How to clean a tape application machine

Abstract

To provide a cleaning method of a taping machine that can suppress foreign matter such as cutting chips from adhering to a mounting table.SOLUTION: A cleaning method of taping machine includes a tape application step 303 of applying an adhesive tape to a wafer placed on a mounting surface of a mounting table using a tape application roller, a tape cutting step 304 of cutting the adhesive tape along the outer edge of the wafer using a tape cutter after the tape application step 303, and a foreign matter removal step 302 of applying the adhesive tape to the mounting surface using the tape application roller to remove foreign matter attached to the placement surface before or after the tape application step 303 and the tape cutting step 304.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a method for cleaning a tape applicator.

Background Art

[0002] When grinding a semiconductor wafer to its finished thickness using a grinding device, a protective tape is adhered to the surface of the semiconductor wafer on which the device is formed, and the back side is ground while the protective tape surface side is sucked and held by a holding table.

[0003] When adhering the above-mentioned protective tape to a semiconductor wafer, it is common to use a laminator (see, for example, Patent Document 1). After a protective tape is adhered to a wafer placed on a mounting table with a roller, the protective tape is cut along the outer periphery of the wafer with a cutter, thereby completing the wafer with the protective tape adhered thereto.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] However, in the above-mentioned tape applicator, since the chips of the tape cut by the cutter have adhesiveness, they scatter and adhere to the mounting table. In the above-mentioned tape applicator, by placing a wafer on the mounting table to which the chips adhere, the chips adhere to the wafer, causing a problem of causing grinding defects in the grinding in the next process.

[0006] Therefore, there has been a need for a method of periodically cleaning the mounting surface of the mounting table in the above-mentioned tape applicator.

[0007] The object of the present invention is to provide a cleaning method for a tape application machine that can suppress foreign matter such as chips adhering to the mounting table. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] To solve the above-mentioned problems and achieve the objective, the present invention provides a cleaning method for a tape application machine, comprising: a mounting table having a mounting surface on which a wafer is placed; a tape feeding means on which a roll of adhesive tape is attached; a tape application roller for attaching the adhesive tape to the wafer; a tape cutter for cutting the adhesive tape along the outer circumference of the wafer; and a tape winding means for winding up the adhesive tape that was not attached to the wafer, wherein the cleaning method for a tape application machine is characterized by performing: a tape application step of attaching the adhesive tape to the wafer placed on the mounting surface using the tape application roller; a tape cutting step of cutting the adhesive tape along the outer circumference of the wafer with the tape cutter after the tape application step; and a foreign matter removal step of attaching the adhesive tape to the mounting surface with the tape application roller and removing foreign matter adhering to the mounting surface, either before or after the tape application step and the tape cutting step.

[0009] In the cleaning method for the tape application machine, the mounting surface of the mounting table may be covered with resin. [Effects of the Invention]

[0010] The present invention has the effect of suppressing foreign matter such as chips adhering to the mounting table. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0011] [Figure 1] Figure 1 is a schematic perspective view showing the general configuration of a tape application machine that implements the cleaning method for the tape application machine according to Embodiment 1. [Figure 2] Figure 2 is a schematic side view showing the general configuration of the tape application machine shown in Figure 1. [Figure 3]Figure 3 is a perspective view of a wafer to which adhesive tape is applied by the tape application machine shown in Figure 1. [Figure 4] Figure 4 is a flowchart showing the flow of the cleaning method for the tape application machine according to Embodiment 1. [Figure 5] Figure 5 is a schematic side view showing the foreign matter removal step in the manufacturing method of the tape application machine shown in Figure 4. [Figure 6] Figure 6 is a schematic side view showing the tape application step of the manufacturing method of the tape application machine shown in Figure 4. [Figure 7] Figure 7 is a schematic side view showing the tape cutting step of the manufacturing method of the tape application machine shown in Figure 4. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0012] Embodiments for carrying out the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. The present invention is not limited to the contents described in the following embodiments. Furthermore, the components described below include those that can be easily imagined by those skilled in the art, and those that are substantially the same. In addition, the components described below can be combined as appropriate. Furthermore, various omissions, substitutions, or modifications of the components can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

[0013] [Embodiment 1] A cleaning method for a tape application machine according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Figure 1 is a schematic perspective view showing the general configuration of a tape application machine on which the cleaning method for a tape application machine according to Embodiment 1 is implemented. Figure 2 is a schematic side view showing the general configuration of the tape application machine shown in Figure 1. Figure 3 is a perspective view of a wafer on which adhesive tape is applied by the tape application machine shown in Figure 1. Figure 4 is a flowchart showing the flow of the cleaning method for a tape application machine according to Embodiment 1.

[0014] (wafer) The cleaning method for the tape application machine according to Embodiment 1 is performed using the tape application machine 1 shown in Figures 1 and 2. The tape application machine 1 shown in Figures 1 and 2 is a device for applying adhesive tape 210 to the wafer 200 shown in Figure 3. In Embodiment 1, the wafer 200 to which the adhesive tape 210 is applied by the tape application machine 1 is a disc-shaped semiconductor wafer or optical device wafer with a substrate of silicon, sapphire, or gallium arsenide, etc. As shown in Figure 3, the wafer 200 has devices 203 formed in each region demarcated by a plurality of division lines 202 on the surface 201 of the substrate.

[0015] Device 203 is, for example, an integrated circuit such as an IC (Integrated Circuit) or LSI (Large Scale Integration), an image sensor such as a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) or CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor), or various types of memory (semiconductor memory device). In Embodiment 1, the wafer 200 has adhesive tape 210 attached to its surface 201, its back surface 204 is ground down to a predetermined finish thickness, and then it is divided into individual devices 203 along the division line 202.

[0016] The adhesive tape 210 attached to the wafer 200 comprises a non-adhesive base layer made of synthetic resin and an adhesive layer laminated on the base layer. The adhesive tape 210 is formed as a long sheet-like member and wound at least once around the outer circumference of a core (not shown) with the adhesive layer located on the outer circumference, to form a roll, which constitutes the tape roll 211 shown in Figures 1 and 2. In Embodiment 1, both the length and width of the adhesive tape 210 are longer than the outer diameter of the wafer 200.

[0017] (Tape application machine) The tape applicator 1 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 is a device that attaches the adhesive tape 210 of the tape roll 211 to the surface 201 of the wafer 200 and cuts the adhesive tape 210 attached to the surface 201 of the wafer 200 along the outer edge of the wafer 200.

[0018] In addition, in Embodiment 1, the tape applicator 1 attaches the adhesive tape 210 to the surface 201 of the wafer 200. However, in the present invention, the adhesive tape 210 may be attached to the back surface 204 of the wafer 200. Further, in Embodiment 1, the tape applicator 1 may attach the adhesive tape 210 to an annular frame having an inner diameter larger than the outer diameter of the wafer 200 together with the wafer 200.

[0019] As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the tape applicator 1 includes a mounting table 10, a tape feed roller 20 as tape feeding means, a tape sticking roller 30, a tape cutter 40 (shown only in FIG. 2), a tape winding roller 50 as tape winding means, a plurality of guide rollers 60, and a control unit 100.

[0020] The mounting table 10 holds the wafer 200. The mounting table 10 has a flat mounting surface 11 along the horizontal direction on which the back surface 204 of the wafer 200 is mounted. The mounting surface 11 is made of a porous material such as porous ceramics and is connected to a suction source (not shown). The mounting table 10 suction-holds the wafer 200 placed on the mounting surface 11 by suction with a suction source (not shown).

[0021] Also, in Embodiment 1, the mounting surface 11 of the mounting table 10 is coated with a non-sticky resin while leaving the irregularities of a porous material such as porous ceramics. That is, in Embodiment 1, the mounting surface 11 of the mounting table 10 is coated with a so-called Tosical (registered trademark).

[0022] The tape feeding roller 20 has a cylindrical shape and is inserted into a core onto which the sheet roll 10, i.e., the roll-shaped adhesive tape 210, is mounted. The tape feeding roller 20 is supported so as to be rotatable around its axis. By rotating around its axis, the tape feeding roller 20 feeds the adhesive tape 210 onto the mounting surface 11 of the mounting table 10, one end at a time.

[0023] The tape application roller 30 applies pressure to the back surface of the wafer 200, which is held in place by suction on the mounting surface 11 of the mounting table 10, by pressing the adhesive tape 210, which has been fed from the tape feed roller 20, onto the mounting surface 11 of the mounting table 10. The tape application roller 30 is positioned above the mounting surface 11 of the mounting table 10. The tape application roller 30 is formed in a cylindrical shape with its axis parallel to the axis of the tape feed roller 20, and is supported so as to be rotatable around its axis.

[0024] The tape application roller 30 is mounted by a moving mechanism (not shown) so as to be able to move up and down in a direction perpendicular to the mounting surface 11 of the mounting table 10, and is mounted so as to be able to move along the mounting surface 11 in a direction perpendicular to the axis between a position shown by a solid line on one end of the mounting table 10 and a position shown by a dashed line on the other end of the mounting table 10. The tape application roller 30 moves along the mounting surface 11 in a lowered state by the moving mechanism, between the position on one end of the mounting table 10 and the position on the other end, thereby applying the adhesive tape 210 to the surface 201 of the wafer 200 held on the mounting table 10.

[0025] The tape cutter 40 cuts the adhesive tape 210 along the outer edge of the wafer 200 after the tape application roller 30 has applied the adhesive tape 210 to the wafer 200. The tape cutter 40 is positioned above the mounting surface 11 of the mounting table 10.

[0026] In Embodiment 1, the tape cutter 40 comprises a cutter blade 41 and a cutter blade moving mechanism 42. The cutter blade 41 has a cutting edge at its lower end that is longer than the thickness of the adhesive tape 210 that is fed onto the mounting surface 11 of the mounting table 10. The cutting edge of the cutter blade 41 faces the outer edge of the wafer 200 that is held in place by suction on the mounting surface 11 of the mounting table 10.

[0027] The cutter blade moving mechanism 42 moves the cutter blade 41 up and down in a direction perpendicular to the mounting surface 11 of the mounting table 10, and also moves the cutter blade 41 along the outer edge of the wafer 200. The cutter blade moving mechanism 42 comprises a base 43 positioned on the center of the mounting surface 11 of the mounting table 10 and raised and lowered by a lifting mechanism (not shown), a rotating shaft 44 rotatably mounted on the base 43 and positioned on the center of the mounting surface 11 of the mounting table 10 and rotated on the axis by a drive device such as a motor (not shown), and an arm 45 extending from the rotating shaft 44 parallel to the mounting surface 11 of the mounting table 10 toward the outer edge of the mounting table 10 and supporting the cutter blade 41 at its tip.

[0028] The tape cutter 40 lowers the base 43, i.e., the cutter blade 41, by the lifting mechanism of the cutter blade moving mechanism 42, causing the cutting edge of the cutter blade 41 to cut the adhesive tape 210 attached to the wafer 200 to the outside of the outer edge of the wafer 200. The tape cutter 40 rotates the arm 45, i.e., the cutter blade 41, around the axis of the rotation shaft 44 by a drive device such as a motor, and the cutter blade 41 cuts the adhesive tape 210 along the outer edge of the wafer 200.

[0029] The tape winding roller 50 winds up the excess portion of the adhesive tape 210 (corresponding to the portion of the adhesive tape 210 that was not attached to the wafer 200) after the portion attached to the wafer 200 has been cut by the tape cutter 40. The excess portion of the adhesive tape 210 is the part on the outer periphery of the wafer 200 that is cut by the cutter blade 41.

[0030] In Embodiment 1, the tape winding roller 50 is positioned horizontally, between the tape feed roller 20 and the mounting table 10. The tape winding roller 50 is formed in a cylindrical shape with its axis parallel to the axes of the tape feed roller 20 and the tape application roller 30, and is rotated around its axis by a drive device such as a motor (not shown), thereby winding up the excess portion of the adhesive tape 210 onto its outer surface. By winding up the excess portion of the adhesive tape 210 onto its outer surface, the tape winding roller 50 pulls the adhesive tape 210 from the tape roll 211 supported by the tape feed roller 20 onto the mounting surface 11 of the mounting table 10.

[0031] In Embodiment 1, two guide rollers 60 are provided, positioned between the edge of the mounting table 10 and the tape winding roller 50. They sandwich the excess portion of the adhesive tape 210 between them, transporting the adhesive tape 210 from the tape feed roller 20 to the tape winding roller 50, and applying tension to the adhesive tape 210 to prevent slack. The guide rollers 60 are formed in a cylindrical shape with their axes parallel to the axes of the tape feed roller 20 and the tape winding roller 50, and are rotatable around their axes.

[0032] The control unit 100 controls each of the above-described components of the tape application machine 1 to cause the tape application machine 1 to perform the application operation of attaching adhesive tape 210 to the wafer 200. The control unit 100 is a computer having an arithmetic processing unit with a microprocessor such as a CPU (central processing unit), a storage device with memory such as ROM (read-only memory) or RAM (random access memory), and an input / output interface device. The arithmetic processing unit of the control unit 100 performs arithmetic processing according to the computer program stored in the storage device and outputs control signals for controlling the tape application machine 1 to each of the above-described units of the tape application machine 1 via the input / output interface device.

[0033] Furthermore, the control unit 100 is connected to a display unit that displays the status of the adhesive operation and images, an input unit used by the operator to input information to the control unit 100 of the tape application machine 1, and a notification unit that notifies the operator by emitting at least one of sound and light.

[0034] (How to clean a tape application machine) Next, a cleaning method for the tape application machine according to Embodiment 1 will be described. The cleaning method for the tape application machine according to Embodiment 1 is also the application operation in which the tape application machine 1 with the configuration described above applies adhesive tape 210 to the surface 201 of the wafer 200. As shown in Figure 4, the cleaning method for the tape application machine according to Embodiment 1 involves performing a foreign matter removal step 302, a tape application step 303, and a tape cutting step 304.

[0035] The tape application machine 1 receives the application conditions input by the operator, etc., from the control unit 100. When the control unit 100 receives an instruction from the operator, etc., to start the application operation, it starts the application operation. Once the application operation has started, the tape application machine 1 determines whether the timing is predetermined (step 301). The predetermined timing is the timing for removing foreign matter such as scraps of adhesive tape 210 from the mounting surface 11 of the mounting table 10. For example, it is each time the adhesive tape 210 is applied to a predetermined number of wafers 200, before the tape application step 303 is performed, after the tape cutting step 304 is performed, etc. If the control unit 100 determines that the timing is predetermined (step 301: Yes), the tape application machine 1 performs the foreign matter removal step 302.

[0036] (Foreign object removal step) Figure 5 is a schematic side view showing the foreign matter removal step of the manufacturing method of the tape application machine shown in Figure 4. The foreign matter removal step 302 is a step in which the adhesive tape 210 is applied to the mounting surface 11 with the tape application roller 30 before the tape application step 303 or after the tape cutting step 304, and foreign matter adhering to the mounting surface 11 is removed.

[0037] In Embodiment 1, in the foreign matter removal step 302, the tape application machine 1, with no wafer 200 placed on the mounting surface 11 of the mounting table 10, feeds the adhesive tape 210 of the tape roll 211 from the tape feed roller 20 onto the mounting surface 11 of the mounting table 10, bringing the adhesive layer of the adhesive tape 210 into contact with the mounting surface 11 of the mounting table 10. In Embodiment 1, in the foreign matter removal step 302, as shown in Figure 5, the tape application machine 1 lowers the tape application roller 30 to press the adhesive layer of the adhesive tape 210 against the mounting surface 11 of the mounting table 10, and moves the tape application roller 30 along the mounting surface 11 from the position shown by the solid line in Figure 5 to the position shown by the dashed line. As a result, any foreign matter attached to the mounting surface 11 adheres to the adhesive layer of the adhesive tape 210.

[0038] In Embodiment 1, in the foreign matter removal step 302, the tape application machine 1 raises the tape application roller 30. As a result, since the mounting surface 11 is covered with the aforementioned resin, the adhesive tape 210 peels off from the mounting surface 11, and any foreign matter attached to the adhesive tape 210 is removed from the mounting surface 11. In Embodiment 1, in the foreign matter removal step 302, the tape application machine 1 winds an adhesive tape 210 with a length greater than or equal to the outer diameter of a single wafer 200 onto the tape winding roller 50, and moves the portion of the adhesive tape 210 that is pressed against the mounting surface 11 away from the mounting surface 11.

[0039] (Tape application step) Figure 6 is a schematic side view showing the tape application step of the manufacturing method of the tape application machine shown in Figure 4. The tape application step 303 is the step of applying adhesive tape 210 to the wafer 200 placed on the mounting surface 11 using the tape application roller 30. In Embodiment 1, the tape application machine 1 performs the tape application step 303 after the control unit 100 determines that it is not the predetermined timing (step 301: No), or after performing the foreign matter removal step 302. In the tape application step 303, the tape application machine 1 places the back surface 204 of the wafer 200 on the mounting surface 11 of the mounting table 10 using a transport unit (not shown), and holds the back surface 204 of the wafer 200 to the mounting surface 11 by suction.

[0040] In Embodiment 1, in the tape application step 303, as shown in Figure 6, the tape application machine 1 lowers the tape application roller 30 to press the adhesive layer of the adhesive tape 210 against the surface 201 of the wafer 200 held on the mounting surface 11 of the mounting table 10, and moves the tape application roller 30 along the mounting surface 11 from the position shown by the solid line in Figure 6 to the position shown by the dashed line to attach the adhesive tape 210 to the surface 201 of the wafer 200. The tape application machine 1 raises the tape application roller 30 to retract the tape application roller 30 from the mounting surface 11.

[0041] (Tape cutting step) Figure 7 is a schematic side view showing the tape cutting step of the manufacturing method of the tape application machine shown in Figure 4. The tape cutting step 304 is a step in which the adhesive tape 210 is cut along the outer edge of the wafer 200 with a tape cutter 40 after the tape application step 303.

[0042] In Embodiment 1, in the tape cutting step 304, the tape application machine 1 lowers the cutter blade 41 as shown in Figure 7, causing the cutter blade 41 to cut into the outside of the outer edge of the wafer 200 of the adhesive tape 210. In Embodiment 1, in the tape cutting step 304, the tape application machine 1 rotates the cutter blade 41 by more than 360 degrees around the axis of the rotation axis 44 using the cutter blade moving mechanism 42, cutting the adhesive tape 210 along the outer edge of the wafer 200 while causing the cutting edge of the cutter blade 41 to cut into the outside of the outer edge of the wafer 200 of the adhesive tape 210.

[0043] In Embodiment 1, in the tape cutting step 304, the tape application machine 1 cuts the adhesive tape 210, then raises the tape cutter 40, and then uses the tape winding roller 50 to wind up the amount of adhesive tape 210 to be applied to one wafer 200, moving the adhesive tape 210 by the length of one wafer 200. In Embodiment 1, in the tape cutting step 304, the tape application machine 1 releases the suction holding of the mounting surface 11 of the mounting table 10, and the wafer 200 on the mounting surface 11 is discharged by the transport unit, thus ending the adhesive tape application operation, i.e., the cleaning method of the tape application machine according to Embodiment 1.

[0044] The cleaning method for the tape application machine according to Embodiment 1 described above involves, before and after the tape application step 303, in the foreign matter removal step 302, pressing the adhesive tape 210 to be applied to the wafer 200 against the mounting surface 11 of the mounting table 10 to remove any foreign matter adhering to the mounting table 10.

[0045] As a result, the cleaning method for the tape application machine according to Embodiment 1 has the effect of enabling easy cleaning of the mounting surface 11 of the mounting table 10 and suppressing foreign matter such as chips adhering to the mounting table 10.

[0046] It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above. That is, it can be implemented with various modifications without departing from the core principles of the present invention. In addition, in the present invention, the foreign matter removal step 302 may be performed after the tape cutting step 304. Furthermore, in the present invention, the foreign matter removal step 302 may be performed before the tape application step 303 and after the tape cutting step 304. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0047] 1 Tape application machine 10 Mounting Table 11 Mounting surface 20 Tape feed roller (tape feed mechanism) 30 Tape application rollers 40 Tape cutter 50 Tape winding roller (tape winding mechanism) 200 wafers 210 Adhesive Tape 302 Foreign object removal step 303 Tape application step 304 Tape cutting step

Claims

1. A mounting table having a mounting surface on which wafers are placed, A tape feeding mechanism into which a roll of adhesive tape is attached, A tape application roller for attaching the adhesive tape to the wafer, A tape cutter for cutting the adhesive tape along the outer circumference of the wafer, A tape winding means for winding up the adhesive tape that was not attached to the wafer, In a tape application machine equipped with, A tape application step in which the adhesive tape is applied to the wafer placed on the mounting surface using the tape application roller, A tape cutting step is performed after the tape application step, in which the adhesive tape is cut along the outer circumference of the wafer with the tape cutter, Before the tape application step or after the tape cutting step, a foreign matter removal step is performed in which the adhesive tape is applied to the mounting surface with the tape application roller to remove any foreign matter adhering to the mounting surface. A method for cleaning a tape application machine, characterized by performing the following:

2. The method for cleaning a tape application machine according to claim 1, characterized in that the mounting surface of the mounting table is covered with resin.

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