Wafer handling hand, wafer exchange equipment, charged particle beam equipment, and vacuum equipment

Abstract

This wafer transfer hand comprises a hand body, electrostatic chucks, and easily deformable members. The electrostatic chucks and the easily deformable members are arranged adjacent to each other on one surface of the hand body. The easily deformable members have a height greater than that of the electrostatic chucks. The wafer transfer hand can thereby prevent wafer misalignment even with a reduced electrostatic adsorption force, and prevent wafer bouncing due to residual adsorption force.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] This disclosure relates to a wafer handling hand, a wafer exchange device, a charged particle beam device, and a vacuum device. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, in the field of semiconductor equipment, technologies related to wafer exchange equipment, such as wafer exchange robots, have been known. In particular, in wafer exchange equipment operating in a vacuum, it is necessary to operate the robot hand (hereinafter simply referred to as "hand") at high speed in order to shorten the wafer exchange time. Furthermore, with the diversification of devices, it has become necessary to handle wafers that are prone to warping.

[0003] Patent Document 1 discloses an end effector for a substrate transport device, which includes a support member for supporting a semiconductor wafer, an electrostatic chuck provided on the support member, and a retaining pin formed to protrude from the support surface, wherein the retaining pin is provided to be movable along a mounting hole in a direction that protrudes from the support surface, so that even if the semiconductor wafer warps, the central part of the semiconductor wafer, which is less deformed by the warp, is held by the electrostatic chuck, and the area around the central part is held by the retaining pin, so that the semiconductor wafer can be sufficiently held in accordance with the deformation caused by the warp. [Prior art documents] [Patent Documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] International Publication No. 2012 / 014442 [Overview of the project] [Problems that the invention aims to solve]

[0005] In processes such as semiconductor wafer manufacturing, measurement, and inspection, high-speed wafer replacement is necessary to increase throughput, which is the number of wafers processed per unit time by the equipment. Furthermore, warped wafers are sometimes handled.

[0006] Depending on the type of process, high-speed wafer exchange and high positional accuracy on the micrometer scale are required simultaneously. In particular, compared to equipment that handles bare wafers without patterns, equipment that handles patterned wafers requires minimizing wafer misalignment during wafer transport in order to align the position of fine circuits.

[0007] On the other hand, if the acceleration of the wafer exchange robot is increased to shorten the time required for wafer transport, the inertial force on the wafer will increase, potentially causing the wafer to slip on the robot hand and resulting in greater displacement. Furthermore, if the wafer slippage becomes excessive, it is possible that the wafer may fall inside the device, causing the brittle wafer material to break and fragments to scatter inside the device, making it difficult to continue using the device.

[0008] Therefore, increasing the maximum lateral force that prevents the wafer from slipping on the robot hand of the wafer transfer device (hereinafter referred to as "lateral shear force") is a challenge. Furthermore, if the wafer is warped or if chemicals such as resist or foreign matter are attached to the back surface of the wafer, a large decrease in lateral shear force necessitates setting a safety factor that takes this into account, which requires a significant reduction in operating speed and leads to an increase in wafer exchange time. In other words, improving the robustness of lateral shear force in the case of warped wafers or foreign matter on the back surface is also a challenge.

[0009] The substrate transport device described in Patent Document 1 fixes the central part of the semiconductor wafer with an electrostatic chuck. In this case, frictional force is obtained by applying the electrostatic attraction force of the electrostatic chuck to the semiconductor wafer. Since the electrostatic chuck is made of ceramics or polyimide film, the coefficient of friction on the surface in contact with the semiconductor wafer is relatively small. For this reason, if the inertial force applied to the semiconductor wafer may exceed the lateral shear force, it is necessary to increase the electrostatic attraction force. It is desirable to keep the electrostatic attraction force small from the viewpoint of the voltage withstand capability of the components.

[0010] Furthermore, since the suction force of an electrostatic chuck is proportional to its area, it is necessary to increase the area of ​​the electrostatic chuck. Increasing the area of ​​the electrostatic chuck makes it difficult to reduce the weight of the robot hand. In addition, even after the electrostatic chuck is turned off, the residual suction force remains large, which can cause the wafer to bounce and shift position when placed on a sample stage or other surface, posing another challenge.

[0011] The purpose of this disclosure is to prevent wafer misalignment and wafer bouncing due to residual suction force in a wafer handling hand, even when the electrostatic suction force is reduced. [Means for solving the problem]

[0012] A wafer handling hand according to one aspect of the present disclosure includes a hand body, an electrostatic chuck, and a deformable member, wherein the electrostatic chuck and the deformable member are arranged adjacent to one plane of the hand body, and the deformable member is taller than the electrostatic chuck. [Effects of the Invention]

[0013] According to this disclosure, a wafer handling hand can prevent wafer misalignment even when the electrostatic adsorption force is reduced, and can also prevent wafer bouncing due to residual adsorption force. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0014] [Figure 1] This is a side view showing the wafer handling hand of Example 1. [Figure 2] It is a side view showing a state in which a warped wafer is placed on the wafer transfer hand of FIG. 1. [Figure 3] It is a perspective view showing the wafer transfer hand of Example 1. [Figure 4] It is a side view showing the wafer transfer hand of Modified Example 1. [Figure 5] It is a side view showing an example of a preferable arrangement of the electrostatic chuck and the viscoelastic body. [Figure 6] It is a side view showing the wafer transfer hand of Example 2. [Figure 7] It is a side view showing the wafer transfer hand of Modified Example 2. [Figure 8] It is a side view showing a state in which a warped wafer is placed on the wafer transfer hand of FIG. 7. [Figure 9] It is a side view showing the wafer transfer hand of Modified Example 3. [Figure 10A] It is a side view showing the wafer transfer hand of Modified Example 4. [Figure 10B] It is a side view showing a state in which the electrostatic chuck of the wafer transfer hand of FIG. 10A is turned on. [Figure 11A] It is a side view showing the wafer transfer hand of Example 1. [Figure 11B] It is a side view showing a state in which an adsorption force is generated in the electrostatic chuck of FIG. 11A. [Figure 12] It is a perspective view showing an example of the arrangement of the laser displacement meter. [Figure 13] It is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the wafer exchange device when the electrostatic chuck is disconnected. [Figure 14] It is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a semiconductor measuring device having a wafer transfer hand.

Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0015] First, the configuration and principle of supporting a wafer by the wafer transfer hand according to the present disclosure will be described.

[0016] The wafer transfer hand includes a hand body, an electrostatic chuck, and a deformable member. The deformable member includes a viscoelastic body.

[0017] Generally, a viscoelastic body is a member composed of a substance having both elastic and viscous properties as mechanical properties, and is composed of a polymer material such as rubber.

[0018] Here, consider the condition where a frictional force acts between the wafer and the viscoelastic body so that the wafer does not slip.

[0019] When the wafer accelerates and moves in the horizontal direction, an inertial force F I acts on the wafer.

[0020] This inertial force F I is less than the frictional force F F If it is below, the wafer will not slip. That is, the relationship of the following formula (1) holds.

[0021] F I <F F …(1) The inertial force F I acting on the wafer is expressed by the following formula (2), where M is the mass of the wafer and A is the maximum acceleration of the hand part of the wafer transfer robot (wafer transfer device).

[0022] F I =M×A …(2) On the other hand, the frictional force F F generated on the back surface (lower surface) of the wafer is expressed by the following formula (3), where G is the gravitational acceleration and μ is the coefficient of friction.

[0023] F F =μ×M×G …(3) Then, substituting the above formulas (2) and (3) into the above formula (1), the following formula (4) is obtained.

[0024] M×A<μ×M×G …(4) Eliminating M from both sides, the following formula (5) is obtained.

[0025] A < μ × G …(5) In other words, since the acceleration due to gravity (G) is constant, the maximum acceleration A uniquely depends on the coefficient of friction μ, which limits the speed of wafer exchange robots. Furthermore, if resist or foreign matter adheres to the back surface of the wafer, there is a concern that the wafer may slip due to a decrease in the coefficient of friction, requiring a large safety factor for acceleration. Therefore, increasing the speed of wafer exchange robots becomes difficult.

[0026] The wafer handling hand described herein solves the above-mentioned problems.

[0027] Hereinafter, embodiments of the wafer handling hand, wafer exchange device, charged particle beam device, and vacuum device relating to this disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. [Examples]

[0028] The wafer exchange device has a wafer handling handle.

[0029] Figure 1 is a side view showing the wafer handling hand of Example 1.

[0030] The wafer handling hand shown in this figure includes a hand body 103, a viscoelastic body 102, and an electrostatic chuck 201. The viscoelastic body 102 and the electrostatic chuck 201 are installed on the upper surface of the hand body 103. The upper surface of the hand body 103 is flat.

[0031] An electrostatic chuck 201 is arranged around the viscoelastic body 102 so as to surround it. The viscoelastic body 102 is higher than the electrostatic chuck 201. In this specification, a structure combining the viscoelastic body 102 and the electrostatic chuck 201 in this manner is called a "composite adsorption hand structure".

[0032] In other words, the electrostatic chuck 201 and the viscoelastic body 102 are arranged adjacent to one of the planes of the hand body 103.

[0033] Furthermore, a high voltage is applied to the electrostatic chuck 201 from an electrostatic chuck amplifier (not shown) to generate an electrostatic attraction force between the electrostatic chuck 201 and the wafer 101.

[0034] The electrostatic chuck 201 may be a continuous annular structure, or multiple cylindrical structures may be installed.

[0035] Since the viscoelastic body 102 is higher than the electrostatic chuck 201, the upper surface of the viscoelastic body 102 comes into contact with the wafer 101. On the other hand, the electrostatic chuck 201 generates an electrostatic attraction force between itself and the wafer 101 without coming into contact with it.

[0036] In other words, the wafer 101 is supported by the viscoelastic body 102, and a gap (space) is created between the wafer 101 and the electrostatic chuck 201.

[0037] The electrostatic chuck 201 generates an adsorption force 202 to ensure a true contact area between the viscoelastic material 102 and the back surface of the wafer 101. The adsorption force 202 is, for example, about 2 to 3 times the gravitational force acting on the wafer 101. The viscoelastic material 102 has a coefficient of friction that is about an order of magnitude larger than that of an electrostatic chuck 201 with an insulating layer of ceramics or polyimide on its surface. Therefore, it is possible to obtain a similar level of lateral shear resistance with an electrostatic adsorption force that is an order of magnitude smaller than when using only the electrostatic chuck 201.

[0038] Because the required electrostatic attraction force is small, the area of ​​the electrostatic chuck 201 can be small, making it possible to reduce the weight of the wafer handling hand. In particular, using a Coulomb force method that can be formed with a film laminate structure such as a polyimide film for the electrostatic chuck 201 is advantageous for weight reduction.

[0039] Furthermore, because the electrostatic attraction force is small, the residual attraction force is also small, preventing wafer bouncing and positional displacement.

[0040] Next, we will explain how wafer handling hands can handle warped wafers.

[0041] Figure 2 is a side view showing a warped wafer placed on the wafer handling hand shown in Figure 1.

[0042] The viscoelastic body 102 shown in this figure has a thickness (height) ranging from several hundred micrometers to several millimeters. This configuration allows the surface shape of the viscoelastic body 102 to conform to the inclined surface of the warped wafer 401 when gripping it. This ensures a constant true contact area, suppressing changes in the coefficient of friction and lateral shear resistance, and enabling stable holding of the warped wafer 401. In other words, it contributes to faster wafer exchange in processes that handle warped wafers.

[0043] Figure 3 is a perspective view showing the wafer handling hand of Example 1.

[0044] In this figure, the composite suction hand structure is supported at three points on the hand body 103. The electrostatic chuck 201 is an annular continuum and is installed so as to surround the viscoelastic body 102.

[0045] In the case of two-point support, the wafer cannot be supported stably, and in the case of four-point support, looseness occurs if one point is higher or lower than the others.

[0046] In contrast to these, with three-point support, the plane is uniquely determined, making it possible to support the wafer stably without any wobbling.

[0047] Figure 4 is a side view showing a wafer handling hand of modified example 1.

[0048] In this figure, the electrostatic chuck 201 is positioned on the outside of the viscoelastic body 102.

[0049] If the attractive force of the electrostatic chuck 201 is large, the wafer 101 may deform upwards, as shown in this figure. Therefore, it is desirable to prevent deformation (bending) of the wafer 101 by limiting the attractive force of the electrostatic chuck 201 to below a predetermined value.

[0050] Figure 5 is a side view showing an example of a preferred arrangement of the electrostatic chuck and viscoelastic body.

[0051] This structure consists of a viscoelastic body 102 surrounded by an electrostatic chuck 201. In this figure, two locations of the electrostatic chuck 201 and viscoelastic body 102 pair are shown, but in reality, there are three such arrangements as shown in Figure 3. That is, it is desirable to have three pairs of electrostatic chuck 201 and viscoelastic body 102 arranged adjacent to each other. In this case, even if the suction force of the electrostatic chuck acts, the wafer 101 as a whole does not bend, so the wafer 101 does not vibrate when the chuck is released, and no displacement occurs. [Examples]

[0052] Figure 6 is a side view showing the wafer handling hand of Example 2.

[0053] In this figure, a viscoelastic body 102 is arranged around the electrostatic chuck 201, surrounding it. The viscoelastic body 102 is higher than the electrostatic chuck 201. This structure is also a "composite suction hand structure".

[0054] In this configuration as well, similar to the case of Example 1 (Figure 1), no deformation occurs that causes the wafer 101 to bend overall, so wafer vibration and displacement do not occur when the chuck is released.

[0055] Compared to Example 1, Example 2 has a larger contact area between the viscoelastic body 102 and the wafer 101, which ensures sufficient frictional force and reliable prevention of misalignment.

[0056] On the other hand, in Example 1 (Figure 1), the area of ​​the electrostatic chuck 201 can be made larger compared to Example 2, so the required electrostatic attraction force can be secured at a lower voltage.

[0057] Therefore, the configuration of Example 1 or 2 is selected according to the specifications of the wafer exchange device.

[0058] In both Examples 1 and 2, the electrostatic chuck 201 or viscoelastic body 102, which is positioned on the outer circumference of the composite suction hand structure, may be cylindrical or prismatic in shape.

[0059] Figure 7 is a side view showing a wafer handling hand of modified example 2.

[0060] In this figure, carbon fiber reinforced plastic (hereinafter referred to as "CFRP") is used for the hand body 903. The other components are the same as in Figure 1. Reference numeral 902 indicates the fiber direction of the CFRP.

[0061] CFRP is known as a lightweight and highly damping material. By forming the hand body 903 from CFRP, the hand body 903 can be made lighter. In addition, vibrations of the wafer handling hand can be quickly dampened.

[0062] One possible scenario in which vibration of the hand body 903 becomes a problem is when the wafer 101 is placed from the wafer transport hand onto the wafer support stand 901. The minute residual suction force 904 of the electrostatic chuck 201 causes the hand body 903 to deform, and the hand body 903 vibrates at the moment the wafer 101 is released.

[0063] The wafer handling hand shown in this figure uses CFRP for the hand body 903, which allows for rapid damping of vibrations during handling. As shown in this figure, the maximum damping effect is obtained by aligning the fiber direction 902 of the CFRP with the longitudinal direction of the hand body 903.

[0064] Next, we will explain how the hand body follows the curvature of the wafer when CFRP is used.

[0065] Figure 8 is a side view showing a warped wafer placed on the wafer handling hand shown in Figure 7.

[0066] In Figure 8, since the hand body 903 is made of CFRP, it is possible to induce deformation of the hand body 903 to further increase the effect of following the warped wafer 401. In other words, the robustness against lateral shear force against wafer warping can be further improved.

[0067] Figure 9 is a side view showing a wafer handling hand of modified example 3.

[0068] The wafer handling hand shown in this figure uses an atomic force pad 1101 instead of the viscoelastic body 102 shown in Figure 1. The other configurations are the same as in Figure 1.

[0069] The interatomic force pad 1101 can achieve lateral shear resistance by adsorbing objects using interatomic forces rather than frictional forces. Therefore, even when changes occur in the wafer back surface, such as foreign matter adhesion, chemical splashing of resists, surface roughness, or variations, the decrease in lateral shear resistance can be kept to a minimum. In other words, it is possible to improve robustness against changes in the wafer back surface.

[0070] Next, we will describe a configuration in which the viscoelastic material is made into an annular shape (hollow cylindrical shape), and a protrusion is provided in the space in the center of it to control the gap with the electrostatic chuck and to maintain a constant suction force.

[0071] Figure 10A is a side view showing a wafer handling hand of modified example 4.

[0072] In this figure, the viscoelastic body 102 is an annular shape, and a protrusion 1201 is provided in the space at its center. The height of the protrusion 1201 is lower than that of the viscoelastic body 102. The protrusion 1201 is made of a material that is harder than the viscoelastic body 102 (a difficult-to-deform member).

[0073] Figure 10B is a side view showing the wafer handling hand in Figure 10A with the electrostatic chuck turned ON.

[0074] From the state shown in Figure 10A, when the electrostatic chuck 201 is turned ON to generate an adsorption force, the wafer 101 comes into contact with the protrusion 1201, as shown in Figure 10B. This makes it possible to keep the gap 1202 between the wafer 101 and the electrostatic chuck 201 constant.

[0075] The suction force of the electrostatic chuck 201 decreases inversely proportional to the square of the distance from the wafer 101 to be suctioned. By providing the protrusion 1201, the gap 1202 can be kept constant, and the suction force of the electrostatic chuck 201 can be kept constant. Furthermore, because the suction force of the electrostatic chuck 201 is constant, variations in lateral shear resistance can be reduced. This is also effective in reducing machine differences during mass production of equipment.

[0076] Furthermore, the protrusion 1201 may be made of a conductive resin such as conductive PEEK, from the viewpoint of preventing static charge buildup on the wafer 101. Here, PEEK is an abbreviation for polyether ether ketone.

[0077] Furthermore, since the protrusion 1201 is formed from a material that is difficult to deform, in order to keep the position of the adsorbed wafer 101 constant, the position of the protrusion 1201 is not limited to the above example.

[0078] Figure 11A is a side view showing the wafer handling hand of Example 1.

[0079] Figure 11B is a side view showing the electrostatic chuck in Figure 11A with an adhesive force generated.

[0080] These diagrams will be used to explain the configuration for detecting the suction force of an electrostatic chuck.

[0081] When considering the operation of the composite suction hand described herein, being able to confirm whether the electrostatic chuck is operating reliably and whether the desired suction force is obtained is effective in preventing wafers from falling, etc.

[0082] As shown in Figure 11A, a laser displacement sensor (not shown) is installed above the hand body 103, and the optical axis 1302 of the laser displacement sensor is directed onto the wafer 101.

[0083] Then, as shown in Figure 11B, the electrostatic chuck 201 generates an adsorption force, and the amount of sinking 1301 when the wafer 101 sinks in is measured.

[0084] The amount of wafer 101 sinking 1301 is calculated in advance from the elastic modulus and dimensions of the viscoelastic body 102 and stored in the device's memory (not shown) as a specified amount for normal operation. This specified amount for normal operation is used to determine the operation of the electrostatic chuck 201.

[0085] The laser displacement meter is installed, for example, on the top surface of the sample chamber or the top surface of the load lock chamber.

[0086] Figure 12 is a perspective view showing an example of the arrangement of laser displacement sensors.

[0087] A laser displacement meter (not shown) can also be positioned to measure three points on the outer edge 1401 of the wafer, indicated by the dashed line. By measuring at these three points and calculating the wafer's tilt, it is possible to detect whether all three electrostatic chucks 201 are functioning correctly. Measuring the displacement of the outer edge 1401 of the wafer makes it easier to detect the displacement caused by wafer tilt in the event of a failure of the electrostatic chuck 201, thus enabling fault detection even with relatively low-precision, inexpensive displacement sensors.

[0088] Figure 13 is a flowchart illustrating an example of the operation of a wafer exchange device when the electrostatic chuck is disconnected.

[0089] The configuration of the control unit of the wafer exchange device, which is the basis for this setup, is as follows:

[0090] The control unit of the wafer exchange device includes an applied voltage adjustment unit that adjusts the voltage generated by an electrostatic chuck amplifier that applies a high voltage to the electrostatic chuck, a disconnection detection unit that determines whether or not there is a disconnection in the electrostatic chuck, a disconnection detection signal monitoring unit that receives the signal of the determination result and monitors whether or not there is a disconnection, and a hand operation control unit. The hand operation control unit controls the movement of the hand, such as the distance traveled, the speed of movement, and the direction of movement. The electrostatic chuck amplifier is also equipped with a disconnection detection signal monitoring unit that receives the signal of the determination result regarding whether or not there is a disconnection in the electrostatic chuck and monitors whether or not there is a disconnection.

[0091] As shown in this figure, the wire break detection signal monitoring unit receives a signal from the wire break determination unit at regular intervals and monitors whether or not there is a wire break in the electrostatic chuck (step S1501).

[0092] The wire break detection unit determines whether or not there is a wire break (step S1502). If there is no wire break, the process returns to step S1501 and monitoring continues.

[0093] On the other hand, if a disconnection is detected, the disconnection detection unit transmits the signal to the disconnection detection signal monitoring unit, and an alert is sent to the hand operation control unit (step S1503). When the hand operation control unit receives the alert, it switches the hand to low-speed mode (step S1504). Low-speed mode is a mode in which the hand is operated within an acceleration range in which the wafer does not fall due to the frictional force of the viscoelastic material.

[0094] Subsequently, the wafer is retrieved after a certain waiting period (step S1505). A waiting period of approximately 20 seconds is desirable.

[0095] In this case, due to the processing delay time for the substrate, if the suction force is lost immediately after the electrostatic chuck disconnects, there is a risk that the wafer will fall. Incidentally, the processing delay time for the substrate is generally around several tens of milliseconds. However, when the electrostatic chuck disconnects, the chuck OFF process, which forcibly applies a reverse voltage, is not performed, so a large amount of residual suction force remains. Since the residual suction force gradually weakens over several seconds, the time during which most of the residual suction force remains, i.e., the residual suction force maintenance time, is about several seconds. Therefore, during the residual suction force maintenance time, i.e., after the transition to low-speed mode is complete, the residual suction force is maintained to some extent for several seconds, and the wafer does not fall from the handle. Also, by providing a sufficient waiting time of about 20 seconds as mentioned above, the residual suction force becomes almost zero, so the wafer does not bounce when the wafer is retrieved with a lift or the like.

[0096] Finally, a semiconductor measuring device, which is an embodiment of the charged particle beam apparatus and vacuum apparatus according to this disclosure, will be described. The semiconductor measuring device of this embodiment is, for example, a length measuring SEM as an application of a scanning electron microscope (SEM).

[0097] Figure 14 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a semiconductor measuring device with a wafer handling hand.

[0098] The semiconductor measuring apparatus shown in this figure comprises a stage device 1604 for positioning an object, a vacuum chamber 1601 housing the stage device 1604, a lid 1914 for sealing the vacuum chamber 1601, an electron optical system tube 1602, a vibration damping mount 1903, a load lock chamber 1605, and a wafer changing robot 1606.

[0099] The vacuum chamber 1601 houses the stage device 1604. The space sealed by the vacuum chamber 1601 and the lid 1914 is the depressurization chamber 1915. The depressurization chamber 1915 is configured to be reduced to a pressure lower than atmospheric pressure by a vacuum pump (not shown). The vacuum chamber 1601 is supported by a vibration damping mount 1903.

[0100] The semiconductor measurement device uses a stage device 1604 to position a target object, such as a semiconductor wafer 101, and irradiates the target object with an electron beam from an electron optical system tube 1602 to image the pattern on the object, measure the line width of the pattern, and evaluate the shape accuracy. The stage device 1604 controls the positioning of the target object, such as a semiconductor wafer, held on a sample stage 1608.

[0101] The load lock chamber 1605 is kept under vacuum when exchanging wafers 101 with the vacuum chamber 1601, and under atmospheric pressure when exchanging wafers 101 with the outside of the apparatus. The wafer exchange robot 1606 is used to exchange wafers 101 between the load lock chamber 1605 and the vacuum chamber 1601. The wafer exchange robot 1606 has a composite suction hand structure 1607.

[0102] The semiconductor measuring device according to this embodiment is equipped with a wafer exchange device having a composite adsorption hand structure, enabling high-speed and highly accurate exchange of objects such as wafers. Therefore, the throughput and inspection accuracy of the semiconductor measuring device as a charged particle beam device can be improved. Furthermore, the composite adsorption hand, through its interatomic force pads and adsorption force detection function, can suppress wafer displacement even when foreign matter adheres to the back surface of the wafer, and can maintain high robustness to positional accuracy during wafer transport.

[0103] The following describes preferred embodiments of this disclosure.

[0104] In a wafer handling hand, the electrostatic chuck and the easily deformable member are arranged such that one surrounds the other.

[0105] It is desirable that there be three sets of electrostatic chucks and easily deformable members arranged adjacent to each other.

[0106] The hand itself is made of carbon fiber reinforced plastic.

[0107] The electrostatic chuck has a structure in which its surface is covered with a film.

[0108] The easily deformable member has a surface structure that utilizes interatomic forces.

[0109] The wafer handling hand further includes a convex portion formed of a difficult-to-deform member, and the easily deformable member has a height greater than the convex portion.

[0110] The wafer exchange device has a wafer handling handle.

[0111] The charged particle beam apparatus has a wafer changing device.

[0112] The charged particle beam apparatus further includes a displacement sensor that measures changes in the height of a wafer placed on a wafer handling hand.

[0113] The vacuum system includes a wafer exchange device.

[0114] The vacuum apparatus further includes a displacement sensor that measures changes in the height of a wafer placed on a wafer handling hand.

[0115] Furthermore, the charged particle beam apparatus and vacuum apparatus described herein are not limited to semiconductor measuring apparatus.

[0116] While embodiments of this disclosure have been described in detail above with reference to the drawings, the specific configuration is not limited to the embodiments described above, and any design changes, etc., that do not depart from the gist of this disclosure are also included in this disclosure. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0117] 101: Wafer, 102: Viscoelastic material, 103, 903: Hand body, 201: Electrostatic chuck, 202: Adsorption force, 401: Warped wafer, 901: Wafer support, 902: Fiber direction of CFRP, 904: Residual adsorption force, 1101: Interatomic force pad, 1201: Protrusion, 1202: Gap, 1301: Amount of sinking, 1302: Optical axis, 1401: Wafer outer edge, 1601: Vacuum chamber, 1602: Electron optical system tube, 1604: Stage device, 1605: Load lock chamber, 1606: Wafer exchange robot, 1607: Composite adsorption hand structure, 1608: Sample stage, 1903: Vibration damping mount.

Claims

1. The hand unit and Electrostatic chuck and, Includes easily deformable members, The electrostatic chuck and the easily deformable member are arranged adjacent to one of the planes of the hand body. The easily deformable member has a height greater than the electrostatic chuck. It further includes a protrusion formed of a difficult-to-deform member, The easily deformable member is a wafer handling hand having a height greater than the protrusion.

2. The wafer transport hand according to claim 1, wherein the electrostatic chuck and the easily deformable member are arranged such that one of them surrounds the other.

3. The wafer transport hand according to claim 1, wherein there are three sets of adjacent electrostatic chucks and easily deformable members.

4. The wafer transport hand according to claim 1, wherein the hand body is made of carbon fiber reinforced plastic.

5. The wafer handling hand according to claim 1, wherein the electrostatic chuck has a configuration in which its surface is covered with a film.

6. The wafer transport hand according to claim 1, wherein the easily deformable member has a surface structure that utilizes interatomic forces.

7. (delete)

8. A wafer exchange apparatus having a wafer transport hand as described in claim 1.

9. A charged particle beam apparatus having the wafer exchange apparatus described in claim 8.

10. The charged particle beam apparatus according to claim 9, further comprising a displacement sensor for measuring changes in the height of a wafer placed on the wafer transport hand.

11. A vacuum apparatus having the wafer exchange apparatus described in claim 8.

12. The vacuum apparatus according to claim 11, further comprising a displacement sensor for measuring changes in the height of a wafer placed on the wafer transport hand.

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