet the design requirements of the cleaning ring 130.

[0052] In a second aspect, the application also discloses a semiconductor processing device, which can be a single-wafer wet etching machine tool, a PVD device, or other devices for processing semiconductors. The semiconductor processing device includes a machine tool, a carrier stage, and a handling device. The handling arm 100 is movably arranged on the machine tool, and the carrier stage is fixedly arranged on the machine tool. The carrier stage is used to carry wafers, and the handling arm 100 is used to transfer the wafers on the carrier stage.

[0053] The implementation principle of the handling device of a semiconductor device in this application is as follows: Adjust the protruding length of the limit pin 120 so that the protruding length of the limit pin 120 matches the wafer to be clamped, facilitating the clamping of the wafer. A cleaning ring 130 is fixedly arranged on the handling arm 100, and the limit pin 120 is inserted through the cleaning ring 130. During the movement of the limit pin 120, the inner wall of the cleaning ring 130 can clean the glue remaining on the side wall of the limit pin 120, thereby ensuring that the glue remaining on the side wall of the limit pin 120 does not affect the wafer handling process. During the wafer handling process, especially before wafer thinning, a film is applied to the front side of the wafer to prevent silicon powder contamination during the thinning process. To improve the thickness uniformity of wafer thinning and reduce the risk of chipping, there are currently various types and thicknesses of films. During the backside process of some thicknesses of films, glue residues will exist on the wafer edge, which is sticky. During the wet etching process, the sticky residue is likely to adhere to the limit pin 120 of the transfer arm, resulting in the adhesion of the wafer to the limit pin 120 and the risk of wafer dropping / chipping. By setting the cleaning ring 130, during the movement of the limit pin 120, the glue remaining on the side wall is cleaned, thereby reducing the risk of wafer dropping / chipping.

[0054] Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above, it is obvious to those skilled in the art that various modifications and changes can be made to these embodiments. However, it should be understood that such modifications and changes fall within the scope and spirit of the present invention as described in the claims. Moreover, the present invention described herein can have other embodiments and can be implemented or realized in various ways.

Claims

1. A wafer transport device, characterized in that: include: A transport arm (100) having a transport end (110), wherein the transport end (110) is used to transport wafers; A plurality of limiting pins (120) are movably arranged on the transport end (110) and are used to limit the position of the wafer during the transport process; A cleaning ring (130) movably sleeved on the limiting pin (120); In a working state, the limiting pin (120) and the cleaning ring (130) move relative to each other, so that the cleaning ring (130) cleans the side wall of the limiting pin (120).

2. The wafer transport device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The inner diameter of the cleaning ring (130) is 0.1-0.3 mm larger than the diameter of the limiting pin (120).

3. The wafer transport device according to claim 1, characterized in that: A plurality of the limiting pins (120) are arranged in a ring shape and distributed at intervals at the transport end (110), and the side walls of the limiting pins (120) have contact portions; In the working state, the contact parts of the side walls of the plurality of limiting pins (120) are in contact with the side walls of the wafer and are used to limit the position of the wafer.

4. The wafer transport device according to claim 3, characterized in that: The transport end (110) is provided with a suction cup component (140) for adsorbing wafers, the limiting pins (120) are evenly distributed around the axis of the suction cup component (140), and the inner side wall of the cleaning ring (130) is in contact with the contact portion.

5. The wafer transport device according to claim 4, characterized in that: The cleaning ring (130) is arranged between the transport end (110) and the wafer, and maintains a certain distance from the wafer.

6. The wafer transport device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The cleaning ring (130) is fixedly arranged on the transport arm (100); a driving assembly is arranged on the transport arm (100); the driving assembly is connected to the limit pin (120) and is used to drive the limit pin (120) to move axially along the cleaning ring (130).

7. The wafer transport device according to claim 6, characterized in that: The driving assembly comprises a driver (210) and a transmission member (220), wherein the driver (210) is fixedly arranged on the transport arm (100), and the transmission member (220) is respectively connected to an output shaft of the driver (210) and the limit pin (120); In a working state, the driver (210) provides power, and the output shaft of the driver (210) drives the transmission member (220) to move, thereby driving the limiting pin (120) to move along the axial direction of the cleaning ring (130).

8. The wafer transport device according to claim 7, characterized in that: The transmission member (220) is a driving gear, one end of the limit pin (120) is provided with a toothed transmission structure (121), and the transmission member (220) is meshed with the toothed transmission structure (121); In a working state, the transmission member (220) drives the toothed transmission structure (121) to move axially along the cleaning ring (130), thereby driving the limiting pin (120) to move axially along the cleaning ring (130).

9. The wafer transport device according to claim 8, characterized in that: The toothed transmission structure (121) is a connecting tooth provided on the side wall of the limiting pin (120), and the toothed transmission structure (121) is distributed axially along the limiting pin (120).

10. A semiconductor processing equipment, characterized in that: It comprises a machine platform, a carrying platform and a wafer handling device as described in any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the handling arm (100) is movably arranged on the machine platform, the carrying platform is arranged on the machine platform, and the handling arm (100) is used to carry the wafer on the carrying platform.

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