Rotary Liquid Delivery Plate Back Surface Cleaning
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing cleaning apparatuses for semiconductor wafers face challenges in effectively cleaning the area around the liquid delivery port on the back surface, leading to insufficient cleaning due to the non-rotatability of the liquid delivery plate and potential contamination of the substrate.
Innovation Solution
A cleaning apparatus with a rotary plate and a liquid delivery port that rotates with the substrate, using a back surface liquid supply nozzle to form a liquid film on the substrate's back surface and around the delivery port, allowing for thorough cleaning and rinsing, including a controlled process to stop and restart liquid delivery to ensure thorough processing of the area around the port.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If the liquid delivery plate is made non-rotatable to maintain structural simplicity, then the device complexity is reduced, but the cleaning effectiveness on the back surface and around the delivery port deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The liquid delivery plate is designed to rotate together with the substrate during cleaning operations. This dynamic configuration allows the liquid film to be effectively formed and distributed on the back surface and around the delivery port area, resolving the contradiction by making the delivery plate rotatable only when needed for cleaning while maintaining relative simplicity through integration with the existing rotary substrate holding mechanism
2Device complexity
If the liquid delivery port remains stationary to simplify the liquid supply system, then the device complexity is reduced, but the liquid film formation on the delivery port area becomes insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The liquid delivery port is integrated with the rotatable liquid delivery plate, so that the port moves together with the plate during substrate cleaning. This merging approach ensures that the liquid film is continuously supplied to the delivery port area along with the back surface, achieving reliable cleaning without requiring a separate complex liquid supply mechanism for the port area
3Ease of operation
If cleaning is performed only on the substrate back surface to maintain process simplicity, then the ease of operation is improved, but the contamination risk from the delivery port area increases
Solution Approach 1:
The cleaning process is designed to simultaneously clean both the substrate back surface and the delivery port area in one integrated operation. By rotating the liquid delivery plate together with the substrate and supplying liquid film to both areas concurrently, the system performs preliminary cleaning of the delivery port area before it can contaminate the substrate, maintaining process simplicity while eliminating contamination risk
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This solution ensures comprehensive cleaning of both the substrate's back surface and the area around the liquid delivery port, preventing contamination and achieving effective cleaning and drying processes.
Implementation Method 1
a rotary plate configured to rotate in a horizontal state... rotating the rotary plate along with the substrate held by the holding accessory... delivering the cleaning liquid from the back surface liquid supply nozzle through the delivery port, thereby forming a liquid film
Data Source
AI summary
A control mechanism of a cleaning apparatus is preset to control the apparatus for a cleaning process or a rinsing process to include delivering a process liquid, which is corresponding one of a cleaning liquid and a rinsing liquid, from a back surface liquid supply nozzle through a liquid delivery port, thereby forming a liquid film on the back surface of a substrate, and then once stopping and then re-starting delivery of the process liquid from the back surface liquid supply nozzle, thereby forming a liquid film also on a portion around the liquid delivery port, so as to process the portion around the liquid delivery port as well as the substrate.