Protective member forming apparatus

Abstract

To provide a protective member forming device that detects the presence of bubbles in a liquid resin that has spread over the entire surface of one side of a wafer when curing the liquid resin.SOLUTION: A protective member forming device (1) is for forming a protective member (32) composed of a liquid resin (31) and a sheet (30). The protective member forming device (1) includes a UV irradiation unit (23) that irradiates the liquid resin (31) from a sheet side and cures it with UV light, a camera (24) that captures an image of the resin (31) by receiving reflected light of the UV light reflected from the resin, and a determination unit (41) that determines the presence of bubbles in the resin when black pixels are found in an image taken by the camera (24) of the entire area of the resin.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a protective member forming apparatus.

Background Art

[0002] When performing grinding or the like on a wafer, a protective member is formed to protect the entire one surface of the wafer. The protective member forming apparatus for forming the protective member supplies a liquid resin onto a sheet placed on a table, lowers a holding portion that holds the wafer above the table, spreads the liquid resin with the wafer held by the holding portion, and then cures the liquid resin to form a protective member composed of a resin and a sheet on the entire one surface of the wafer.

[0003] The liquid resin for forming the protective member is one that cures by applying a specific external stimulus, such as an ultraviolet curable resin or a thermosetting resin. For example, in the case of an ultraviolet curable liquid resin as in Patent Document 1, it is cured by irradiating ultraviolet rays for a preset time.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] When curing the liquid resin, if the liquid resin spread over the entire one surface of the wafer contains bubbles, voids are formed in the cured resin. When the wafer is ground with a grinding wheel in the next grinding process, the wafer is deflected by the load of the grinding wheel due to the void portion, and thus the ground wafer has a problem of not having a uniform thickness.

[0006] Therefore, the protective member forming apparatus needs to detect that the liquid resin spread on one surface of the wafer contains bubbles when cured.

[0007] The present invention has been made in view of the above, and aims to provide a protective member forming apparatus that detects the presence of air bubbles in the liquid resin that has spread across the entire surface of one side of a wafer when the liquid resin is cured. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] The protective member forming apparatus of the present invention is a protective member forming apparatus that forms a protective member consisting of a resin and a sheet by bringing a sheet with an area larger than one side of the wafer relatively close to the wafer and spreading an ultraviolet-curable liquid resin over the entire surface of one side of the wafer, and curing it by irradiating it with ultraviolet light, A protective member forming stage that supports a sheet on a sheet support surface formed of a material that transmits ultraviolet light; a sheet transport unit that transports the sheet to the sheet support surface of the protective member forming stage; a resin supply nozzle that supplies liquid resin to the sheet supported on the sheet support surface of the protective member forming stage; and a unit disposed inside the protective member forming stage that passes through the sheet supported on the sheet support surface. A UV irradiation unit for curing the liquid resin by irradiating it with ultraviolet light, Displaced inside the protective member forming stage, The ultraviolet light liquid The reflected light from the resin is received and liquid resin whole area A camera that captures an image and obtains a blue-white image, and the camera liquid Image of the entire resin surface Inside There are black pixels. and It includes a determination unit that determines the presence of bubbles.

[0009] In one embodiment of the present invention, the determination unit determines that there are bubbles if the number of black pixels is equal to or greater than a preset number. In one embodiment of the present invention, the determination unit determines that there is a bubble if the area of ​​adjacent connected black pixels is greater than or equal to a preset area. One aspect of the present invention includes a peeling device for peeling off the protective member, wherein the protective member formed on a wafer in which the determination unit has determined to have air bubbles in the resin is peeled off by the peeling device, and then the protective member is formed again. [Effects of the Invention]

[0010] According to the protective member forming apparatus of the present invention, when curing the liquid resin, it is possible to detect if air bubbles are present in the liquid resin that has spread across the entire surface of one side of the wafer. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0011] [Figure 1] This is a perspective view showing the protective member forming apparatus of this embodiment. [Figure 2] It is a partial cross-sectional view of a protective member forming apparatus. [Figure 3] It is an explanatory view showing a sheet loading process in a protective member forming apparatus. [Figure 4] It is an explanatory view showing a liquid resin supply process in a protective member forming apparatus. [Figure 5] It is an explanatory view showing a wafer holding process in a protective member forming apparatus. [Figure 6] It is an explanatory view showing a spreading process in a protective member forming apparatus. [Figure 7] It is an explanatory view showing a curing process in a protective member forming apparatus. [Figure 8] It is a schematic view of a photographed image of a liquid resin taken from the lower surface of a wafer in a protective member forming apparatus.

Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention

[0012] Hereinafter, a protective member forming apparatus according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIGS. 1 and 2 show the whole and a part of the protective member forming apparatus according to the present embodiment. FIGS. 3 to 7 are views for explaining each process performed by the protective member forming apparatus. FIG. 8 is a schematic view of a photographed image of a liquid resin taken from the lower surface of a wafer in the protective member forming apparatus.

[0013] The X-axis direction, Y-axis direction, and Z-axis direction shown in each figure are perpendicular to each other. The X-axis direction and Y-axis direction are substantially horizontal directions, and the Z-axis direction is the vertical direction (up and down direction). In each figure, of the double-headed arrows indicating the X-axis direction, the side with the letter X attached is the left side, and the side without the letter X attached is the right side. Of the double-headed arrows indicating the Y-axis direction, the side with the letter Y attached is the front side, and the side without the letter Y attached is the rear side. Of the double-headed arrows indicating the Z-axis direction, the side with the letter Z attached is the upper side, and the side without the letter Z attached is the lower side.

[0014] The protective member forming apparatus 1 shown in FIG. 1 is an example of an apparatus that forms a protective member by applying an external stimulus to a liquid resin spread over the entire surface of one side of a wafer W to cure it. In FIG. 1, the external housing 10 of the protective member forming apparatus 1 is shown by a broken line, and the components inside the external housing 10 are shown in a perspective view. Of the wafer W, the surface facing upward during processing in the protective member forming apparatus 1 is defined as the upper surface Wa, and the surface facing downward is defined as the lower surface Wb.

[0015] Although details will be described later, in the protective member forming apparatus 1, a liquid resin 31 (see FIGS. 2, 4, and 5) is supplied onto a sheet 30 placed on a protective member forming stage 16, and the wafer W held by a wafer holding unit 20 is operated to be pressed against the liquid resin 31 from above the protective member forming stage 16. By pressing the lower surface Wb of the wafer W toward the sheet 30, the liquid resin 31 is spread between the wafer W and the sheet 30 (see FIG. 6). In this state, an external stimulus is applied to the liquid resin 31 to cure it, and a protective member 32 is formed by the cured resin and the sheet 30 (see FIG. 7).

[0016] Such a series of operations is performed under the control of a control unit 40 (FIG. 1) that overall controls the protective member forming apparatus 1. Regarding the operations of each part described below, if the subject of control is not specified, it is assumed that the operation is controlled by a control signal sent from the control unit 40.

[0017] The wafer W is, for example, a disk-shaped as-cut wafer cut from an ingot such as a cylindrical silicon. Note that the wafer W is not limited to an as-cut wafer before device formation, and may also be a device wafer after device formation or the like.

[0018] The protective member forming apparatus 1 is equipped with a cassette housing section 11 at one end (the left end) in the X-axis direction of the external housing 10. The cassette housing section 11 has two upper and lower storage spaces 111 and 112. The upper storage space 111 is where the input cassette C1, which houses multiple wafers W before the protective member 32 is formed, is placed. The lower storage space 112 is where the output cassette C2, which houses wafers W after the protective member 32 has been formed, is placed. Both cassette C1 and cassette C2 can accommodate multiple wafers W.

[0019] A temporary placement table 13 and a sheet cutting table 14 are provided on the right side of the cassette storage section 11 in the X-axis direction. The temporary placement table 13 is located on the upper side, and the sheet cutting table 14 is located on the lower side. The temporary placement table 13 is provided with a wafer detection unit 131 that detects the center position and orientation of the wafer W before the protective member 32 is formed. The sheet cutting table 14 is provided with a sheet cutter 141 that cuts the sheet 30 attached to the wafer W along the outer shape of the wafer W.

[0020] A first transport mechanism 12 is provided on the front side in the Y-axis direction relative to the temporary storage table 13 and the sheet cutting table 14, for loading and unloading wafers W to and from each cassette C1 and C2. The first transport mechanism 12 includes a robot hand 122 supported on a base 121, and the base 121 is supported so as to be movable along a pair of guide rails 123 extending in the Y-axis direction. The base 121 has a threaded portion (not shown) that screws into a ball screw 124 extending in the Y-axis direction. When the ball screw 124 is rotated by the driving force of the motor, the base 121 moves in the Y-axis direction.

[0021] The first transport mechanism 12 transports wafers W between the cassette storage section 11, the temporary storage table 13, and the sheet cutting table 14 by moving the base 121 in the Y-axis direction and operating the robot hand 122. More specifically, the first transport mechanism 12 can remove wafers W from cassette C1 in the storage space 111 and place them on the temporary storage table 13 before the protective member 32 is formed. The first transport mechanism 12 can also remove wafers W after the protective member 32 has been formed from the sheet cutting table 14 and place them in cassette C2 in the storage space 112.

[0022] The protective member forming apparatus 1 is equipped with a base 15 on the right side in the X-axis direction relative to the temporary placement table 13 and the sheet cutting table 14. A protective member forming stage 16 is provided on the base 15. The protective member forming stage 16 is made of a translucent material such as quartz glass and is formed in a disc shape. The upper surface of the protective member forming stage 16 is a flat sheet support surface 161 on which the sheet 30 is placed.

[0023] The sheet 30 is transported and placed onto the sheet support surface 161 of the protective member forming stage 16. Sheet transport section The system includes a sheet transport mechanism 17. The sheet transport mechanism 17 comprises a sheet supply unit 171 that supports a rolled sheet 30, an arm 172 that is movable in the X-axis direction, and a clamp unit 173 attached to the side of the arm 172. In the sheet transport mechanism 17, the rolled sheet 30 supported by the sheet supply unit 171 is held by the clamp unit 173, and the sheet 30 is placed on the sheet support surface 161 of the protective member forming stage 16 by moving the arm 172 in the X-axis direction and pulling the sheet 30.

[0024] The sheet 30 is made of a light-transmitting material. For example, a film made of polyethylene terephthalate can be used as the sheet 30. However, a sheet 30 made of a material other than this may also be used.

[0025] Multiple suction holes (not shown) are formed in the sheet support surface 161 of the protective member forming stage 16. The suction holes are connected to a suction source 162 (see Figure 2). By operating the suction source 162 and applying suction force to the suction holes, the sheet 30 placed on the sheet support surface 161 is held in place by suction to the sheet support surface 161.

[0026] Near the protective member forming stage 16, a resin supply mechanism 18 is provided to supply a predetermined amount of liquid resin 31 to the upper surface of the sheet 30 on the sheet support surface 161. The resin supply mechanism 18 includes a dispenser 181 connected to a tank 184 provided in the base 15, and a resin supply nozzle 183 to which a connecting pipe 182 extending from the dispenser 181 is connected. The resin supply nozzle 183 is rotatable about an axis oriented in the Z-axis direction, and can be positioned above the protective member forming stage 16 or retracted from above the protective member forming stage 16.

[0027] Liquid resin 31 stored in tank 184 is supplied by dispenser 181 via connecting pipe 182, and the liquid resin 31 is dripped downward from resin supply nozzle 183. The amount of liquid resin 31 supplied from resin supply nozzle 183 can be adjusted by dispenser 181.

[0028] The liquid resin 31 has the property of hardening in response to external stimuli. In this embodiment, an ultraviolet-curing resin that hardens upon irradiation with ultraviolet light is used.

[0029] A column 19 is provided on the left side of the protective member formation stage 16 in the X-axis direction, projecting upward from the base 15. The column 19 is provided with a lifting mechanism 21 that moves the wafer holding section 20 in the Z-axis direction to move it closer to and further away from the protective member formation stage 16. The lifting mechanism 21 includes a pair of guide rails 211 extending in the Z-axis direction, a lifting table 212 supported so as to be movable in the Z-axis direction relative to the pair of guide rails 211, and a ball screw 213 (see Figure 2) extending in the Z-axis direction and screwed into a threaded section 215 (see Figure 2) of the lifting table 212. When the ball screw 213 is rotated by the driving force of the motor 214, the lifting table 212 moves in the Z-axis direction along the pair of guide rails 211. When the ball screw 213 is rotated in a first direction, the lifting table 212 moves downward, and when the ball screw 213 is rotated in a second direction, the lifting table 212 moves upward.

[0030] The wafer holder 20 is supported by a lifting table 212, and the wafer holder 20 moves in the Z-axis direction in conjunction with the lifting table 212. The wafer holder 20 includes a disc-shaped holding table 201. As shown in Figures 2, 5 to 7, a disc-shaped porous member 202 is provided on the lower surface of the holding table 201. The lower surface of the porous member 202 is the wafer holding surface 203 located above the protective member forming stage 16. The wafer holding surface 203 is substantially parallel to the sheet support surface 161 of the protective member forming stage 16.

[0031] As shown in Figure 2, the porous member 202 is connected to the suction source 205 via the suction passage 204. By operating the suction source 205 and applying suction force to the porous member 202, the upper surface Wa of the wafer W can be held by the wafer holding surface 203 through suction.

[0032] With the upper surface Wa of the wafer W held by the wafer holding surface 203 of the wafer holding section 20 (Figure 2), when the wafer holding section 20 is lowered by the lifting mechanism 21, the lower surface Wb of the wafer W comes into contact with the liquid resin 31 supplied onto the sheet 30, and the liquid resin 31 is spread out by the force of lowering the wafer W.

[0033] The wafer holding unit 20 is equipped with a load detection unit 22. Multiple load sensors 221 are provided at different positions on the upper surface of the holding table 201, and these load sensors 221 constitute the load detection unit 22 (Figure 5). The load detection unit 22 can detect the vertical load (in the Z-axis direction) applied to the lower surface Wb of the wafer W based on the output of the multiple load sensors 221, and determines the spreading state of the liquid resin 31.

[0034] A curing mechanism 23 is provided at the bottom of the protective member forming stage 16 to cure the liquid resin 31 that has been dropped onto the sheet 30 on the sheet support surface 161 by applying external stimuli. The curing mechanism 23 is equipped with a plurality of ultraviolet irradiation units 231 capable of emitting ultraviolet UV (Figure 7), and cures the liquid resin 31 by irradiating it with ultraviolet UV through the light-transmitting protective member forming stage 16 and sheet 30. An LED may be used as the light source for the ultraviolet irradiation unit 231.

[0035] Furthermore, a camera 24 is provided at the bottom of the protective member forming stage 16 to image the direction of the sheet support surface 161. The camera 24 consists of a lens and an image sensor and has an imaging range that allows it to image the entire area of ​​the liquid resin 31 being spread on the sheet 30 on the sheet support surface 161, and the entire lower surface Wb of the wafer W while the liquid resin 31 is being spread, from below the sheet support surface 161.

[0036] As shown in Figure 1, a second transport mechanism 25 is provided on the front side of the base 15 in the Y-axis direction. The second transport mechanism 25 includes a robot hand 252 supported on a base 251, and the base 251 is supported so as to be movable along a pair of guide rails 253 extending in the X-axis direction. The base 251 has a threaded portion (not shown) that screws onto a ball screw 254 extending in the X-axis direction. When the ball screw 254 is rotated by the driving force of the motor, the base 251 moves in the X-axis direction.

[0037] The second transport mechanism 25 transports the wafer W between the temporary storage table 13 and the sheet cutting table 14 and the wafer holding unit 20 by moving the base 251 in the X-axis direction and operating the robot hand 252. More specifically, the second transport mechanism 25 can receive and transport the wafer W from the temporary storage table 13 before the protective member 32 is formed, and hand it over to the holding table 201 of the wafer holding unit 20. In addition, the second transport mechanism 25 can retrieve the wafer W from the holding table 201 of the wafer holding unit 20 after the protective member 32 has been formed, and transport it to the sheet cutting table 14.

[0038] The protective member forming apparatus 1 is centrally controlled by a control unit 40 (Figure 1). The control unit 40 consists of a processor that performs various processes and a memory that stores various parameters and programs. The memory of the control unit 40 stores a program that performs various processes from images captured by the camera 24 (described later) that captures the entire area of ​​the liquid resin 31, as part of the control program for the protective member forming apparatus 1.

[0039] The control unit 40 includes a determination unit 41 as one of its functional blocks. The determination unit 41 determines whether or not the liquid resin 31 contains air bubbles based on the image captured by the camera 24, which captures the entire area of ​​the liquid resin 31.

[0040] It should be noted that the functions of the determination unit 41 are realized by the operation of the processor, memory, etc. that constitute the control unit 40, and this does not mean that the determination unit 41 is composed of independent electronic components. Also, although Figure 1 schematically shows only the connection relationship between the determination unit 41 and the camera 24, the control unit 40 is also connected to each part of the protective member forming apparatus 1 other than the camera 24, enabling the transmission and reception of signals.

[0041] The peeling device 300 is installed adjacent to the protective member forming device 1, or inside the protective member forming device 1. The peeling device 300 peels off the protective member 32, which consists of the cured liquid resin 31 and sheet 30, from the failed wafer W and discards it in a waste bin inside the device.

[0042] The formation of a protective member using the protective member forming apparatus 1 configured as described above will now be explained.

[0043] Figure 3 shows the sheet loading process. In the sheet loading process, the sheet transport mechanism 17 clamps the end of the sheet 30 with the clamp section 173 and moves the arm 172 in the X-axis direction, pulling the sheet 30 out from the sheet supply section 171 and transporting it to the protective member forming stage 16. The pulled-out sheet 30 is cut to a predetermined length. The sheet 30 is placed on the sheet support surface 161 of the protective member forming stage 16, and the suction source 162 operates to apply suction force to the suction holes (not shown) of the sheet support surface 161, thereby holding the sheet 30 in place. As a result, the sheet 30 adheres tightly to the sheet support surface 161. At this stage, the area of ​​the sheet 30 on the sheet support surface 161 is larger than the area of ​​the lower surface Wb of the wafer W.

[0044] Figure 4 shows the liquid resin supply process. In the liquid resin supply process, the resin supply nozzle 183 of the resin supply mechanism 18 is positioned above the sheet 30 which has been placed on the sheet support surface 161 by the previous sheet loading process. Then, the dispenser 181 is controlled to send liquid resin 31 to the resin supply nozzle 183, causing the liquid resin 31 to drip from the resin supply nozzle 183 onto the sheet 30. The resin supply nozzle 183 is positioned above the center of the protective member forming stage 16, and the liquid resin 31 dripped from the resin supply nozzle 183 accumulates near the center of the upper surface of the sheet 30 in an area smaller than the area of ​​the wafer W.

[0045] Based on information such as the size of the wafer W, the control unit 40 causes the resin supply mechanism 18 to supply a predetermined amount of liquid resin 31 to the sheet 30, in an amount sufficient to cover the entire lower surface Wb of the wafer W. Once the predetermined amount of liquid resin 31 has been supplied, the resin supply nozzle 183 is rotated to detach it from above the protective member forming stage 16, thus completing the liquid resin supply process.

[0046] Figure 5 shows the state in which the wafer W is held in the wafer holding section 20 by the wafer holding process. In the wafer holding process, the wafer W, before the protective member 32 is formed, is removed from the cassette C1 in the storage space 111 by the first transport mechanism 12 and transported to the temporary storage table 13. On the temporary storage table 13, the orientation and center of the wafer W are detected by the wafer detection section 131. Once the orientation and center of the wafer W are detected, the wafer W is transported to the wafer holding section 20 by the second transport mechanism 25. In the wafer holding section 20, the suction source 205 is operated to apply suction force to the porous member 202, and the upper surface Wa of the wafer W is sucked onto the wafer holding surface 203 and held in place.

[0047] Furthermore, at least a portion of the wafer holding process may be performed in parallel with (simultaneously with) the sheet loading process and the liquid resin supply process.

[0048] When the wafer W held in the wafer holder 20 is positioned opposite the liquid resin 31 on the sheet 30 (Figure 5), the process proceeds to the spreading step shown in Figure 6. In the spreading step, the motor 214 is operated by the lifting mechanism 21 to lower the lifting table 212 and the wafer holder 20 at a predetermined feed speed.

[0049] As the wafer holding unit 20 descends, the lower surface Wb of the wafer W approaches the protective member forming stage 16 and comes into contact with the liquid resin 31. The liquid resin 31 is then pressed by the lower surface Wb of the wafer W, causing it to spread radially across the wafer W. Before contact with the lower surface Wb of the wafer W, the liquid resin 31 is concentrated near the center of the sheet 30 (see Figure 5), and as it is pressed from the wafer W, the liquid resin 31 spreads toward the outer edge of the wafer W (see Figure 6).

[0050] When determining the state of the liquid resin 31's spread, the load may be detected by the load detection unit 22, or an image captured by the camera 24 may be referred to.

[0051] Once the spreading process is complete and the entire lower surface Wb of the wafer W is covered with the liquid resin 31, the curing process shown in Figure 7 is performed. In the curing process, ultraviolet UV light with an intensity (wavelength) sufficient to cure the liquid resin 31 is irradiated from the ultraviolet irradiation section 231 of the curing mechanism 23 toward the sheet support surface 161. The ultraviolet UV light emitted from the ultraviolet irradiation section 231 passes through the light-transmitting protective member forming stage 16 and sheet 30 to reach the liquid resin 31, curing the liquid resin 31, which is an ultraviolet-curable resin. When the liquid resin 31 is judged to be sufficiently cured, the irradiation of ultraviolet UV light from the curing mechanism 23 is terminated.

[0052] Bubble detection is performed on the liquid resin 31 during the spreading process, the curing process, or at any arbitrary timing. Camera 24 is imaging the underside Wb of the wafer W. Figure 8 is a schematic diagram of the image captured by camera 24.

[0053] Figure 8A is a schematic image of liquid resin spread across the entire underside surface Wb of the wafer W. Figure 8B is a schematic image of an enlarged view of area X in Figure 8A. As shown in Figures 8A and 8B, bubbles Y are present in area X.

[0054] In this embodiment, bubble detection is performed on the liquid resin 31 based on an image of the lower surface Wb of the wafer W when irradiated with ultraviolet light.

[0055] Camera 24 receives light that has been reflected (fluoresced) by the liquid resin 31 when ultraviolet light is irradiated onto it. In the schematic diagrams of the images in Figures 8A and 8B, the colors cannot be distinguished, but an overall bluish-white image is captured.

[0056] Here, bubbles Y in range X do not fluoresce under ultraviolet light and are therefore captured as black pixels. In this embodiment, the image captured by the camera 24 during ultraviolet irradiation is transmitted to the control unit 40. In the control unit 40, the determination unit 41 detects the presence or absence of black pixels in the image and determines whether or not bubbles are present in the liquid resin 31. For example, if there are black pixels in the image, it is determined that there are bubbles in the liquid resin 31.

[0057] In this embodiment, when curing the liquid resin 31, it is possible to detect if air bubbles are present in the liquid resin 31 that has spread across the entire surface of one side of the wafer W. Since the presence or absence of air bubbles is checked immediately after curing the liquid resin 31, it is possible to reform the protective member before grinding, thus preventing the wafer from being wasted.

[0058] Furthermore, as a modification of this embodiment, the determination unit 41 may determine that there are bubbles if the number of black pixels in the captured image is equal to or greater than a preset number.

[0059] Furthermore, as a modification of this embodiment, the determination unit 41 may determine that there are bubbles even if the number of black pixels in the captured image is less than a preset number, as long as the area of ​​adjacent connected black pixels in the captured image is above a certain level.

[0060] Furthermore, as a variation of this embodiment, the color of the pixel to be judged is not limited to black, but may be judged based on other colors, or it may be judged based on a predetermined saturation or brightness setting value.

[0061] If the determination unit 41 determines that the liquid resin 31 contains air bubbles, the wafer W is transported to the peeling device 300 by the first transport mechanism 12 or the second transport mechanism 25 as a wafer W in which the protective member formation has failed. The peeling device 300 peels the protective member 32, which consists of the hardened liquid resin 31 and the sheet 30, from the wafer W and discards it in a waste bin within the device. The wafer W from which the protective member 32 has been peeled off is transported to the protective member forming device 1 and subjected to the protective member formation process again. Preferably, the process to which it is subjected again is, for example, the wafer holding process.

[0062] If it is determined that the liquid resin 31 does not contain air bubbles and the liquid resin 31 hardens, the formation of the protective member 32 is completed.

[0063] The irradiation of ultraviolet UV rays from the ultraviolet irradiation section 231 of the curing mechanism 23 is terminated, and a protective member 32 covering the lower surface Wb of the wafer W is formed by the cured resin (original liquid resin 31) and the sheet 30. The operation of the suction source 162 is also stopped, releasing the suction holding of the sheet 30 to the sheet support surface 161 of the protective member formation stage 16.

[0064] Next, the motor 214 is operated by the lifting mechanism 21 to raise the lifting table 212 and the wafer holding unit 20, and the wafer W, which has the protective member 32 formed on it, is transferred from the wafer holding unit 20 to the robot hand 252 of the second transfer mechanism 25. During this transfer, the communication between the wafer holding surface 203 of the wafer holding unit 20 and the suction source 205 is cut off, releasing the suction holding of the wafer W by the wafer holding unit 20. Specifically, by closing the on / off valve (not shown) provided in the suction passage 204 or stopping the operation of the suction source 205, the suction force is no longer applied to the wafer holding surface 203. Once the suction holding on the wafer holding unit 20 side is released, it becomes possible to transfer the wafer W to the robot hand 252 positioned below the wafer holding unit 20.

[0065] The second transport mechanism 25 transports the wafer W received from the wafer holding unit 20 to the sheet cutting table 14. Using the sheet cutter 141, the excess sheet 30 is cut along the outer shape of the wafer W placed on the sheet cutting table 14.

[0066] Next, the first transport mechanism 12 transports the wafer W from the sheet cutting table 14 to the cassette storage section 11, and places it in the cassette C2 in the storage space 112.

[0067] As described above, the formation of the protective member 32 on the wafer W in the protective member forming apparatus 1 is completed. The wafer W on which the protective member 32 has been formed is then transported to a processing apparatus separate from the protective member forming apparatus 1 for further processing.

[0068] As described above, in the protective member forming apparatus of this embodiment, the camera 24 detects the black pixels of the image captured during ultraviolet irradiation and determines whether or not air bubbles are present in the liquid resin 31. This makes it possible to detect whether or not air bubbles are present in the liquid resin 31 that has spread across the entire surface of one side of the wafer W when the liquid resin 31 is cured.

[0069] Furthermore, the embodiments of the present invention are not limited to the embodiments and modifications described above, and may be modified, substituted, or altered in various ways without departing from the spirit of the technical idea of ​​the present invention. Moreover, if the technical idea of ​​the present invention can be realized in a different way by advances in the art or by other derived arts, it may be implemented by that method. Accordingly, the claims cover all embodiments that may fall within the scope of the technical idea of ​​the present invention. [Industrial applicability]

[0070] As described above, the protective member forming apparatus of the present invention can detect the presence of air bubbles in the liquid resin that has spread across the entire surface of one side of the wafer when the liquid resin is cured. Therefore, it becomes possible to form wafers on which the desired protective member is formed, and this apparatus is particularly useful in the manufacturing field of semiconductors and the like, which includes a process of forming a protective member on one side of a wafer. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0071] 1: Protective member forming apparatus 10: External enclosure 11: Cassette storage compartment 12: First conveying mechanism 13: Temporary Table 14: Sheet cutting table 15: Base 16: Protective member forming stage 17: Sheet transport mechanism 18:Resin supply mechanism 19: Column 20: Wafer holding section 21: Lifting mechanism 22: Load detection unit 23:Curing mechanism 24: Camera 25: Second conveying mechanism 30: Sheet 31: Liquid resin 32: Protective component 40: Control Unit 41:Judgment Department 111: Storage space 112: Storage space 121: Pedestal 122: Robot Hand 123: Guide rail 124: Ball screw 131: Wafer detection unit 141: Sheet cutter 161: Sheet support surface 162 :Suction source 171: Sheet supply unit 172: Arm 173: Clamp part 181: Dispenser 182: Connecting pipe 183: Resin supply nozzle 184: Tank 201: Holding Table 202: Porous material 203: Wafer holding surface 204:Suction path 205 :Suction source 211: Guide rail 212: Height-adjustable table 213: Ball screw 214: Motor 215: Threaded section 221: Load sensor 231: UV irradiation area 251: Pedestal 252: Robot Hand 253: Guide rail 254: Ball screw 300: Peeling device C1: Cassette C2: Cassette UV: Ultraviolet light W: wafer Wa: Top surface Wb:Bottom surface X: Range Y: Bubble

Claims

1. A protective member forming apparatus for forming a protective member consisting of a sheet and a sheet, wherein a sheet with an area larger than one side of the wafer is brought relatively close to the wafer, and an ultraviolet-curable liquid resin is spread over the entire surface of one side of the wafer, and then cured by irradiating the resin with ultraviolet light, the apparatus comprises: A protective member forming stage that supports a sheet on a sheet support surface formed of a material that transmits ultraviolet light, The protective member forming stage includes a sheet transport unit for transporting sheets to the sheet support surface, A resin supply nozzle for supplying liquid resin to the sheet supported on the sheet support surface of the protective member forming stage, An ultraviolet irradiation unit is disposed inside the protective member forming stage and irradiates the liquid resin with ultraviolet light through the sheet supported on the sheet support surface to cure it, A camera is disposed inside the protective member forming stage, which receives the reflected light from the liquid resin when ultraviolet light is reflected by the liquid resin, and images the entire liquid resin to acquire a bluish-white image. The camera has a determination unit that determines if there are air bubbles if there are black pixels in the image captured by the camera of the entire liquid resin, A protective member forming apparatus comprising:

2. The protective member forming apparatus according to Claim 1, wherein the determination unit determines that there are air bubbles when the number of black pixels is equal to or greater than a preset number.

3. The protective member forming apparatus according to Claim 1, wherein the determination unit determines that there is an air bubble when the area of ​​adjacent connected black pixels is equal to or greater than a preset area.

4. The protective member forming apparatus according to claim 1, comprising a peeling device for peeling off the protective member, wherein the liquid resin determined by the determination unit to contain air bubbles is cured to form a protective member, and after peeling off the protective member formed on the wafer with the peeling device, the protective member is formed again.

Images