Low cost modular wafer plating hanger with elastic piece structure

Abstract

The utility model discloses a kind of low-cost modularization wafer electroplating hanger of elastic sheet structure, it is related to wafer electroplating technical field, including hanger plate, the inside center of frame board is through and is provided with mounting hole, and the inner wall of mounting hole is provided with clamping groove, the inside fixed mounting of clamping groove has flexible sealing ring, and the upper fixed mounting of flexible sealing ring has ring, the rear side of hanger plate is provided with multiple groups of wire slot, and the side of hanger plate is provided with external power supply access point, the wire connection of external power supply access point and wire slot inside, and the terminal of wire end close to mounting hole is provided with conductive contact point;The utility model, on the one hand, the detachable elastic sheet that increases can make wafer edge better compression and be combined on flexible sealing ring, effectively prevent leakage, and increase the uniformity of conduction, on the other hand, reduce the contact area of sealing ring and wafer, reduce stress concentration, reduce wafer edge break caused by rigid contact.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This utility model specifically relates to the field of wafer electroplating technology, and more specifically to a low-cost modular wafer electroplating rack with a spring-loaded structure. Background Technology

[0002] Wafer plating racks are core tooling equipment in the wafer plating process. They are used to fix and support the wafer during the plating process and ensure its stable connection with the power supply cathode. At the same time, they ensure that the wafer surface is in full contact with the plating solution to achieve uniform deposition of metal layers (such as copper, nickel, tin, etc.).

[0003] The most expensive component in the wafer plating rack maintenance is the flexible sealing ring. Its key function is to ensure uniform conductivity of the wafer, prevent plating solution leakage, and protect the wafer edges from contamination. However, in actual use, each replacement requires disassembling the backplate and other pressing components, causing the sealing ring to repeatedly deform and recover. Therefore, it needs good ductility and mechanical support to form an elastic seal with the wafer edge during pressing, preventing plating solutions (such as gold sulfite, copper sulfate, etc.) from seeping into the wafer edge or back surface, resulting in residual gold in non-target areas. Furthermore, its high cost is also due to the one-piece molding process after mold opening, requiring high processing precision and high yield for mass production. Since the sealing ring is generally made of wear-resistant rubber materials such as EPDM and FKM, long-term use in high-temperature and corrosive environments may cause swelling and failure, resulting in gaps in contact with the wafer edge and leakage. With the development of advanced packaging process technology, the wafer edge washing distance is becoming smaller and smaller. For example, the EBR distance of high-end logic chips is less than 1mm, and the pressing distance between the flexible sealing ring and the wafer edge is less than 2mm. Therefore, the sealing ring thickness needs to be thinner, and the requirements for structural stability are higher.

[0004] Mass production requires a large number of plating racks to operate simultaneously. If the sealing ring fails, it will significantly impact the wafer plating effect. The common solution is to replace the sealing ring, but due to its high wear and tear, this represents a heavy economic burden for the factory. In summary, by optimizing the sealing ring structure, not only can the requirement for thinner sealing rings be met to satisfy customers' single-wafer die expansion needs, thereby achieving higher WPH and economic profits, but it can also effectively solve the leakage problem caused by die expansion and significantly reduce the maintenance cost of the sealing rings. To address these issues, this patent proposes a low-cost modular wafer plating rack with a spring-loaded structure. Utility Model Content

[0005] The purpose of this invention is to provide a low-cost, modular wafer plating rack with a spring-loaded structure. On one hand, the added detachable spring allows the wafer edge to be better pressed against the flexible sealing ring, effectively preventing leakage and increasing the uniformity of conductivity. On the other hand, it reduces the contact area between the sealing ring and the wafer, reducing stress concentration and minimizing wafer edge breakage caused by rigid contact. This addresses the technical problems mentioned in the background section.

[0006] To achieve the above objectives, this utility model provides the following technical solution:

[0007] A low-cost modular wafer plating rack with a spring-loaded structure includes a rack plate. A mounting hole is formed through the center of the rack plate, and a slot is provided on the inner wall of the mounting hole. A flexible sealing ring is fixedly installed inside the slot, and a pressure ring is fixedly installed above the flexible sealing ring. Multiple sets of wire grooves are formed on the rear side of the rack plate, and an external power input point is provided on the side of the rack plate. The external power input point is connected to wires inside the wire grooves, and a conductive contact is provided at the end of the wires near the mounting hole. A back plate is fixedly connected to the outside of the mounting hole above the pressure ring by bolts.

[0008] As a further technical solution of this utility model, the conductive contacts are evenly distributed around the circular perimeter of the mounting hole.

[0009] As a further technical solution of this utility model, the flexible sealing ring is composed of an annular metal ring and a sealing ring. The sealing ring is integrally formed by injection molding. The metal ring is embedded in the plastic sealing ring and protrudes from the upper surface.

[0010] As a further technical solution of this utility model, the metal ring is uniformly equipped with a first metal contact and a second metal contact on the outer side of its upper surface, and the metal ring is composed of one or more arc segments, each arc segment being provided with at least one set of the first metal contact and the second metal contact.

[0011] As a further technical solution of this utility model, the first metal contact is connected to the conductive contact of the bracket plate by screws, and the second metal contact has a spring piece installed inside, and the spring piece is a protruding rib with a mounting surface. The spring piece adopts an N-type structure and is fixed to the bracket plate by screws.

[0012] Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects of this utility model are:

[0013] 1. In this utility model, the contact between the bracket and the wafer is stable, the stress distribution at the contact point is uniform, and the wafer will not break during installation;

[0014] 2. In this utility model, the added detachable spring clip allows the wafer edge to be better pressed onto the flexible sealing ring, effectively preventing leakage and increasing the uniformity of conductivity;

[0015] 3. In this utility model, after the back plate is pressed down, the end of the spring sheet can still effectively break through the photoresist layer and make contact with the seed layer to conduct electricity, thus meeting the electroplating requirements of different wafers. Attached Figure Description

[0016] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the overall structure of this utility model.

[0017] Figure 2 This utility model Figure 1 Another perspective of the rear view.

[0018] Figure 3 This utility model Figure 1 A partial structural diagram.

[0019] Figure 4 This utility model Figure 3 A partial structural diagram.

[0020] Figure 5 This utility model Figure 4 A partial structural diagram.

[0021] Figure 6 This is a utility model Figure 5 A magnified view of A in the middle.

[0022] Figure 7 This is a utility model Figure 6 A schematic diagram of the overall structure of the shrapnel.

[0023] Figure 8 This is a utility model Figure 1 Cross-sectional view of the location of the shrapnel.

[0024] In the picture:

[0025] Hanger plate-1, mounting hole-2, flexible sealing ring-3, pressure ring-4, first metal contact-5, second metal contact-6, spring-7, wire groove-8, back plate-9, external power access point-10. Detailed Implementation

[0026] The technical solutions of the present utility model will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings of the embodiments. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of the present utility model, and not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present utility model, all other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art without creative effort are within the protection scope of the present utility model.

[0027] Please see Figure 1-8 This utility model provides a low-cost modular wafer electroplating rack with a spring-loaded structure, including a rack plate 1. A mounting hole 2 is provided through the center of the rack plate 1, and a slot is provided on the inner wall of the mounting hole 2. A flexible sealing ring 3 is fixedly installed inside the slot, and a pressure ring 4 is fixedly installed above the flexible sealing ring 3. Multiple sets of wire grooves 8 are provided on the rear side of the rack plate 1, and an external power access point 10 is provided on the side of the rack plate 1. The external power access point 10 is connected to the wires inside the wire grooves 8, and a conductive contact is provided at the end of the wires near the mounting hole 2. A back plate 9 is fixedly connected to the outside of the mounting hole 2 above the pressure ring 4 by bolts.

[0028] In this example, the conductive contacts are evenly distributed around the circular perimeter of the mounting hole 2;

[0029] By adopting the above scheme, current is buried on the back side of the bracket plate 1 through the pre-set wire groove 8, and the conductive contacts at the end of the wire are distributed around the metal ring in the mounting hole 2 so that the annular metal ring can be energized.

[0030] In this example, the flexible sealing ring 3 is composed of an annular metal ring and a sealing ring. The sealing ring is integrally formed by injection molding. The metal ring is embedded in the plastic sealing ring and protrudes from the upper surface.

[0031] By adopting the above scheme, the flexible sealing ring 3 is divided into two parts. While the sealing ring provides sealing and elasticity, the outer periphery of the metal ring is equipped with a first metal contact 5 and a second metal contact 6, which facilitates the connection of the above conductive contacts.

[0032] In this example, the metal ring is uniformly equipped with first metal contacts 5 and second metal contacts 6 on the outer side of its upper surface, and the metal ring is composed of one or more arc segments, each arc segment being provided with at least one set of first metal contacts 5 and second metal contacts 6.

[0033] By adopting the above scheme, the metal ring is composed of arc segments, and each arc segment is provided with at least one set of first metal contacts 5 and second metal contacts 6. The energizing process of multiple arc segments can meet the requirements of current conduction and electroplating process after wafer mounting.

[0034] In this example, the first metal contact 5 is connected to the conductive contact of the bracket plate by screws, and the second metal contact 6 has a spring piece 7 installed inside. The spring piece 7 is a protruding rib with a mounting surface. The spring piece 7 adopts an N-type structure and is fixed to the bracket plate by screws.

[0035] By adopting the above scheme, the setting of spring 7 is to increase the uniformity of conductivity. Spring 7 can be designed to have 8 or 16 pieces as needed (4 pieces are shown in the article for the sake of example). The material of spring 7 can be a corrosion-resistant, high-temperature resistant, low-cost metal, such as SUS304, which is easy to replace.

[0036] Furthermore, the spring piece 7 is easy to disassemble and can share some of the elastic deformation of the sealing ring. Due to prolonged immersion in high-temperature plating solution and frequent disassembly and installation of the wafer, the elastic deformation of the sealing ring may fail and cause leakage. By using this spring piece 7, the service life of the sealing ring can be extended significantly.

[0037] The working principle of this utility model is as follows: When in use, the pressure ring 4 presses on the flexible sealing ring 3. The sealing ring is made of rubber and has high elasticity. The pressure ring 4 presses the pressure ring contact surface of the sealing ring until it is flush with the surface of the metal ring. After the pressure ring 4 is removed, the sealing ring returns to its original shape by its own elasticity, which can achieve good elastic sealing.

[0038] like Figure 8 As shown, the wafer surface is mounted on the flexible sealing ring 3 and abuts against the pressure ring 4. The back plate 9 presses against the back of the wafer, making the wafer, spring 7, and flexible sealing ring 3 in close contact. After the back plate 9 is pressed down, the spring 7 abuts against the wafer edge washing area and undergoes elastic deformation, conducting current to the wafer surface. The wafer contact surface of the sealing ring contacts the photoresist layer and undergoes elastic deformation. The amount of deformation here is very small. This structure can increase the wafer pressing force, better seal, and prevent plating solution from leaking into the edge washing area. In addition, in order to achieve higher wafer utilization and produce more chips per wafer, the recommended wall thickness a design value is <1mm (for 12-inch wafers).

[0039] It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that this invention is not limited to the details of the exemplary embodiments described above, and that it can be implemented in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics of this invention. Therefore, the embodiments should be considered illustrative and non-limiting in all respects, and the scope of this invention is defined by the appended claims rather than the foregoing description. Thus, it is intended that all variations falling within the meaning and scope of equivalents of the claims be included within this invention. No reference numerals in the claims should be construed as limiting the scope of the claims.

[0040] Furthermore, it should be understood that although this specification describes embodiments, not every embodiment contains only one independent technical solution. This narrative style is merely for clarity. Those skilled in the art should consider the specification as a whole, and the technical solutions in each embodiment can also be appropriately combined to form other embodiments that can be understood by those skilled in the art.

Claims

1. A low-cost modular wafer electroplating rack with a spring-loaded structure, characterized in that: The device includes a mounting plate (1), with a mounting hole (2) through the center of the mounting plate (1). The inner wall of the mounting hole (2) is provided with a slot. A flexible sealing ring (3) is fixedly installed inside the slot. A pressure ring (4) is fixedly installed above the flexible sealing ring (3). Multiple sets of wire grooves (8) are opened on the rear side of the mounting plate (1). An external power access point (10) is provided on the side of the mounting plate (1). The external power access point (10) is connected to the wire inside the wire groove (8). A conductive contact is provided at the end of the wire near the mounting hole (2). A back plate (9) is fixedly connected to the outside of the mounting hole (2) above the pressure ring (4) by bolts.

2. The low-cost modular wafer plating rack with spring-loaded structure according to claim 1, characterized in that: The conductive contacts are evenly distributed around the circular perimeter of the mounting hole (2).

3. The low-cost modular wafer plating rack with spring-loaded structure according to claim 1, characterized in that: The flexible sealing ring (3) consists of an annular metal ring and a sealing ring. The sealing ring is integrally formed by injection molding. The metal ring is embedded in the plastic sealing ring and protrudes from the upper surface.

4. The low-cost modular wafer plating rack with spring-loaded structure according to claim 3, characterized in that: The metal ring is uniformly equipped with a first metal contact (5) and a second metal contact (6) on the outer side of its upper surface, and the metal ring is composed of one or more arc segments, each arc segment being provided with at least one set of the first metal contact (5) and the second metal contact (6).

5. The low-cost modular wafer plating rack with spring-loaded structure according to claim 4, characterized in that: The first metal contact (5) is connected to the conductive contact of the bracket plate by screws. The second metal contact (6) has a spring piece (7) installed inside. The spring piece (7) is a protruding rib with a spring piece mounting surface. The spring piece (7) adopts an N-type structure and is fixed to the bracket plate by screws.

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