JP7794577B2 - processing equipment - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a processing device that removes the chamfer on the front side of a wafer that has chamfers formed on the outer periphery of both the front and back sides, or the chamfers on both the front and back sides.

Semiconductor device chips are manufactured using, for example, silicon wafers. The outer periphery of the front and back surfaces of the wafers are chamfered to prevent chipping or other damage to the wafer's periphery during processing or transportation.

In the manufacturing process of semiconductor device chips, after devices are formed on the front side of the wafer, the back side of the wafer is ground to thin the semiconductor device chips. However, if the wafer is thinned to, for example, less than half its original thickness, a sharp edge (also known as a knife edge) is formed on the outer periphery of the wafer.

Sharp edges can lead to chipping or breakage of the thinned wafer. Therefore, before grinding the backside, the chamfer on the front side is removed (also known as edge trimming) (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

In edge trimming, for example, the entire backside of the wafer is held by suction on the holding surface of a chuck table, and the chuck table is rotated in a predetermined direction while the cutting blade cuts into the outer periphery of the front side of the wafer to a predetermined depth. However, holding the entire backside by suction on the holding surface can cause contamination of the backside, which can cause problems in subsequent processes.

For example, if the cleanliness of a wafer that has undergone edge trimming is relatively low and fine dust (particles) are attached to the backside, the wafer may crack when another wafer is bonded to the backside of this wafer.

In order to improve the cleanliness of the wafer, it has been proposed to limit the area in which the wafer is suction-held during edge trimming to an annular area near the outer periphery on the backside, and further to clean this annular area near the outer periphery on the backside together with the frontside of the wafer after edge trimming (see, for example, Patent Document 2).

Specifically, edge trimming is first performed on the front side while the annular region near the outer periphery of the back side is held by suction with an annular suction part. Then, the central part of the back side of the wafer is held by suction with a chuck table having a holding surface with an outer diameter smaller than the diameter of the annular suction part, exposing the area of the back side that was held by the annular suction part.

In this state, the chuck table is rotated while cleaning water is sprayed onto the backside of the wafer to clean it. However, even with this method, the center of the backside comes into contact with the holding surface, which can cause tiny scratches to form on the backside or particles to adhere.

In order to avoid contact between the backside of the wafer and the holding surface, a cleaning device has been proposed that uses four rollers to clamp the wafer in the radial direction and rotates each roller to clean the wafer while rotating it (see, for example, Patent Document 3).

However, if this cleaning equipment is used to clean the backside and then the frontside, the time required to clean the wafer using the cleaning equipment increases, and the progress of the entire processing process is limited by the progress of the cleaning process using the cleaning equipment. Furthermore, a separate mechanism is required to flip the wafer over.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2000-173961 JP 2012-64872 A JP 2015-179742 A

The present invention was made in consideration of these problems, and aims to clean the front and back sides of the wafer after edge trimming without bringing them into contact with the holding surface of the chuck table and without inverting the wafer, while also reducing the degree to which the progress of the cleaning process limits the progress of the entire processing process.

According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a processing device for removing a chamfered portion on a front surface side of a wafer, or the chamfered portion on both the front surface side and the back surface side opposite the front surface, the processing device including: a cassette table on which a cassette containing the wafer is placed; a carry-in/out robot capable of carrying the wafer into and out of the cassette placed on the cassette table; a holding table that holds the wafer by suction; a first transport unit that transports the wafer carried out by the carry-in/out robot to the holding table; and a cutting unit having a spindle, the cutting unit cutting and removing the chamfered portion on the front surface side of the wafer held by suction on the holding table, or the chamfered portion on both the front surface side and the back surface side, by using a cutting blade attached to the spindle. a first cleaning unit having a cleaning edge clamp mechanism for cleaning the wafer while clamping and holding the edge of the wafer at at least three points in the radial direction of the wafer, and cleaning the back side of the wafer cut by the cutting unit; a second transport unit having a second transport edge clamp mechanism for transporting the wafer while clamping and holding the edge of the wafer at at least three points in the radial direction of the wafer, and transporting the wafer between the holding table and the first cleaning unit; a second cleaning unit having a movement restriction mechanism for cleaning the wafer while restricting the movement of the wafer within a predetermined range without holding the wafer by suction, and cleaning the front side of the wafer cleaned by the first cleaning unit; and a third transport unit having a third transport edge clamp mechanism for transporting the wafer while clamped and held at at least three points, and transporting the wafer between the first cleaning unit and the second cleaning unit, wherein the holding table has an annular support portion including an annular support surface, a disk-shaped base member located inside the annular support portion in a radial direction thereof and having an upper surface lower than the annular support surface, and a disk-shaped push-up portion provided in a disk-shaped recess located in the radial center of the base member, wherein when the push-up portion does not push up the wafer, the upper surface of the push-up portion is lower than the annular support surface, but when the push-up portion pushes up the wafer, air or water is supplied to the upper surface of the push-up portion from a flow path provided in the upper surface of the push-up portion and the push- up portion By raising the lifting portion , the lifting portion lifts the wafer without the upper surface of the lifting portion coming into direct contact with the wafer due to the air or water layer , and the second cleaning unit has a disk-shaped base on which the movement restriction mechanism is provided, and the movement restriction mechanism has a plurality of pins provided on the upper surface of the base for supporting the outer periphery of the back side of the wafer, three or more hook-shaped restriction members provided on the sides of the base for restricting movement of the wafer in the radial direction and the thickness direction of the base, and three or more drive mechanisms for moving the restriction members provided corresponding to each other, and each restriction member has an edge restriction portion capable of contacting the outermost periphery of the wafer, and an upper surface restriction portion provided in a manner that protrudes a predetermined amount from the upper end of the edge restriction portion toward the center of the base .

Preferably, the transfer robot has a robot hand equipped with an edge clamping mechanism for clamping and holding the edge of the wafer.

Preferably, the first transport unit has a first transport edge clamping mechanism for transporting the wafer while clamping and holding the edge of the wafer at at least three points in the radial direction of the wafer.

Preferably, at least one of the second transport unit and the third transport unit has a water supply unit capable of supplying water to the wafer.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a processing apparatus for removing a chamfered portion on a front surface side of a wafer, or removing the chamfered portion on both the front surface side and the back surface side of the wafer, the processing apparatus comprising: a cassette table on which a cassette containing the wafer is placed; a carry-in/out robot capable of carrying the wafer into and out of the cassette placed on the cassette table; a holding table that holds the wafer by suction; and a first transport unit that transports the wafer carried out by the carry-in/out robot to the holding table. a cutting unit having a spindle and configured to cut and remove the chamfered portion on the front side of the wafer held by suction on the holding table, or the chamfered portions on both the front side and the back side of the wafer, with a cutting blade attached to the spindle; a first cleaning unit having a cleaning edge clamping mechanism for clamping and holding the edge of the wafer at at least three points in the radial direction of the wafer and cleaning the back side of the wafer cut by the cutting unit; a second transfer unit having a second transfer edge clamp mechanism for transporting the wafer while holding it by suction, and for transporting the wafer between the holding table and the first cleaning unit; a second cleaning unit having a movement restriction mechanism for cleaning the wafer while restricting the movement of the wafer within a predetermined range without holding the wafer by suction, and for cleaning the front side of the wafer cleaned by the first cleaning unit; and a third transfer edge clamp for transporting the wafer while clamping and holding the edge of the wafer at at least three points in the radial direction of the wafer. and a third transport unit having a clamping mechanism for transporting the wafer between the first cleaning unit and the second cleaning unit, at least one of the second transport unit and the third transport unit having an ultrasonic vibrator and an ultrasonic water discharge nozzle for discharging water to which ultrasonic vibrations have been imparted from the ultrasonic vibrator onto the wafer , and the second transport unit and the third transport unit each having an edge clamping mechanism for transporting the wafer while clamping and holding the edge of the wafer at at least three points in the radial direction of the wafer .

Preferably, the second transport edge clamp mechanism of the second transport unit and the third transport edge clamp mechanism of the third transport unit have transport edge clamp mechanisms of the same structure.

Preferably, the second cleaning unit has a disk-shaped base on whose outer periphery the movement restricting mechanism is provided, the movement restricting mechanism including: a plurality of pins provided on an upper surface of the base for supporting the outer periphery of the backside of the wafer; and hook-shaped restricting members provided at least at three locations on a side of the base for restricting movement of the wafer in the radial direction and the thickness direction of the base. Also preferably, the holding table has an annular support part having an annular support surface provided with an annular groove for supporting the outer periphery of the wafer, and a suction path connected to the annular groove for suction-holding the outer periphery of the backside of the wafer supported on the annular support surface, and a push-up part located inward of the annular support part for pushing up the backside of the wafer supported on the annular support surface to lift the wafer above the annular support surface.

A processing apparatus according to one aspect of the present invention has two cleaning units for cleaning wafers. Specifically, it has a first cleaning unit that cleans the backside of the wafer that has been cut by the cutting unit, and a second cleaning unit that cleans the frontside of the wafer that has been cleaned by the first cleaning unit.

The first cleaning unit has a cleaning edge clamping mechanism for cleaning the wafer while clamping and holding the edge of the wafer at at least three points in the radial direction of the wafer. The second cleaning unit has a movement restriction mechanism for cleaning the wafer without holding it by suction while restricting its movement within a predetermined range.

As a result, after edge trimming is performed on the wafer, the back side of the wafer can be cleaned without contact between the back side and the holding surface of the chuck table, and the front side of the wafer can be cleaned without contact between the front side and the holding surface of the chuck table. There is also no need to flip the wafer over.

In addition, while the front side of the first wafer is being cleaned in the second cleaning unit, the back side of the second wafer can be cleaned in the first cleaning unit, which reduces the degree to which the progress of the cleaning process limits the progress of the entire processing process compared to when one cleaning unit is used to sequentially clean the back and front sides of wafers.

Furthermore, the second and third transport units, which transport the wafers, transport the wafers while clamping and holding the edge of the wafer at at least three points in the radial direction of the wafer. This reduces contact with the front and back sides of the wafer during transport, preventing scratches on the front and back sides of the wafer and particle adhesion during transport.

In this way, by comprehensively performing the following processes after edge trimming: transporting the wafer while clamping its edge, cleaning the backside of the wafer in a first cleaning unit with a cleaning edge clamping mechanism, and cleaning the frontside of the wafer in a second cleaning unit with a movement restriction mechanism, it is possible to increase the cleanliness of the wafer after edge trimming.

FIG. FIG. 2A is a perspective view of the wafer, and FIG. 2B is a cross-sectional view of the wafer. FIG. 3A is a perspective view of the carry-in/out robot, and FIG. 3B is a front view of the robot hand. FIG. 4A is a diagram showing center alignment, and FIG. 4B is a diagram showing wafer orientation adjustment. FIG. 5A is a front view of the first transfer unit, and FIG. 5B is a diagram showing how the first transfer unit transfers wafers. FIG. FIG. 7A is a partial cross-sectional side view of the holding table etc. during edge trimming, and FIG. 7B is a partial cross-sectional side view of the holding table etc. during lifting of the wafer. FIG. FIG. 9A is a partial cross-sectional side view of the second transfer edge clamp mechanism and the like, and FIG. 9B is a diagram showing wafer cleaning in the second transfer unit. FIG. 2 is a partial cross-sectional side view of the ultrasonic water discharge nozzle. FIG. 11A is a perspective view of the holding unit, and FIG. 11B is a side view of the holding unit. FIG. 12A is a perspective view of a holding unit holding a wafer, and FIG. 12B is a side view of the holding unit holding a wafer. FIG. 13A is a top view of the holding unit during cleaning, and FIG. 13B is a side view of the holding unit during cleaning.

An embodiment of one aspect of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. Figure 1 is a perspective view of a processing device 2 that performs edge trimming on the outer periphery of a wafer 11. Note that the X-axis direction, Y-axis direction, and Z-axis direction shown in Figure 1 are mutually orthogonal.

The processing device 2 has a rectangular parallelepiped base 4 that includes a frame (not shown), a cover member, etc. The base 4 supports each component of the processing device 2. Two cassette tables 6a and 6b are provided at the front end of the base 4 (one end in the Y-axis direction).

A cassette 8 containing multiple wafers 11 is placed on one (or both) of the two cassette tables 6a, 6b. Each cassette 8 has multiple shelves (not shown) on which the wafers 11 are placed.

Now, the wafer 11 will be described with reference to Figures 2(A) and 2(B). Figure 2(A) is a perspective view of the wafer 11, and Figure 2(B) is a cross-sectional view of the wafer 11. The wafer 11 is, for example, a semiconductor wafer made primarily of silicon.

However, there are no restrictions on the material, structure, size, etc. of the wafer 11. For example, wafers or substrates made of other semiconductor materials, glass, SOI (Silicon on Insulator), etc. can also be used.

The diameter of the wafer 11 is, for example, 300 mm (12 inches). A plurality of planned division lines 13 are set on the front surface 11a of the wafer 11. A device 15 such as an IC (Integrated Circuit) is formed in each rectangular area defined by the plurality of planned division lines 13.

However, there are no restrictions on the type, quantity, shape, structure, size, arrangement, etc. of the devices 15. The wafer 11 may be a wafer on which no devices 15 are formed (e.g., a bare wafer).

A peripheral excess area 17b, where no devices 15 are formed, surrounds the device area 17a, where multiple devices 15 are formed, and is generally flat. The back surface 11b, located opposite the front surface 11a, is also generally flat.

As shown in Figure 2(B), a chamfered portion 11c (also called a bevel portion) is formed on each outer periphery of the front surface 11a and back surface 11b. In the thickness direction of the wafer 11, between the chamfered portion 11c on the front surface 11a and the chamfered portion 11c on the back surface 11b, there is an outermost periphery 11d that defines the diameter of the wafer 11.

The outermost periphery 11d is located, for example, at a position approximately halfway through the thickness of the wafer 11. In this embodiment, the chamfered portions 11c on the front surface 11a and back surface 11b and the outermost periphery 11d are collectively referred to as the edge 11e of the wafer 11.

No resin protective tape is attached to the back surface 11b of the wafer 11, leaving the back surface 11b exposed. The wafer 11 is stored in the cassette 8, for example, with the front surface 11a facing upward and the back surface 11b facing downward.

Returning to Figure 1, a rectangular opening 4a is formed behind the two cassette tables 6a, 6b (the other side in the Y-axis direction). A horizontally articulated loading/unloading robot 10 with an open-loop structure is installed in the opening 4a. Figure 3(A) is a perspective view of the loading/unloading robot 10.

The loading/unloading robot 10 unloads unprocessed wafers 11 from the cassette 8 and loads processed wafers 11 into the cassette 8. The loading/unloading robot 10 has multiple arms (e.g., three), and a robot hand 12 is attached to the tip of the uppermost arm.

The thickness of the robot hand 12 in the Z-axis direction is thin enough to allow it to fit between two wafers 11 placed on adjacent shelves in the height direction of the cassette 8. The robot hand 12 has two elongated longitudinal portions 12a arranged approximately parallel to each other.

The base ends of the two longitudinal portions 12a are connected by a connecting portion 12b. One clamp claw 12c is provided on each of the distal and proximal ends of each longitudinal portion 12a. In the example shown in Figure 3(A), a total of four clamp claws 12c are provided.

However, the number of clamping claws 12c is not limited to four, as long as three or more clamping claws 12c are provided. Figure 3(B) is a front view of the robot hand 12. As shown in Figure 3(B), the clamping claws 12c have a constricted shape in which the small diameter circles of a truncated cone and an inverted truncated cone are connected.

The outer surface of the clamp claw 12c is coated with a fluororesin such as polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE). A pin (not shown) is provided at the bottom of the clamp claw 12c, and this pin can move along an elongated hole 12d (see Figure 3(A)) formed on the top surface of the longitudinal portion 12a.

For example, the four clamp claws 12c are moved by a first drive unit (not shown) by approximately the same distance along the elongated hole 12d. The four clamp claws 12c, the first drive unit, etc. constitute an edge clamp mechanism 12e that holds the wafer 11.

The first drive unit includes, for example, a first actuator such as an air cylinder that moves the two clamp claws 12c at the tip along the longitudinal portion 12a, and a second actuator such as an air cylinder that moves the two clamp claws 12c at the base along the longitudinal portion 12a.

To hold the wafer 11 with the robot hand 12, the two clamp claws 12c at the tip end and the two clamp claws 12c at the base end are brought close to each other, and the four clamp claws 12c are used to clamp the edge 11e of the wafer 11 in the radial direction.

In this way, the robot hand 12 can hold the wafer 11 without contacting the front surface 11a or back surface 11b, preventing scratches on the front surface 11a or back surface 11b and particle adhesion. Instead of the clamp claws 12c, the wafer 11 may be held by suction without contact using a Bernoulli-type non-contact suction pad (not shown).

The wafer 11 removed from the cassette 8 by the transfer robot 10 is transferred to the alignment table 14 (see Figure 1). As shown in Figure 4(A), the alignment table 14 has a substantially square table 14a.

A camera (not shown) is provided on table 14a to detect the notch position of wafer 11 using red or near-infrared light. Four position adjustment units 16 are provided in a different area of table 14a from the camera.

The four position adjustment units 16 are arranged at approximately equal intervals on the periphery of a circle centered at a single point on the top surface of the table 14a. The table 14a has elongated holes (not shown) formed in it that correspond to the movement direction of the position adjustment units 16.

Each position adjustment unit 16 is configured to be movable by approximately the same distance along the radial direction of this circle by a second drive unit (not shown). The second drive unit has, for example, a circular rotating plate.

An air cylinder is connected to the rotating plate to rotate it. Multiple protrusions are provided at approximately equal intervals around the circumference of the rotating plate, protruding in the radial direction of the rotating plate. A straight arm is rotatably connected to the tip of each protrusion via a pin.

A position adjustment unit 16 is fixed to the tip of the arm. By rotating the rotating plate with an air cylinder, each position adjustment unit 16 can be moved the same distance toward or away from each other. Note that the mechanism of the second drive unit is not limited to this example, and other mechanisms may also be used.

The position adjustment unit 16 has a disk-shaped support base 16a. The support base 16a houses a motor (not shown), and a cylindrical roller 16b made of synthetic rubber such as urethane rubber is attached to the upper end of the motor shaft.

Figure 4(A) shows the center alignment of the wafer 11. When performing center alignment, the transfer robot 10 transports the wafer 11 to the alignment table 14 so that the outer periphery of the wafer 11 is supported by the four support tables 16a.

At this time, the area on the back surface 11b of the wafer 11 extending inward from the outermost periphery 11d in the radial direction of the wafer 11, within a predetermined length (e.g., 2.5 mm), comes into contact with the support base 16a.

After transport, each support table 16a is moved toward the center of the top surface of the table 14a to adjust the center position of the surface 11a of the wafer 11 to a predetermined position, and the edge 11e of the wafer 11 is clamped on all four sides by the four rollers 16b.

After center alignment, the rollers 16b are rotated in a predetermined direction to rotate the wafer 11, while the outer periphery of the wafer 11 is observed with a camera. Figure 4(B) shows how the orientation of the wafer 11 is adjusted. When the notch 11f reaches the predetermined position, the rotation of the rollers 16b is stopped, thereby adjusting the orientation of the wafer 11 to the predetermined orientation.

Once the position and orientation of the wafer 11 have been adjusted, it is transported by the first transport unit 18 (see Figure 1) to the loading/unloading area A located behind the alignment table 14. The first transport unit 18 is movable along guide rails 20 that are arranged approximately parallel to the Y-axis direction.

A moving block 22 is slidably attached to the guide rail 20 (see Figure 5(B)). A nut portion (not shown) is provided on the back side of the moving block 22, and a ball screw (not shown) arranged approximately parallel to the Y-axis direction is rotatably connected to this nut portion.

The moving block 22 has an actuator (not shown), such as an air cylinder. The movable part of the actuator moves up and down along the Z-axis direction (see Figure 5(A)). The base end of the arm 24 is connected to this movable part.

A hand portion 26 is provided at the tip of the arm portion 24. The hand portion 26 has a rectangular parallelepiped palm portion 26a. One finger portion 26b is provided on one side of the tip of the palm portion 26a and on both side surfaces adjacent to that side.

When viewed from above, the three fingers 26b are arranged radially around a single point on the palm 26a, with the tips of the fingers 26b spaced apart by approximately 120° in the circumferential direction of a circle centered on that point (see Figure 5(B)). The number of fingers 26b may be three or more, and is not limited to three.

As shown in Figure 5(A), a moving pin 28 that can move along the longitudinal direction of the finger portion 26b is provided at the tip of the underside of the finger portion 26b. Figure 5(A) is a front view of the first transport unit 18.

Each moving pin 28 is configured to be movable by approximately the same distance along the radial direction of a predetermined circle by a third drive unit (not shown) that includes an air cylinder, a rotating plate, a link, etc. Note that the mechanism of the third drive unit is not limited to this example, and other mechanisms may also be used.

A clamp claw 30 is provided at the lower end of the moving pin 28. The clamp claw 30 has a constricted shape formed by connecting small diameter circles of a truncated cone and an inverted truncated cone. The outer surface of the clamp claw 30 is coated with a fluororesin such as PTFE. In this example, the hand unit 26 has three sets of clamp claws 30 and moving pins 28.

The three sets of clamping claws 30, the moving pin 28, the third drive unit, etc. constitute a first transport edge clamping mechanism 32 for transporting the wafer 11 while clamping and holding the edge 11e of the wafer 11 at at least three points in the radial direction.

The arm 24 positioned above the table 14a is lowered, and each clamp claw 30 is positioned at a different position in the X-Y plane from the position adjustment unit 16 and at approximately the same height as the wafer 11, and then the moving pins 28 are moved closer to each other.

The first transport unit 18 can hold the wafer 11 with three clamp claws 30 without contacting the front surface 11a or back surface 11b, preventing scratches on the front surface 11a or back surface 11b and particle adhesion.

The first transport unit 18 may clamp the wafer 11 using four or more clamp claws 30. Instead of the clamp claws 30, the first transport unit 18 may also suction and hold the wafer 11 in a non-contact manner using a Bernoulli-type non-contact suction pad (not shown).

Figure 5(B) shows how the first transport unit 18 transports the wafer 11. After clamping the wafer 11, the arm 24 is raised and the moving block 22 slides in the Y-axis direction. The first transport unit 18 transports the wafer 11 to the holding table 36 in the loading/unloading area A (see Figure 1).

The holding table 36 moves between the loading/unloading area A and the cutting area B, which are arranged along the X-axis direction, using a ball-screw type X-axis movement mechanism (not shown). As shown enlarged in Figure 6, the holding table 36 has a cylindrical, annular support portion 38 made of ceramic.

Figure 6 is a perspective view of the holding table 36 and other components. The upper surface of the annular support member 38 is an annular support surface 38a that can support the outer periphery of the back surface 11b of the wafer 11. The outer periphery of the back surface 11b that contacts the annular support surface 38a extends inward from the outermost periphery 11d in the radial direction of the wafer 11 by a predetermined length (e.g., 2.5 mm) or less.

An annular groove 38b is provided on the annular support surface 38a. In this example, the annular groove 38b is formed continuously around the entire circumference of the annular support surface 38a. As shown in Figure 7(A), a suction path 40 is connected to the annular groove 38b.

The suction path 40 is connected to a suction source 44, such as an ejector, via a solenoid valve 42. When the solenoid valve 42 is open while the suction source 44 is operating, negative pressure is generated in the annular groove 38b. This negative pressure suction-holds the outer periphery of the back surface 11b of the wafer 11 supported by the annular support surface 38a.

A disk-shaped base member 46 is provided inside the annular support portion 38. The upper surface 46a of the base member 46 is fixed at a position lower than the annular support surface 38a. A disk-shaped recess 46b is formed in the center of the base member 46.

A disc-shaped push-up portion 48 is disposed in the recess 46b. An actuator (not shown), such as an air cylinder, is connected to the bottom of the push-up portion 48, allowing the push-up portion 48 to move up and down along the Z-axis direction.

When the push-up portion 48 is in the lowered position, the upper surface 48a of the push-up portion 48 is substantially flush with the upper surface 46a of the base member 46 (see Figure 7(A)). When the push-up portion 48 is in the raised position, the upper surface 48a is higher than the annular support surface 38a (see Figure 7(B)).

A flow path 50 is formed in approximately the center of the upper surface 48a, penetrating the push-up portion 48 along the thickness direction of the push-up portion 48. The flow path 50 is connected to a fluid supply source 54, such as an air supply source or a pure water supply source, via an electromagnetic valve 52.

The air supply source is, for example, connected to an air compressor and has an air tank filled with clean air from which particles and other contaminants have been removed. The pure water supply source is, for example, connected to a pump and has a water tank in which pure water is stored.

When the push-up portion 48 is raised above the annular support surface 38a, air or pure water is supplied to the upper surface 48a to form an air layer or water layer (neither shown) on the upper surface 48a.

As a result, the push-up portion 48 can push up the back surface 11b side of the wafer 11, whose outer periphery is supported by the annular support surface 38a, via an air layer or water layer, without the upper surface 48a coming into direct contact with the wafer 11.

A first rotary drive source (not shown), such as a motor, is provided below the holding table 36. When the first rotary drive source is operated, the holding table 36 rotates around a rotation axis that is approximately parallel to the Z-axis direction.

Returning to Figure 1, a cutting unit 56 is provided above the holding table 36. The cutting unit 56 has a cylindrical spindle housing 58 whose longitudinal portion is arranged approximately parallel to the Y-axis direction.

A ball screw type cutting feed unit (not shown) that moves the spindle housing 58 along the Z-axis direction is connected to the cutting unit 56. A ball screw type Y-axis movement unit (not shown) is connected to the cutting feed unit.

The cutting unit 56 can move in the Z-axis and Y-axis directions relative to the holding table 36 using the cutting feed unit and the Y-axis movement unit. A cylindrical spindle 60 (see Figure 7(A)) is rotatably housed in the spindle housing 58.

A second rotational drive source (not shown), such as a motor, is provided at the base end of the spindle 60, and a cutting blade 62 is attached to the tip end of the spindle 60. The cutting blade 62 is, for example, a washer-type (hubless) blade that is clamped between a mount flange and a press flange, but it may also be a hub-type blade.

The cutting blade 62 is covered from above by a blade cover 64 (see Figure 1). As shown in Figure 1, the blade cover 64 is provided with multiple cutting water nozzles 66. The multiple cutting water nozzles 66 supply cutting water, such as pure water, to the processing point where the cutting blade 62 and the wafer 11 come into contact.

A microscope camera unit 68 is provided on one side of the blade cover 64 in the X-axis direction. The microscope camera unit 68 has a predetermined optical system such as a lens, and an imaging element such as a CMOS (Complementary Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor) or CCD (Charge-Coupled Device) image sensor.

In the cutting process, in which the wafer 11 is cut, the holding table 36 is first placed in the loading/unloading area A. Then, the first transport unit 18 transports the wafer 11 and places it on the holding table 36.

Next, the solenoid valve 42 is opened, and the outer periphery of the back surface 11b of the wafer 11 is held by suction on the holding table 36. After the holding table 36 is moved to the cutting area B, the holding table 36 is rotated at a predetermined speed while the microscope camera unit 68 captures images of at least three locations on the outer periphery of the wafer 11.

This allows the offset (center misalignment) between the center of the surface 11a and the center of the holding table 36 to be detected. Then, while supplying cutting water to the processing point, the lower end of the cutting blade 62, which is rotated at a predetermined speed, cuts into the chamfered portion 11c on the surface 11a (see Figure 7(A)).

For example, the lower end of the cutting blade 62 is cut into the wafer 11 to a depth of approximately half the thickness of the wafer. The holding table 36 is rotated, and the relative position of the lower end of the cutting blade 62 with respect to the holding table 36 is adjusted according to the detected center misalignment, thereby cutting and removing the chamfered portion 11c on the front surface 11a (edge trimming).

Figure 7(A) is a partial cross-sectional side view of the holding table 36 and other components during edge trimming. Note that during edge trimming, the lower end of the cutting blade 62 may be inserted down to the annular support surface 38a to remove the chamfered portion 11c on both the front surface 11a and back surface 11b.

After edge trimming is complete, the holding table 36 is moved to the loading/unloading area A. Then, as shown in Figure 7(B), the solenoid valve 42 is closed and the solenoid valve 52 is opened, forming an air layer or water layer (neither shown) on the upper surface 48a and lifting the push-up portion 48 upward.

Figure 7(B) is a partial cross-sectional side view of the holding table 36 and other components during lifting. The wafer 11 lifted by the push-up unit 48 is transported to the cleaning area C by the second transport unit 70, which has been waiting above the loading/unloading area A.

Figure 8 is an enlarged perspective view of cleaning area C. First, we will explain the second transport unit 70 provided in cleaning area C. The second transport unit 70 has a rectangular parallelepiped arm 72. A moving block 74 is connected to the base end of the arm 72.

The moving block 74 has a third rotary drive source (not shown) such as a motor built in. The third rotary drive source rotates the arm 72 within a predetermined angle (e.g., approximately 90 degrees) (see the double-headed arrow 74a in Figure 8).

An actuator (not shown), such as an air cylinder, is connected to the bottom of the moving block 74 to move the moving block 74 along the Z-axis direction. Operation of the actuator causes the arm 72 to move along the Z-axis direction (see double-headed arrow 74b in Figure 8).

A ball screw-type X-axis movement unit (not shown) is provided below the actuator. The X-axis movement unit moves the moving block 74 along the X-axis, causing the arm 72 to move along the X-axis (see double-headed arrow 74c in Figure 8).

A hand portion 76 is provided at the tip of the arm portion 72. The hand portion 76 has a rectangular parallelepiped palm portion 76a. One finger portion 76b is provided on one side of the tip of the palm portion 76a and on both side surfaces adjacent to that side.

When viewed from above, the three fingers 76b are arranged radially around a single point on the palm 76a, with the tips of the fingers 76b spaced approximately 120° apart from one another in the circumferential direction of a circle centered on that point. The number of fingers 76b may be three or more, and is not limited to three.

As shown in Figure 9 (A), a movable pin 78 is provided at the tip of the underside of the finger 76b, which is movable along the longitudinal direction of the finger 76b. Each movable pin 78 is configured to be movable by approximately the same distance along the radial direction of a predetermined circle by a fourth drive unit (not shown) which has an air cylinder, a rotating plate, a link, etc. Note that the mechanism of the fourth drive unit is not limited to this example, and other mechanisms may also be used.

A clamp claw 80 is provided at the lower end of the moving pin 78. The clamp claw 80 has a constricted shape formed by connecting small diameter circles of a truncated cone and an inverted truncated cone. The outer surface of the clamp claw 80 is coated with a fluororesin such as PTFE. In this example, the hand unit 76 has three sets of clamp claws 80 and moving pins 78.

The three sets of clamping claws 80, the moving pin 78, the fourth drive unit, etc. constitute a second transport edge clamping mechanism 82 for transporting the wafer 11 while clamping and holding the edge 11e of the wafer 11 at at least three points in the radial direction of the wafer 11.

Figure 9 (A) is a partial cross-sectional side view of the second transport edge clamp mechanism 82, etc. The second transport unit 70 lowers the arm 72 and moves the moving pins 78 closer to each other, thereby clamping the wafer 11 on the holding table 36 using the three clamp claws 80.

The second transport unit 70 may clamp the wafer 11 using four or more clamp claws 80. Instead of the clamp claws 80, the second transport unit 70 may also suction and hold the wafer 11 in a non-contact manner using a Bernoulli-type non-contact suction pad (not shown).

In either case, the second transfer unit 70 can hold the wafer 11 without contacting the front surface 11a or back surface 11b, thereby preventing scratches on the front surface 11a or back surface 11b and particle adhesion.

A flow path _76a1 that passes through the palm 76a is formed in the hand portion 76. A pure water supply source ₈₈ that supplies pure water 86 (see FIG. 9B) is connected to the flow path 76a1 via a tube 84.

The pure water supply source 88 has, for example, a water tank in which pure water is stored. A pump is connected to the water tank to send pure water 86 to the tube 84. A solenoid valve 90 is connected to the tube 84, and when the solenoid valve 90 is opened, pure water is supplied downward from the flow path _76a1 .

The flow path _76a1 , the tube 84, the pure water supply source 88, the solenoid valve 90, etc. constitute a water supply unit 92 for supplying pure water 86 to the wafer 11 when the wafer 11 is transported by the second transport unit 70 (see Figure 9(A)).

If cutting debris and the like adhering to the wafer 11 after edge trimming dries and sticks to the wafer 11, it may not be possible to remove the debris even by washing. However, the pure water 86 supplied from the flow path _76a1 can prevent the wafer 11 from drying out during transportation.

An ultrasonic water discharge nozzle 96 is fixed to the palm portion 76a via a fastener 94. Figure 10 is a partial cross-sectional side view of the ultrasonic water discharge nozzle 96. The ultrasonic water discharge nozzle 96 has a cylindrical housing 96a.

A cylindrical first space 96b ₁ is formed inside the housing 96a. A disk-shaped ultrasonic vibrator 98 is provided at the top of the first space 96b _1. The ultrasonic vibrator 98 has piezoelectric ceramics such as lead zirconate titanate (PZT).

A power supply unit 100 is connected to the ultrasonic vibrator 98. The power supply unit 100 includes an oscillator (not shown) that generates high-frequency power to drive the ultrasonic vibrator 98. A predetermined amount of power, for example, between 40 W and 100 W, is supplied from the power supply unit 100 to the ultrasonic vibrator 98.

The ultrasonic vibrator 98 converts this electric power into mechanical vibrations, and vibrates at a predetermined frequency of 500 kHz to 1.5 MHz. A flow path 102 connected to the first space 96b- ₁ is provided on the side of the housing 96a. The pure water supply source 88 is connected to the flow path 102 via an electromagnetic valve 104.

The large diameter portion of the second space _96b2 , which has an inverted truncated cone shape, is connected to the lower portion of the first space _96b1 . The small diameter portion of the second space _96b2 corresponds to an opening _96b3 exposed on the bottom surface of the housing 96a.

The pure water supplied to the first space _96b1 is vibrated by an ultrasonic vibrator 98, and the pure water is sprayed from an opening _96b3 located on the bottom surface of the housing 96a at a predetermined flow rate of, for example, 0.5 L/min or more and 1.5 L/min or less.

9B is a diagram showing cleaning of the wafer 11 in the second transfer unit 70. During transfer, pure water 86 is supplied to the wafer 11 from the flow path 76a _-1 , and pure water 98a to which ultrasonic vibrations have been applied is discharged from the ultrasonic water discharge nozzle 96 onto the wafer 11.

By discharging pure water 98a to which ultrasonic vibrations have been applied, the wafer 11 can be cleaned during transport. Cleaning with pure water 98a can contribute to reducing the time and flow rate required for cleaning in the front-side cleaning unit 140, which will be described later.

Now, returning to Figure 8, we will explain the other components arranged in cleaning area C. A circular opening 4b with a diameter equal to or greater than that of the wafer 11 is formed near the second transfer unit 70. A backside cleaning unit (first cleaning unit) 106 is provided in opening 4b.

The back surface cleaning unit 106 has a cylindrical roll brush 108. The roll brush 108 has a cylindrical base. The length between the two circular faces of the cylindrical base is approximately the same as the diameter of the opening 4b. Fiber bundles made of a resin such as polyamide synthetic resin are discretely fixed to the side of the base. The multiple bundles are evenly distributed across the entire side of the base.

The roll brush 108 is positioned within the opening 4b so that its rotation axis is approximately parallel to the X-Y plane. A cleaning nozzle 110 is positioned within the opening 4b near the roll brush 108, spraying pure water (not shown) upward.

In addition, one or more suction units (not shown) may be provided in an area within the opening 4b separate from the roll brush 108 and cleaning nozzle 110 for non-contact suction of the back surface 11b of the wafer 11.

Four rotation units 112 are provided around the opening 4b at approximately equal intervals along the circumferential direction of the opening 4b (note that two rotation units 112 are shown in Figure 8). Similar to the position adjustment unit 16, the rotation units 112 have a disk-shaped support base 112a.

Elongated holes (not shown) are formed around the opening 4b in accordance with the direction of movement of the rotation unit 112, and each support base 112a is configured to be movable by approximately the same distance along the radial direction of a predetermined circle by a fifth drive unit (not shown) that includes an air cylinder, a rotating plate, a link, etc. Note that the mechanism of the fifth drive unit is not limited to this example, and other mechanisms may also be used.

The support base 112a houses a motor (not shown), and a cylindrical roller 112b made of synthetic rubber such as urethane rubber is attached to the upper end of the motor shaft.

The four rotation units 112, the fifth drive unit, etc. constitute a cleaning edge clamping mechanism 114 for cleaning the wafer 11 by clamping and holding the edge 11e at four points (at least three points) in the radial direction of the wafer 11.

After edge trimming, the wafer 11 is transported by the second transport unit 70 from the holding table 36 to the back surface cleaning unit 106, where the back surface 11b is cleaned. In the back surface cleaning process, the second transport unit 70 first transports the wafer 11 so that the outer periphery of the wafer 11 is supported by the four support stages 112a.

After transport, each support table 112a moves toward the center of the opening 4b, positioning the wafer 11 inside the opening 4b and clamping the four sides of the edge 11e with the four rollers 112b.

At this time, the area of the back surface 11b of the wafer 11 extending radially inward from the outermost periphery 11d by a predetermined length (e.g., 2.5 mm) or less contacts the support base 112a. By rotating each roller 112b in a predetermined direction, the wafer 11 rotates around an axis of rotation substantially parallel to the Z-axis direction (see Figure 4(B) for a similar example).

While rotating the wafer 11, pure water is sprayed from the cleaning nozzle 110, and the bristles of the rotating roll brush 108 are brought into contact with the back surface 11b of the wafer 11 in the radial direction, thereby cleaning the back surface 11b.

In the backside cleaning process, the wafer 11 is not held by suction using negative pressure on the holding surface of the chuck table, but rather the wafer 11 is rotated with its edge 11e clamped, allowing the entire backside 11b to be cleaned, including the area of the backside 11b that is in contact with the annular support portion 38.

After the specified cleaning time, the spraying of pure water and the rotation of the roll brush 108 and roller 112b are stopped. After the backside cleaning process, the third transport unit 120 transports the wafer 11 from the backside cleaning unit 106 to the frontside cleaning unit (second cleaning unit) 140.

Now, we will explain the third transport unit 120. The third transport unit 120 has an arm 122. A moving block 124 is connected to the base end of the arm 122.

An actuator (not shown), such as an air cylinder, is connected to the bottom of the moving block 124. Operation of the actuator causes the arm 122 to move along the Z-axis direction (see double-headed arrow 124a in Figure 8).

A ball-screw type Y-axis movement unit (not shown) is provided below the actuator, which moves the moving block 124 along the Y-axis direction. The Y-axis movement unit moves the arm 122 along the Y-axis direction (see double-headed arrow 124b in Figure 8).

A hand portion 126 is provided at the tip of the arm portion 122. One finger portion 126b is provided on one side of the tip of the palm portion 126a and on both side surfaces adjacent to that side. The number of finger portions 126b may be three or more.

A movable pin (not shown) is provided at the tip of the underside of finger 126b, which is movable along the longitudinal direction of finger 126b. Each movable pin is configured to be movable by approximately the same distance along the radial direction of a predetermined circle by a sixth drive unit (not shown) which includes an air cylinder, a rotating plate, a link, etc. Note that the mechanism of the sixth drive unit is not limited to this example, and other mechanisms may also be used.

A clamp claw 128 is provided at the lower end of the moving pin. The clamp claw 128 has a constricted shape formed by connecting small diameter circles of a truncated cone and an inverted truncated cone. The outer surface of the clamp claw 128 is coated with a fluororesin such as PTFE. In this example, the hand unit 126 has three sets of clamp claws 128 and moving pins.

The three sets of clamping claws 128, the moving pin, the sixth drive unit, etc. constitute a third transport edge clamping mechanism 130 for transporting the wafer 11 while clamping and holding the edge 11e of the back surface 11b of the wafer 11 at at least three points in the radial direction of the wafer 11.

In this way, the third transport edge clamping mechanism 130 has the same structure as the second transport edge clamping mechanism 82. Furthermore, a flow path (not shown) is formed in the palm portion 126a, and the tube 132, solenoid valve (not shown), pure water supply source 88, etc. constitute a water supply unit 134 for supplying pure water.

The third conveying unit 120 has an ultrasonic water discharge nozzle 136 that has the same configuration as the ultrasonic water discharge nozzle 96. Since the ultrasonic water discharge nozzle 136 is the same as the ultrasonic water discharge nozzle 96 described above, a description thereof will be omitted.

The operation of the third transport unit 120 will now be described. By lowering the arm 122 and bringing the moving pins closer to each other, the third transport unit 120 clamps the wafer 11 positioned above the opening 4b in the radial direction of the wafer 11 using the three clamp claws 128.

The third transport unit 120 may clamp the wafer 11 using four or more clamp claws 128. Instead of the clamp claws 128, the third transport unit 120 may also suction and hold the wafer 11 in a non-contact manner using a Bernoulli-type non-contact suction pad (not shown).

In either case, the third transfer unit 120 can hold the wafer 11 without contacting the front surface 11a or back surface 11b, thereby preventing scratches on the front surface 11a or back surface 11b and particle adhesion.

In addition, during transport, the pure water 86 prevents the wafer 11 from drying out, and the pure water imparted with ultrasonic vibrations is ejected from the ultrasonic water ejection nozzle 136 to clean the wafer 11. This further reduces the time and flow rate required for cleaning in the front-side cleaning unit 140, which will be described later.

A disc-shaped front-side cleaning unit (second cleaning unit) 140 is provided in front of the back-side cleaning unit 106. A sliding first shutter (not shown) is provided between the front-side cleaning unit 140 and the back-side cleaning unit 106.

In addition, a sliding second shutter (not shown) is provided between the front surface cleaning unit 140 and the carry-in/out robot 10. In this way, the front surface cleaning unit 140 is isolated by the first and second shutters and is placed in a space where a high level of cleanliness can be maintained.

The front surface side cleaning unit 140 has a disk-shaped holding unit 142 for holding the wafer 11. A fourth rotation drive source (not shown), such as a motor, is provided below the holding unit 142.

The fourth rotary drive source rotates the holding unit 142 around a rotation axis substantially parallel to the Z-axis direction at a low speed (e.g., a predetermined value of 50 rpm or more and 100 rpm or less) or at a high speed (e.g., a predetermined value of 1000 rpm or more and 2000 rpm or less).

An elevator mechanism (not shown) is provided below the fourth rotary drive source. The elevator mechanism positions the holding unit 142 above the cylindrical cover member 140a when loading and unloading the wafer 11 (see Figure 8), and positions the holding unit 142 in the internal space of the cover member 140a when cleaning the wafer 11.

Figure 11 (A) is a perspective view of the holding unit 142. The holding unit 142 has a disk-shaped base 144. The top surface of the base 144 is coated with a fluororesin such as PTFE.

A number of support pins 146 (six in this embodiment) are arranged at predetermined intervals around the outer periphery of the top surface of the base 144. Each support pin 146 is made of a fluororesin such as PTFE.

The upper ends of the multiple support pins 146 are each set to the same height (e.g., approximately 20 mm) relative to the top surface of the base 144, and support the outer periphery of the back surface 11b of the wafer 11 (see Figure 12(B), etc.).

The outer periphery of the back surface 11b that contacts the support pins 146 is within a range of a predetermined length (e.g., 2.5 mm) inward from the outermost periphery 11d in the radial direction of the wafer 11. Each support pin 146 makes point contact with the back surface 11b within this range, significantly reducing the contact area compared to when the wafer is held by suction using the holding surface of a chuck table.

A number of hook-shaped restricting members 148 (three in this embodiment) are arranged on the sides of the base 144 at predetermined intervals along the outer periphery of the base 144. The number of restricting members 148 may be three or more, and is not limited to three.

A drive mechanism 150, such as an air actuator, is provided at the lower end of the restricting member 148. The drive mechanism 150 moves the restricting member 148 between a closed position (see Figure 11(A)) and an open position (see Figure 11(B)).

Figure 11(B) is a side view of the holding unit 142 when the restricting member 148 is in the open position. The restricting member 148 has a rectangular parallelepiped edge restricting portion 148a made of a fluororesin such as PTFE.

When in the closed position, the edge restriction portions 148a come into contact with the outermost peripheral portion 11d of the wafer 11 supported by the support pins 146, restricting movement of the wafer 11 in the radial direction of the base 144. For example, three edge restriction portions 148a can clamp the edge 11e of the wafer 11 in the radial direction.

A rectangular parallelepiped top surface restriction portion 148b made of a fluororesin such as PTFE is provided at the upper end of the edge restriction portion 148a, protruding a predetermined amount (e.g., 0.5 mm) toward the center of the base 144. When in the closed position, the top surface restriction portion 148b restricts movement of the wafer 11 supported by the support pins 146 in the thickness direction of the base 144.

When the base 144 is stationary, the support pins 146 support the wafer 11, and the restricting member 148 is in the closed position, a gap 148c is formed between the lower surface of the upper surface restricting portion 148b and the surface 11a of the wafer 11 (see Figure 12 (B)).

The multiple support pins 146, multiple regulating members 148, and drive mechanism 150 constitute a movement regulating mechanism 152 provided on the outer periphery of the base 144, which regulates the movement of the wafer 11 in the radial and thickness directions of the base 144 within a predetermined range when the base 144 rotates.

Returning to Figure 8, a cleaning nozzle 154 is provided above the center of the base 144, with its nozzle facing downward. A chemical supply source (not shown) is connected to the cleaning nozzle 154.

The chemical solution supply source has a tank (not shown) that stores chemical solution 154a (see Figure 13(B)). Chemical solution 154a is ozone water, a mixture of hydrofluoric acid and nitric acid (so-called fluoronitric acid), citric acid water, etc. A solenoid valve (not shown) is provided in the flow path between the chemical solution supply source and the cleaning nozzle 154 to control the supply of chemical solution 154a to the cleaning nozzle 154.

A swing mechanism 156 is provided at a predetermined distance to the side of the base 144. The swing mechanism 156 has a rectangular parallelepiped base 156a that is arranged approximately parallel to the Z-axis direction. A drive source (not shown), such as a motor, is connected to the bottom of the base 156a.

The drive source swings the base 156a within a predetermined angular range within the X-Y plane. An actuator (not shown) is provided below the drive source to raise and lower the drive source and base 156a along the Z-axis direction.

The upper end of the base 156a is located above the base 144, and the base end of an arm 158 is connected to this upper end so as to protrude toward the center of the base 144. A cleaning tool 160 is provided on the bottom surface of the tip of the arm 158.

The cleaning tool 160 is a sponge with a generally flat, disc-like shape that is relatively flexible and absorbent. The sponge is made of, for example, PVA (polyvinyl alcohol). The cleaning tool 160 may also be a sponge brush with multiple protrusions on the underside of the disc.

The front surface side cleaning process will now be described. First, the first shutter is opened, and the third transport unit 120 transports the wafer 11, whose back surface 11b side has been cleaned in the back surface side cleaning unit 106, to the front surface side cleaning unit 140, whose regulating member 148 is in the open position.

Then, the first shutter is closed and the restricting member 148 is set to the closed position. At this time, the edge restricting portion 148a contacts the outermost periphery 11d of the wafer 11, and the wafer 11 is held in the radial direction of the wafer 11.

At this time, the upper surface restriction portion 148b is located above the outer periphery on the front surface 11a side. Figure 12(A) is a perspective view of the holding unit 142 holding the wafer 11, and Figure 12(B) is a side view of the holding unit 142 holding the wafer 11.

After holding the wafer 11, the holding unit 142 is placed in the internal space of the cover member 140a. Then, while the base 144 is rotated in a predetermined direction at a low speed (e.g., 60 rpm), the chemical solution 154a is sprayed from the cleaning nozzle 154 toward the surface 11a. At the same time, the arm 158 is swung within a predetermined angle range while the cleaning tool 160 is in contact with the surface 11a.

Even if the wafer 11 were to rise slightly in the thickness direction (Z-axis direction) of the base 144 when the base 144 rotates, the upward movement of the wafer 11 would be restricted by the upper surface restricting portion 148b.

In this way, the wafer 11 is cleaned almost entirely on the front surface 11a side while restricting its movement without being held by suction on the holding surface of the chuck table. Figure 13(A) is a top view of the holding unit 142 during cleaning, and Figure 13(B) is a side view of the holding unit 142 during cleaning.

After cleaning of the front surface 11a is complete, spraying of the chemical solution 154a is stopped, the cleaning tool 160 is retracted, and the base 144 is rotated in a predetermined direction at high speed (e.g., 2000 rpm) to dry the wafer 11.

In this way, in the front surface side cleaning unit 140, spin drying can be performed following cleaning of the front surface 11a side. After spin drying, the base 144 is moved above the cover member 140a, the second shutter is opened, and the transfer robot 10 transfers the wafer 11 from the front surface side cleaning unit 140 to the cassette 8.

The operation of each component of the processing device 2 is controlled by a control unit 162 (see Figure 1). The control unit 162 is configured, for example, by a computer including a processor (processing device) represented by a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a main memory device, and an auxiliary memory device.

The main storage device may include, for example, dynamic random access memory (DRAM), static random access memory (SRAM), or read-only memory (ROM). The auxiliary storage device may include, for example, flash memory, a hard disk drive, or a solid-state drive.

The auxiliary storage device stores software including specific programs. The functions of the control unit 162 are realized by operating the processing device and other components in accordance with this software.

In this embodiment, by using the back surface cleaning unit 106 and the front surface cleaning unit 140, the back surface 11b and front surface 11a of the wafer 11 after edge trimming can be cleaned without contacting the back surface 11b and front surface 11a with the holding surface of the chuck table. There is also no need to flip the wafer 11 over.

Furthermore, the back surface 11b side is cleaned in the back surface cleaning unit 106, and then the front surface 11a side is cleaned in the front surface cleaning unit 140. Therefore, while the front surface 11a side of the first wafer 11 is being cleaned in the front surface cleaning unit 140, the back surface 11b side of the second wafer 11 can be cleaned in the back surface cleaning unit 106.

This reduces the degree to which the progress of the cleaning process limits the progress of the entire processing process compared to when a single cleaning unit is used to sequentially clean the back surface 11b and front surface 11a of the wafer 11.

The entire processing process includes cutting for edge trimming, water supply and ultrasonic cleaning during transport by the second transport unit 70 and the third transport unit 120, the back-side cleaning process by the back-side cleaning unit 106, and the front-side cleaning process by the front-side cleaning unit 140.

The second transfer unit 70 and the third transfer unit 120 transfer the wafer 11 while clamping and holding the edge 11e of the wafer 11 at at least three points in the radial direction of the wafer 11. This reduces contact with the front surface 11a and back surface 11b during transfer, preventing scratches on the front surface 11a and back surface 11b and particle adhesion.

In this way, after edge trimming, the wafer 11 can be transported while its edge 11e is clamped, its back surface 11b side is cleaned in the back surface side cleaning unit 106 having the cleaning edge clamping mechanism 114, and its front surface 11a side is cleaned in the front surface side cleaning unit 140 having the movement restriction mechanism 152, all of which are performed in a comprehensive manner, thereby increasing the cleanliness of the wafer 11 after edge trimming.

In addition, the structures, methods, etc. related to the above-described embodiments may be modified as appropriate without departing from the scope of the present invention.

In the above embodiment, an example was described in which the second transport unit 70 has a water supply unit 92 and the third transport unit 120 has a water supply unit 134. However, either the second transport unit 70 or the third transport unit 120 may have a water supply unit.

Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, an example was described in which the second conveying unit 70 has an ultrasonic water discharge nozzle 96, and the third conveying unit 120 has an ultrasonic water discharge nozzle 136. However, either the second conveying unit 70 or the third conveying unit 120 may have an ultrasonic water discharge nozzle.

2: Processing device, 4: Base, 4a, 4b: Openings, 6a, 6b: Cassette table, 8: Cassette, 10: Carry-in/out robot, 11: Wafer, 11a: Front surface, 11b: Back surface, 11c: Chamfered portion, 11d: Outermost periphery, 11e: Edge, 11f: Notch, 12: Robot hand, 12a: Long portion, 12b: Connection portion, 12c: Clamp claw, 12d: Slot, 12e: Edge clamp mechanism, 13: Planned division line, 15: Device, 17a: Device area, 17b: Outer surplus area, 14: Alignment table, 14a: Table, 16: Position adjustment unit, 16a: Support base, 16b: Roller, 18: First transport unit, 20: Guide rail, 22: Moving block, 24: Arm portion, 26: Hand portion, 2 6a: palm portion, 26b: finger portion, 28: moving pin, 30: clamp claw, 32: first conveying edge clamp mechanism, 36: holding table, 38: annular support portion, 38a: annular support surface, 38b: annular groove, 40: suction path, 42: solenoid valve, 44: suction source, 46: base member, 46a: upper surface, 46b: recess, 48: push-up portion, 48a: upper surface, 50: flow path, 52: solenoid valve, 54: fluid supply source, 56: cutting unit, 58: spindle housing, 60: spindle, 62: cutting blade, 64: blade cover, 66: cutting water nozzle, 68: microscope camera unit, 70: second conveying unit, 72: arm portion, 74: moving block, 74a, 74b, 74c: double arrow, 76: hand portion, 76a: palm portion, 76a ₁ : Flow path, 76b: Finger portion 78: Moving pin, 80: Clamp claw, 82: Second conveying edge clamp mechanism 84: Tube, 86: Pure water, 88: Pure water supply source, 90: Solenoid valve 92: Water supply unit, 94: Fastener, 96: Ultrasonic water discharge nozzle 96a: Housing, 96b ₁ : First space, 96b ₂ : Second space, 96b ₃ : Opening 98: ultrasonic vibrator, 98a: pure water 100: power supply unit, 102: flow path, 104: solenoid valve 106: back surface side cleaning unit (first cleaning unit), 108: roll brush 110: cleaning nozzle, 112: rotation unit, 112a: support base, 112b: roller 114: cleaning edge clamp mechanism 120: third transport unit, 122: arm portion, 124: moving block 124a, 124b: double arrow 126: hand portion, 126a: palm portion, 126b: finger portion, 128: clamp claw 130: third transport edge clamp mechanism, 132: tube, 134: water supply unit 136: ultrasonic water discharge nozzle, 140: front surface side cleaning unit (second cleaning unit)
140a: Cover member, 142: Holding unit, 144: Base, 146: Support pin, 148: Restricting member, 148a: Edge restricting portion, 148b: Upper surface restricting portion, 148c: Gap, 150: Driving mechanism, 152: Movement restricting mechanism, 154: Cleaning nozzle, 154a: Chemical solution, 156: Swinging mechanism, 156a: Base, 158: Arm, 160: Cleaning tool, 162: Control unit, A: Loading/unloading area, B: Cutting area, C: Cleaning area

Claims (8)

A processing apparatus for removing a chamfered portion on a front surface side or both the front surface side and the back surface side of a wafer, the chamfered portion being formed on the outer periphery of each of the front surface side and the back surface side, the processing apparatus comprising:
a cassette table on which a cassette containing the wafers is placed;
a carry-in/out robot capable of carrying the wafer into and out of the cassette placed on the cassette table;
a holding table that holds the wafer by suction;
a first transfer unit that transfers the wafer carried out by the carry-in/out robot to the holding table;
a cutting unit having a spindle, which cuts and removes the chamfered portion on the front surface side of the wafer held by suction on the holding table, or the chamfered portions on both the front surface side and the back surface side of the wafer, using a cutting blade attached to the spindle;
a first cleaning unit having a cleaning edge clamping mechanism for cleaning the wafer while clamping and holding the edge of the wafer at at least three points in the radial direction of the wafer, and for cleaning the back side of the wafer cut by the cutting unit;
a second transfer unit having a second transfer edge clamp mechanism for transferring the wafer while clamping and holding the edge of the wafer at at least three points in the radial direction of the wafer, and for transferring the wafer between the holding table and the first cleaning unit;
a second cleaning unit having a movement restriction mechanism for cleaning the wafer in a state where the movement of the wafer is restricted within a predetermined range without suction holding the wafer, and for cleaning the front surface side of the wafer cleaned in the first cleaning unit;
a third transfer unit having a third transfer edge clamp mechanism for transferring the wafer while clamping and holding the edge of the wafer at at least three points in the radial direction of the wafer, and for transferring the wafer between the first cleaning unit and the second cleaning unit;
The holding table is
an annular support portion including an annular support surface;
a disk-shaped base member located inside the annular support portion in the radial direction of the annular support portion, the upper surface of the base member being located lower than the annular support surface;
a disc-shaped push-up portion provided in a disc-shaped recess located at a radial center portion of the base member,
When the push-up portion does not push up the wafer, the upper surface of the push-up portion is located at a position lower than the annular support surface.
When the push-up portion pushes up the wafer, air or water is supplied to the upper surface of the push-up portion from a flow path provided on the upper surface of the push-up portion , and the push-up portion is raised , so that the upper surface of the push-up portion does not come into direct contact with the wafer due to the layer of air or water, and the push-up portion pushes up the wafer ,
the second cleaning unit has a disk-shaped base on which the movement restriction mechanism is provided,
the movement restriction mechanism includes a plurality of pins provided on the upper surface of the base for supporting the outer periphery of the back surface side of the wafer, three or more hook-shaped restriction members provided on the sides of the base for restricting movement of the wafer in the radial direction and the thickness direction of the base, and three or more drive mechanisms for moving the restriction members provided corresponding to the restriction members,
A processing apparatus characterized in that each regulating member has an edge regulating portion that can contact the outermost periphery of the wafer, and an upper surface regulating portion that is arranged in a manner that protrudes a predetermined amount from the upper end of the edge regulating portion toward the center of the base . The processing device described in claim 1, characterized in that the loading/unloading robot has a robot hand equipped with an edge clamping mechanism for clamping and holding the edge of the wafer. The processing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the first transport unit has a first transport edge clamping mechanism for transporting the wafer while clamping and holding the edge of the wafer at at least three points in the radial direction of the wafer. 4. The processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the second transfer unit and the third transfer unit has a water supply unit capable of supplying water to the wafer. A processing apparatus for removing a chamfered portion on a front surface side or both the front surface side and the back surface side of a wafer, the chamfered portion being formed on the outer periphery of each of the front surface side and the back surface side, the processing apparatus comprising:
a cassette table on which a cassette containing the wafers is placed;
a carry-in/out robot capable of carrying the wafer into and out of the cassette placed on the cassette table;
a holding table that holds the wafer by suction;
a first transfer unit that transfers the wafer carried out by the carry-in/out robot to the holding table;
a cutting unit having a spindle, which cuts and removes the chamfered portion on the front surface side of the wafer held by suction on the holding table, or the chamfered portions on both the front surface side and the back surface side of the wafer, using a cutting blade attached to the spindle;
a first cleaning unit having a cleaning edge clamping mechanism for cleaning the wafer while clamping and holding the edge of the wafer at at least three points in the radial direction of the wafer, and for cleaning the back side of the wafer cut by the cutting unit;
a second transfer unit having a second transfer edge clamp mechanism for transferring the wafer while clamping and holding the edge of the wafer at at least three points in the radial direction of the wafer, and for transferring the wafer between the holding table and the first cleaning unit;
a second cleaning unit having a movement restriction mechanism for cleaning the wafer in a state where the movement of the wafer is restricted within a predetermined range without suction holding the wafer, and for cleaning the front surface side of the wafer cleaned in the first cleaning unit;
a third transfer unit having a third transfer edge clamp mechanism for transferring the wafer while clamping and holding the edge of the wafer at at least three points in the radial direction of the wafer, and for transferring the wafer between the first cleaning unit and the second cleaning unit;
At least one of the second transfer unit and the third transfer unit has an ultrasonic vibrator and an ultrasonic water discharge nozzle for discharging water to which ultrasonic vibrations have been applied from the ultrasonic vibrator onto the wafer;
The processing apparatus is characterized in that the second transport unit and the third transport unit each have an edge clamping mechanism that transports the wafer while clamping and holding the edge of the wafer at at least three points in the radial direction of the wafer . 6. The processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the second transport edge clamping mechanism of the second transport unit and the third transport edge clamping mechanism of the third transport unit have transport edge clamping mechanisms of the same structure. the second cleaning unit has a disk-shaped base on the outer periphery of which the movement restriction mechanism is provided;
The movement restriction mechanism includes:
a plurality of pins provided on the upper surface of the base for supporting the outer periphery of the back surface side of the wafer;
Hook-shaped restricting members are provided at least at three positions on the side of the base, and restrict movement of the wafer in the radial direction and the thickness direction of the base;
6. The processing apparatus according to claim 5 , further comprising: The holding table is
an annular support part having an annular support surface provided with an annular groove and capable of supporting an outer periphery of the wafer, and a suction path connected to the annular groove and suction-holding the outer periphery of the back surface side of the wafer supported by the annular support surface;
a push-up portion located inside the annular support portion and configured to push up the back surface of the wafer supported by the annular support surface, thereby lifting the wafer above the annular support surface;
6. The processing apparatus according to claim 5, further comprising: