Electron Vision Corporation

Richard Ross

William R Livesay

David M Rose

An electrostatic holding device for holding semiconductor wafers and similar materials during microelectronic device manufacturing operations. It has a circular, electrically conductive wafer support having a rounded periphery; an annular border region; and a flat, concentric, raised, central plateau having an electrically conductive top surface. The plateau has a tapered circumferential edge which extends down to the annular border region. A nonelectrically conductive coating is on the rounded periphery, the border region and the tapered edge which extends to, but does not cover, the conductive top surface of the central plateau such that an the coating is coplanar with the conductive top surface of the central plateau. A removable dielectric sheet overlies the top surface of the central plateau, the coating on the tapered edge and the coating on the border region. The dielectric sheet is releasably attached to the top surface of the central plateau, the coating on the tapered edge and the coating on the border region such that the release is by the application of peeling forces. A uniform electric field across the dielectric layer holds a wafer on the support via the dielectric sheet.

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San Diego, CA, United States of America

Richard Ross