Substrate processing method and substrate processing system

Abstract

This substrate processing method for processing a substrate includes: filling a gap between an outer peripheral part of a first substrate and an outer peripheral part of a second substrate with a filler in a polymerized substrate in which the first substrate and the second substrate are bonded to each other; and grinding a grinding region from the rear surface side of the first substrate in the polymerized substrate. A laminated film is formed on the front surface of the first substrate, and the laminated film formed in the grinding region of the first substrate is removed.

Description

Substrate Processing Method and Substrate Processing System

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a substrate processing method and a substrate processing system.

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a method for manufacturing a semiconductor device. In this method for manufacturing a semiconductor device, a first semiconductor substrate and a second semiconductor substrate are bonded together to form a laminate. A filler is embedded in a gap provided between the outer peripheral portion of the first semiconductor substrate and the outer peripheral portion of the second semiconductor substrate. The second semiconductor substrate is thinned.

[0003] Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2022-21688

[0004] The technology according to the present disclosure appropriately thins the first substrate in a polymer substrate in which the first substrate and the second substrate are joined.

[0005] One aspect of the present disclosure is a substrate processing method for processing a substrate, including filling a filler into a gap between the outer peripheral portion of a first substrate and the outer peripheral portion of a second substrate in a polymer substrate in which the first substrate and the second substrate are joined, and grinding a grinding region from the back side of the first substrate in the polymer substrate, wherein a laminated film is formed on the surface of the first substrate and the laminated film formed in the grinding region of the first substrate is removed.

[0006] According to the present disclosure, the first substrate can be appropriately thinned in a polymer substrate in which the first substrate and the second substrate are joined.

[0007] Explanatory diagram of a polymer wafer to be processed. Plan view showing a schematic configuration of a wafer processing system. Side view showing a schematic configuration of a filling device. Side view showing a schematic configuration of a film removing device. Side view showing a schematic configuration of a grinding device. Explanatory diagram showing main steps of wafer processing. Explanatory diagram showing a state of inspecting a filler in an inspection device.

[0008] Hereinafter, a wafer processing system as a substrate processing system according to the present embodiment and a wafer processing method as a substrate processing method will be described with reference to the drawings. In the present specification and drawings, elements having substantially the same functional configuration are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description is omitted.

[0009] In the wafer processing system 1 described later according to this embodiment, as shown in Figure 1, a first wafer W as a first substrate and a second wafer S as a second substrate are joined together to form a polymerized wafer T as a polymerized substrate, and further processing is performed on the polymerized wafer T. Hereinafter, in the first wafer W, the side that is joined to the second wafer S is referred to as the surface Wa, and the side opposite to the surface Wa is referred to as the back surface Wb. Similarly, in the second wafer S, the side that is joined to the first wafer W is referred to as the surface Sa, and the side opposite to the surface Sa is referred to as the back surface Sb.

[0010] The first wafer W is a semiconductor wafer, such as a silicon substrate, and at least one film is laminated on the surface Wa side. Hereinafter, the film formed on the surface Wa side will be referred to as the "first laminated film Mw". In this embodiment, the first laminated film Mw includes a first device layer Dw and a first bonding film Fw. The first device layer Dw includes a plurality of devices. For the first bonding film Fw, for example, an oxide film (THOX film, SiO2 film, TEOS film), a SiC film, a SiCN film, or an adhesive can be used. The first wafer W is then bonded to the second wafer S via the first bonding film Fw. Furthermore, the bevel portion of the first wafer W is chamfered, and the cross-section of the bevel portion becomes thinner towards its tip.

[0011] The second wafer S has a configuration similar to that of the first wafer W, for example. That is, a second device layer Ds and a second bonding film Fs are formed as a second laminated film Ms on the surface Sa side, and the bevel portion is chamfered. Note that the second wafer S does not have to be a device wafer on which the second device layer Ds is formed; for example, it may be a support wafer that supports the first wafer W. In this case, the second wafer S functions as a protective material that protects the first device layer Dw of the first wafer W.

[0012] In Figure 1, an example is shown where a device layer and a bonding layer are formed as a laminated film on the surfaces of the first wafer W and the second wafer S. However, the type and number of layers of the laminated film are not limited to this.

[0013] As shown in Figure 2, the wafer processing system 1 has a configuration in which an loading / unloading station 2 and a processing station 3 are integrally connected. At the loading / unloading station 2, for example, a hoop F capable of accommodating multiple first wafers W, multiple second wafers S, or multiple polymerized wafers T is loaded and unloaded to and from the outside. The processing station 3 is equipped with various processing devices for performing desired processing on the first wafers W, second wafers S, or polymerized wafers T.

[0014] The loading / unloading station 2 is equipped with a hoop mounting table 10 on which multiple hoops F, for example, three hoops F, are placed. A wafer transport device 20 is also provided on the X-axis positive side of the hoop mounting table 10. The wafer transport device 20 moves along a transport path 21 extending in the Y-axis direction and is configured to transport a first wafer W, a second wafer S, or a polymerized wafer T between the hoops F on the hoop mounting table 10 and the transition stage 30 described later.

[0015] The loading / unloading station 2 is equipped with a transition stage 30 on the positive X-axis side of the wafer transport device 20. The transition stage 30 temporarily stores the polymerized wafers T for transfer to and from the processing station 3.

[0016] The processing station 3 is equipped with a wafer transport device 40, a filling device 50, a heat treatment device 60, a cleaning device 70, an etching device 80, a film removal device 90, a bonding device 100, and a grinding device 110. The wafer transport device 40 is located on the positive X-axis side of the transition stage 30. The filling device 50, heat treatment device 60, cleaning device 70, and etching device 80 are located on the positive Y-axis side of the wafer transport device 40. The film removal device 90 and bonding device 100 are located on the negative Y-axis side of the wafer transport device 40. The grinding device 110 is located on the positive X-axis side of the wafer transport device 40. Note that the number and arrangement of the filling device 50, heat treatment device 60, cleaning device 70, etching device 80, film removal device 90, bonding device 100, and grinding device 110 are not limited to this embodiment and can be determined arbitrarily.

[0017] The wafer transport device 40 is configured to move freely along a transport path 41 extending in the X-axis direction, and is capable of transporting a first wafer W, a second wafer S, or a polymerized wafer T to the transition stage 30, filling device 50, heat treatment device 60, cleaning device 70, etching device 80, film removal device 90, bonding device 100, and grinding device 110.

[0018] The filling device 50 fills the gap between the outer periphery of the first wafer W and the outer periphery of the second wafer S with filler material G (see Figure 6(c)). The configuration of the filling device 50 is arbitrary. As an example, as shown in Figure 3, the filling device 50 has a chuck 51 as a holding part for holding the polymerized wafer T, a rotating mechanism (rotor) 52 for rotating the chuck 51 around a vertical axis, and an injector 53 for injecting filler material G into the gap between the outer periphery of the wafers W and S held by the chuck 51. In the filling device 50, while rotating the chuck 51 holding the polymerized wafer T, filler material G is injected from the injector 53 into the gap between the outer periphery of the wafers W and S. As a result, filler material G is injected into the gap between the outer periphery of the wafers W and S around the entire circumference of the polymerized wafer T, and the unbonded region A (see Figure 6(b)) in the gap between the outer periphery of the wafers W and S is filled with filler material G. Note that a nozzle for filling the filler material G may be used instead of the injector 53.

[0019] The material of the filler G is arbitrary, but for example, a fluid liquid glass-based material can be used as such filler G.

[0020] The heat treatment apparatus 60 heats the filler material G filled in the unjoined region A to a desired temperature and bakes the filler material G. In this embodiment, the filler material G is baked in two stages, as will be described later. For example, the filler material G is baked at a first temperature to partially harden it, and then the filler material G is baked at a second temperature higher than the first temperature to completely harden it.

[0021] The method for curing the filler G is appropriately selected depending on the material of the filler G. For example, the filler G may be dried. Alternatively, if the filler G is cured by light, for example ultraviolet light, a light irradiation device is provided instead of the heat treatment device 60. The filler G is then irradiated with light using the light irradiation device to cure it.

[0022] The cleaning apparatus 70 performs a cleaning process on the first wafer W and the second wafer S after the filler material G has been filled into the unbonded region A in the filling apparatus 50, or after the filler material G has been fired in the heat treatment apparatus 60, to remove particles on these wafers W and S, and filler material G that has adhered to unnecessary areas. The cleaning method can be arbitrarily selected. For example, the filler material G may be removed by supplying an organic solvent to the filler material G, or the filler material G may be removed by an abrasive film.

[0023] Furthermore, the cleaning device 70 performs a cleaning process on the first wafer W and the second wafer S after grinding by the grinding device 110 to remove particles from these wafers W and S. The method for cleaning these first wafer W and second wafer S can be arbitrarily selected.

[0024] In this embodiment, a single cleaning apparatus 70 performs cleaning of the first wafer W and the second wafer S after filling with the filler material G, and cleaning of the first wafer W and the second wafer S after grinding. However, these cleaning processes may be performed by separate cleaning apparatuses.

[0025] The etching apparatus 80 etches the back surface Wb of the first wafer W after grinding by the grinding apparatus 110. The etching method can be arbitrarily selected, but for example, wet etching is used.

[0026] The film removal device 90 removes the first laminated film Mw formed in at least the grinding region Q of the first wafer W (see Figure 6(a)). The grinding region Q is the region where the grinding device 110 grinds the back surface Wb of the first wafer W, and is the region on the back surface Wb side from the grinding target surface P. That is, the first peripheral laminated film Me removed by the film removal device 90 is a film formed at least on the back surface Wb side from the grinding target surface P, and specifically is the peripheral film of the first laminated film Mw.

[0027] The method for removing the first peripheral multilayer film Me in the film removal device 90 can be arbitrarily selected. For example, the first peripheral multilayer film Me may be removed by wet etching, or by dry etching. Alternatively, the first peripheral multilayer film Me may be removed by polishing. Furthermore, the first peripheral multilayer film Me may be removed by irradiating it with laser light.

[0028] In this embodiment, as an example, the film removal device 90 performs wet etching of the first peripheral laminated film Me. For example, as shown in Figure 4, the film removal device 90 has a chuck 91 as a holding part for holding the first wafer W, and a rotation mechanism (rotor) 92 for rotating the chuck 91 around a vertical axis. The film removal device 90 also has a nozzle 93 for supplying etching solution E to the first peripheral laminated film Me, and a moving mechanism (transporter) 94 for moving the nozzle 93 in the horizontal and vertical directions. The etching solution E is selected from solvents that can remove the first peripheral laminated film Me depending on the type of film contained in the first peripheral laminated film Me. In the film removal device 90, the etching solution E is supplied from the nozzle 93 to the first peripheral laminated film Me while the chuck 91 holding the first wafer W is rotated, and the first peripheral laminated film Me is removed.

[0029] In addition, if the etching apparatus 80 and the film removal apparatus 90 each perform wet etching as in this embodiment, the etching apparatus 80 and the film removal apparatus 90 may be shared.

[0030] The bonding apparatus 100 bonds a first bonding film Fw on a first wafer W and a second bonding film Fs on a second wafer S to form a polymerized wafer T. The configuration of the bonding apparatus 100 is arbitrary, and known bonding apparatuses can be used. As an example, the bonding apparatus 100 includes a surface modification unit, a surface hydrophilization unit, and a bonding unit (bonder unit). In such a bonding apparatus 100, the bonding films Fw and Fs are modified by plasma treatment in the surface modification unit, and then pure water is supplied to the bonding films Fw and Fs in the surface hydrophilization unit to make them hydrophilic. After that, the bonding films Fw and Fs are bonded together in the bonding unit by van der Waals forces and hydrogen bonds (intermolecular forces).

[0031] The grinding apparatus 110 thins the first wafer W by grinding the back surface Wb of the first wafer W. The configuration of the grinding apparatus 110 is arbitrary. As an example, as shown in Figure 5, the grinding apparatus 110 has a chuck 111 as a holding part for holding the polymerized wafer T, a rotating mechanism (rotor) 112 for rotating the chuck 111 around a vertical axis, and a grinding unit 113 for grinding the back surface Wb of the first wafer W held by the chuck 111. The grinding unit 113 is equipped with an annular, rotatable grinding wheel 114, and is configured to be rotatable and vertically movable. In the grinding apparatus 110, the back surface Wb of the first wafer W held by the chuck 111 is ground by rotating the chuck 111 and the grinding wheel 114 respectively while the back surface Wb of the first wafer W is in contact with the grinding wheel 114. In addition, multiple grinding units 113 may be provided, and the back surface Wb of the first wafer W may be ground in stages to thin it.

[0032] The wafer processing system 1 described above is provided with at least one control device 120, as shown in Figure 1. The control device 120 processes computer-executable instructions that cause the wafer processing system 1 to perform the various processes described herein. The control device 120 may be configured to control each element of the wafer processing system 1 to perform the various processes described herein. In one embodiment, some or all of the control device 120 may be included in the wafer processing system 1. The control device 120 may include a processing unit, a storage unit, and a communication interface. The control device 120 is implemented, for example, by a computer. The processing unit may be configured to read a program from the storage unit that provides logic or routines that enable various control operations, and to perform various control operations by executing the read program. This program may be stored in the storage unit in advance, or it may be retrieved via a medium when needed. The retrieved program is stored in the storage unit and read from the storage unit and executed by the processing unit. The medium may be various storage media read by a computer, or it may be a communication line connected to a communication interface. The storage medium may be temporary or non-temporary. The processing unit may be a CPU (Central Processing Unit) and may consist of one or more circuits. The storage unit may include RAM (Random Access Memory), ROM (Read Only Memory), HDD (Hard Disk Drive), SSD (Solid State Drive), or a combination thereof. The communication interface may communicate with the wafer processing system 1 via a communication line such as a LAN (Local Area Network).

[0033] Next, a wafer processing procedure performed using the wafer processing system 1 configured as described above will be explained. In this embodiment, a first laminated film Mw is formed on the surface Wa of the first wafer W, and a second laminated film Ms is formed on the surface Sa of the second wafer S, in a film deposition apparatus (not shown) located outside the wafer processing system 1.

[0034] First, a hoop F containing multiple first wafers W and a hoop F containing multiple second wafers S are placed on the hoop mounting table 10 of the loading / unloading station 2. At this time, the first wafers W are stored with their surface Wa (first laminated film Mw) facing upwards. The second wafers S are stored with their surface Sa (second laminated film Ms) facing upwards.

[0035] Next, the wafer transport device 20 removes the first wafer W from the hoop F and transports it to the transition stage 30. Subsequently, the first wafer W is transported to the film removal device 90 by the wafer transport device 40. In the film removal device 90, as shown in Figure 6(a), etching solution E is supplied to the peripheral edge of the first wafer W to remove the peripheral edge of the first laminated film Mw. In this embodiment, the peripheral edge of the first laminated film Mw that is removed is referred to as the first peripheral laminated film Me.

[0036] In the film removal apparatus 90, the first peripheral laminated film Me to be removed should include at least the first laminated film Mw formed in the grinding region Q of the first wafer W, that is, it should include at least the first laminated film Mw formed on the back surface Wb side from the grinding target surface P. In this embodiment, the outer peripheral edge of the first peripheral laminated film Me is the outer peripheral edge of the first bonding film Fw formed up to the bevel portion of the first wafer W. The inner peripheral edge of the first peripheral laminated film Me is not particularly limited, but for example, it is set radially outward from the outer peripheral edge of the first device layer Dw. In this way, the film removal apparatus 90 removes the peripheral portion of the first bonding film Fw as the first peripheral laminated film Me. Furthermore, it is preferable that the film removal apparatus 90 does not remove at least the bonding surface between the first bonding film Fw and the second bonding film Fs.

[0037] Next, the first wafer W is transported to the bonding apparatus 100 by the wafer transport device 40. In the bonding apparatus 100, the first bonding film Fw of the first wafer W is modified and further hydrophilized. Then, the front and back surfaces of the first wafer W are inverted, and the first wafer W waits with the surface Wa (first laminated film Mw) facing downwards. Note that the inversion of the front and back surfaces of the first wafer W may be performed by an inversion unit (not shown) inside the bonding apparatus 100, or by the wafer transport device 40.

[0038] In parallel with the processing of the first wafer W described above, namely the removal of the first peripheral laminated film Me in the film removal device 90 and the modification and hydrophilization processing in the bonding device 100, the second wafer S in the hoop F is removed by the wafer transport device 20 and transported to the transition stage 30. Subsequently, the second wafer S is transported to the bonding device 100 by the wafer transport device 40. In the bonding device 100, the second bonding film Fs of the second wafer S is modified and further hydrophilized. The second wafer S then waits with its surface Sa (second laminated film Ms) facing upwards.

[0039] Next, in the bonding apparatus 100, with the first wafer W positioned on top and the second wafer S on the bottom as shown in Figure 6(b), the first bonding film Fw and the second bonding film Fs are bonded by van der Waals forces and intermolecular forces to form a polymerized wafer T. At this time, since the first bonding film Fw and the second bonding film Fs have been modified and made hydrophilic, van der Waals forces and intermolecular forces are appropriately generated.

[0040] As shown in Figure 6(b), an unbonded region A is formed on the outer periphery of the polymerized wafer T where the first bonding film Fw and the second bonding film Fs are not bonded. The unbonded region A includes an outer unbonded region A1, which is the gap between the bevel portion of the first wafer W and the bevel portion of the second wafer S, and an inner unbonded region A2 that extends radially inward from the outer unbonded region A1. The bevel portions of the first wafer W and the second wafer S are chamfered, giving them a so-called roll-off shape, and consequently the gap between these bevel portions becomes the unbonded outer unbonded region A1. Furthermore, if the inner periphery end of the first peripheral laminated film Me removed in the first laminated film Mw is radially inward from the bevel portion, the gap radially inward from the bevel portion becomes the unbonded inner unbonded region A2. Furthermore, the inner unbonded region A2 may include unbonded regions resulting from the shapes of the first bonding film Fw and the second bonding film Fs, as well as unbonded regions resulting from the failure of the first bonding film Fw and the second bonding film Fs to bond properly. Note that if the area of ​​the first peripheral laminated film Me removed by the film removal device 90 is small, the inner unbonded region A2 may not exist.

[0041] Next, the polymerized wafer T is conveyed to the filling device 50 by the wafer transfer device 40. In the filling device 50, as shown in FIG. 6(c), the filling material G is filled into the unbonded region A in the gap between the outer peripheral portions of the wafers W and S from the injector 53. At this time, the filling material G is filled up to the inner peripheral end of the inner unbonded region A2.

[0042] Next, the polymerized wafer T is conveyed to the heat treatment device 60 by the wafer transfer device 40. In the heat treatment device 60, the polymerized wafer T is heat-treated at the first temperature, for example, 150°C. Then, the filling material G is fired to semi-cure the filling material G.

[0043] Next, the polymerized wafer T is conveyed to the cleaning device 70 by the wafer transfer device 40. In the cleaning device 70, the first wafer W and the second wafer S are cleaned. Then, the particles on these wafers W and S and the filling material G adhering to unnecessary portions are removed.

[0044] Next, the polymerized wafer T is conveyed to the heat treatment device 60 by the wafer transfer device 40. In the heat treatment device 60, the polymerized wafer T is heat-treated at the second temperature higher than the first temperature, for example, 300°C. Then, the filling material G is fired to completely cure the filling material G.

[0045] Next, the polymerized wafer T is conveyed to the grinding device 110 by the wafer transfer device 40. In the grinding device 110, as shown in FIG. 6(d), the back surface Wb of the first wafer W is ground, and the grinding region Q is ground from the back surface Wb side. Then, the first wafer W is thinned to a desired thickness. In addition, since the first peripheral laminated film Me is removed in the film removing device 90 and the first laminated film Mw does not remain above the grinding target surface P as shown in FIG. 6(c), when grinding the back surface Wb as shown in FIG. 6(d), the grinding wheel 114 does not grind the first laminated film Mw.

[0046] Next, the polymerized wafer T is conveyed to the cleaning device 70 by the wafer transfer device 40. In the cleaning device 70, the first wafer W and the second wafer S are cleaned. At this time, the filling material G remaining on the second wafer S may be removed.

[0047] Next, the polymerized wafer T is transported to the etching apparatus 80 by the wafer transfer apparatus 40. In the etching apparatus 80, the back surface Wb of the first wafer W is etched to planarize the back surface Wb.

[0048] After that, the polymerized wafer T that has undergone all the processes is transported to the transition stage 30 by the wafer transfer apparatus 40, and further transported to the hoop F of the hoop mounting table 10 by the wafer transfer apparatus 20. Thus, a series of wafer processes in the wafer processing system 1 is completed.

[0049] Since the peripheral portion (including the bevel portion) of the first wafer is chamfered, when the back surface of the first wafer is ground, the peripheral portion of the first wafer becomes a sharp and pointed shape (so-called knife edge shape). Then, chipping occurs at the peripheral portion of the first wafer, and the first wafer may be damaged.

[0050] Conventionally, various countermeasures have been proposed to suppress chipping of the peripheral portion of the first wafer. For example, as disclosed in Patent Document 1 described above, it has been proposed to embed a filler (filling material) in the outer peripheral portion of the first wafer and the outer peripheral portion of the second wafer. However, when the first laminated film (including the first bonding film and the first device layer) of the first wafer is located above the grinding target surface of the first wafer, when grinding the back surface of the first wafer, the grinding wheel grinds the back surface of the first wafer and also grinds the first laminated film. In such a case, the grinding wheel may be clogged by the first laminated film, and the back surface of the first wafer may not be properly ground.

[0051] According to this embodiment, as shown in Figure 6(a), the first peripheral laminated film Me is removed from the first wafer W, and the first peripheral laminated film Me includes at least the first laminated film Mw formed on the back surface Wb side of the grinding target surface P. As a result, as shown in Figure 6(c), the first laminated film Mw does not remain above the grinding target surface P, and as shown in Figure 6(d), when grinding the back surface Wb of the first wafer W, the grinding wheel 114 does not grind the first laminated film Mw. As a result, the grinding wheel 114 does not become clogged by the first laminated film Mw as in the conventional method, and the back surface Wb of the first wafer W can be properly ground. This makes it possible to properly thin the first wafer W.

[0052] Furthermore, according to this embodiment, after removing the first peripheral laminated film Me as shown in Figure 6(a), bevel filling is performed as shown in Figure 6(c) to fill the unbonded region A with filler material G. Therefore, when grinding the back surface Wb of the first wafer W as shown in Figure 6(d), the occurrence of chipping can be suppressed. In addition, the occurrence of chipping after grinding the back surface Wb can also be suppressed.

[0053] In the embodiments described above, bevel filling was performed as shown in Figure 6(c) to fill the unbonded region A with filler material G. However, the filler material G may also be inspected using an inspection device 200, for example, as shown in Figure 7. The inspection device 200 is provided, for example, at the processing station 3 of the wafer processing system 1.

[0054] For example, the inspection device 200 has an infrared camera 210. Here, as described above, if a glass-based material is used for the filler G, the infrared light emitted from the infrared camera 210 as an inspection wave will pass through the filler G, and therefore the infrared camera 210 will not be able to detect the filler G. Therefore, an inhibitor K that blocks infrared light is mixed into the filler G. The inhibitor K can be a material that absorbs infrared light, such as carbon. Alternatively, the inhibitor K may be a material that reflects infrared light. In this case, the infrared camera 210 can detect the filler G containing the inhibitor K, and it is possible to inspect whether or not the filler G is properly filled in the unbonded region A.

[0055] For example, as shown in Figure 6(c), after filling the unbonded region A with filler material G, the polymerized wafer T is transported to the inspection device 200 by the wafer transport device 40, and the filler material G is inspected. By inspecting the filler material G in the unbonded region A in this way, the same effects as in the above embodiment can be reliably achieved.

[0056] The inspection method for the filler material G in the inspection device 200 is arbitrary. For example, if the inspection device 200 has a CSAM (not shown), the inhibitor K mixed into the filler material G is a material that inhibits ultrasonic waves used as inspection waves. Also, if the filler material G is fired as in this embodiment, the inhibitor K needs to be heat resistant.

[0057] The configuration of the wafer processing system 1 is not limited to the above embodiment. For example, some of the equipment of the wafer processing system 1 may be provided outside the wafer processing system 1.

[0058] In addition, in the first wafer W, the first device layer Dw may be formed up to the bevel portion above the grinding target surface P, that is, the first device layer Dw may be formed up to the grinding region Q, and the first bonding film Fw may not be formed up to the bevel portion. In such cases, the present disclosure can also be applied by removing the first device layer Dw formed in the grinding region Q. Furthermore, for example, when a second wafer S is used as a support substrate, the bonding of the first wafer W and the second wafer S is not limited to bonding the first bonding film Fw and the second bonding film Fs. For example, the present disclosure can also be applied when the first wafer W and the second wafer S are bonded with a bonding agent.

[0059] The embodiments disclosed herein should be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive. The embodiments described above may be omitted, replaced, or modified in various ways without departing from the scope and spirit of the appended claims. For example, the constituent elements of the embodiments described above can be combined in any way. Such any combination will naturally yield the functions and effects of each constituent element in the combination, as well as other functions and effects that will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the description herein.

[0060] Furthermore, the effects described herein are merely descriptive or illustrative and not limiting. In other words, the technology relating to this disclosure may produce other effects that will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the description herein, in addition to or in lieu of the effects described herein.

[0061] 1 Wafer processing system 50 Filling device 110 Grinding device G Filling material Mw First layer film Q Grinding area S Second wafer T Polymerized wafer W First wafer Wa Front Wb Back

Claims

1. A substrate processing method for processing a substrate, comprising: filling a gap between the outer periphery of the first substrate and the outer periphery of the second substrate in a polymer substrate in which a first substrate and a second substrate are joined; and grinding a grinding region from the back side of the first substrate in the polymer substrate, wherein a laminated film is formed on the surface of the first substrate, and the laminated film formed in the grinding region of the first substrate is removed.

2. The substrate processing method according to claim 1, wherein the laminated film formed on the bevel portion of the first substrate is removed.

3. The substrate processing method according to claim 1 or 2, comprising joining the first substrate and the second substrate to form the polymerized substrate before filling with the filler.

4. The substrate processing method according to claim 1 or 2, comprising removing the laminated film formed in the grinding region of the first substrate before filling with the filler.

5. The substrate processing method according to claim 4, wherein the laminated film includes a bonding film that is bonded to the second substrate, and when the laminated film is removed, at least the bonding surface between the bonding film and the second substrate is not removed.

6. A substrate processing method according to claim 1 or 2, comprising: removing the laminated film formed in the grinding region of the first substrate before filling with the filler; and joining the first substrate from which the laminated film has been removed and the second substrate to form the polymerized substrate.

7. A substrate processing method according to claim 1 or 2, comprising inspecting the filler, wherein the filler has an inhibitor that obstructs the inspection wave used when inspecting the filler.

8. A substrate processing system for processing substrates, comprising: a filling device for filling the gap between the outer periphery of the first substrate and the outer periphery of the second substrate in a polymer substrate in which a first substrate and a second substrate are joined; and a grinding device for grinding a grinding region from the back side of the first substrate in the polymer substrate, wherein a laminated film is formed on the surface of the first substrate, and the laminated film formed in the grinding region of the first substrate is removed.

9. The substrate processing system according to claim 8, wherein the laminated film formed on the bevel portion of the first substrate is removed.

10. A substrate processing system according to claim 8 or 9, comprising: a bonding apparatus for bonding the first substrate and the second substrate to form the polymer substrate; and a control device, wherein the control device executes a control for bonding the first substrate and the second substrate in the bonding apparatus before filling the filler in the filling apparatus.

11. A substrate processing system according to claim 8 or 9, comprising: a film removal device for removing the laminated film formed in the grinding region of the first substrate; and a control device, wherein the control device executes a control to remove the laminated film in the film removal device before filling the filler in the filling device.

12. The substrate processing system according to claim 11, wherein the laminated film includes a bonding film that is bonded to the second substrate, and the control device, when removing the laminated film in the film removal device, performs control so as not to remove at least the bonding surface between the bonding film and the second substrate.

13. A substrate processing system according to claim 8 or 9, comprising: a film removal device for removing the laminated film formed in the grinding region of the first substrate; a bonding device for joining the first substrate and the second substrate to form the polymerized substrate; and a control device, wherein the control device executes a control to remove the laminated film in the film removal device and to join the first substrate and the second substrate from which the laminated film has been removed in the bonding device before filling the filler material.

14. The substrate processing system according to claim 8 or 9, comprising an inspection device for inspecting the filler, wherein the filler has an inhibitor that obstructs the inspection wave used when inspecting the filler.

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