Other

Speedfam Co Ltd

Yasuhiro Horiike and Speedfam Co, Ltd.

Shinya Iida

Michihiko Yanagisawa

Yasuhiro Horiike

Chikai Tanaka

Akitoshi Yoshida

Takeshi Sadohara

Xu Jin Wang

Misuo Sugiyama

A wafer flattening process designed to flatten the entire surface of the wafer including the outer rim of the wafer by inserting dummy data corresponding to the data of the outer rim of the wafer in the data of the outside of the wafer, and a storage medium for the same. An area S is set at an outside position exactly an etching radius r from an outer rim Wc of the wafer Wc ahd the nozzle relative speed at the position-speed data D of points P -1 to P -3 closest to an imaginary line L passing through the point P inside the area S near the outer rim Wc is set to be the same as the nozzle relative speed of the position-speed data D of the point P Due to this, the nozzle spraying the activated species gas G moves as if along the imaginary line L and the portion of the point P is etched flat by superposition of the activated species gas G of the nozzle passing through the points P - to P - the point P and the point P

Wafer flattening process and storage medium

A wafer etching method wherein hydrogen gas, ammonia gas or mixed gas containing one of these gases is added to sulfur hexafluoride gas to suppress the occurrence of white turbidity on the surface of the wafer at the time of etching and to enable high quality mirror polishing of the wafer. In one embodiment, a mixed gas obtained by mixing SF gas G of a bomb and H gas G of a bomb in a predetermined ratio is fed to a discharge tube and a microwave M is generated from a microwave oscillator to cause plasma discharge. Further, the entire surface of the silicon wafer W can be flattened by locally etching the surface of the silicon wafer W by an activated species gas G sprayed from the nozzle portion

Wafer etching method

A wafer flattening system is provided to consecutively and automatically remove the natural oxide film from a wafer and flatten and smooth the wafer so as to improve the surface roughness of the wafer and improve the work efficiency. A step of immersing the wafer in an aqueous solution of hydrofluoric acid of a natural oxide film removing device is performed so as to remove the natural oxide film, then followed by a step of locally etching the surface of the wafer at a local etching apparatus by an activated species gas produced from SF gas to flatten the surface. Then, a step of giving a mirror finish to the wafer surface by a CMP apparatus is performed to smooth it. It is also possible to perform the step of removal of the natural oxide film by spraying the entire surface of the wafer by an activated species gas produced from a mixed gas of CF gas and H gas and possible to perform the step of smoothing by spraying the entire surface of the wafer by an activated species gas produced from a mixed gas of CF gas and O gas.

Wafer flattening system

A corrosion-resistant system and method for a plasma etching apparatus are provided which are capable of reducing a corrosion or erosion phenomenon of a discharge tube, equipment and/or elements in a chamber of the plasma etching apparatus which is used for localized etching. A micro wave M is oscillated from a micro wave oscillator,toward a mixed gas of CF,and O,in a quartz discharge tube,to thereby produce plasma discharge. The micro wave oscillator,is controlled in an on-off manner by means of a pulse generator,, to thereby oscillate a pulsed micro wave M. As a result, it is possible to reduce the erosion of the quartz discharge tube,caused by an active species gas G generated by the plasma discharge. Preferably, a corrosion-resistant oil A is filled in the chamber,for preventing an X-Y drive mechanism,, etc., therein from being corroded or eroded by the active species gas G diffusing in the chamber

Corrosion-resistant system and method for a plasma etching apparatus

A plasma etching method and apparatus are provided in which a distance between an ejection opening (,) in a plasma generator (,) for ejecting an active species gas and a surface of an object to be etched can be changed to thereby shorten the time required for a surface flattening operation and reduce the cost of equipment as well. To this end, the ejection opening (,) of a predetermined diameter is disposed in confrontation with a desired convex of the object to be etched in the form of a wafer (,). The active species gas in the form of an F gas (G) is ejected from the ejection opening (,) to the convex to thereby flatten it through etching. A distance between the ejection opening and the convex is changed by means of a Z drive mechanism (,) to provide an etching area corresponding to an area of the convex, thus performing effective flattening of the wafer (,).

Plasma etching apparatus

A wafer flattening process and system enables a reduction of the surface roughness of a wafer resulting from local etching. A silicon wafer W is brought into close proximity to a nozzle portion,to feed SF,gas to an alumina discharge tube,, a plasma generator,is used to cause plasma discharge and spray a first activated species gas from the nozzle portion,to the silicon wafer W side, an X-Y drive mechanism,is used to make the nozzle portion,scan to perform a local etching step. Then the silicon wafer W is moved away from the nozzle portion,and O,gas and CF,gas are fed to the alumina discharge tube. At this time, the O,gas is set to be greater in amount than the CF,gas. When this mixed gas is made to discharge to generate plasma, a second activated species gas diffuses from the nozzle portion,to the entire surface of the silicon wafer W. Since there is a larger amount of O radicals than F radicals, the reaction product resulting from the O radicals deposit in fine depressions causing roughness and the front surface of the silicon wafer W is smoothed.

Wafer flattening process and system

A wafer flattening process designed to flatten the entire surface of the wafer to a higher precision by projecting the fall in the etching rate at the outer peripheral portion of the wafer and forming the outer peripheral portion of the wafer thinner in advance before plasma etching the entire surface of the wafer, a wafer flattening system, and a wafer flattened by the same. The wafer flattening system is provided with a CMP apparatus,and a plasma etching apparatus,are provided. The outer peripheral portion Wb of a wafer W held by a carrier,is polished thinner than an inside portion Wc of the wafer W by the CMP apparatus,having a platen,formed with a recessed surface. Specifically, it is polished so that the maximum thickness at the outer peripheral portion Wb of the wafer W becomes not more than the minimum thickness at the inside portion Wc. Suitably thereafter, the plasma etching apparatus,locally etches the surface Wa of the wafer W to obtain a wafer W with a high flatness without any projecting portion at the outer peripheral portion Wb.

Combined CMP and plasma etching wafer flattening system

Plasma etching method and apparatus for removing relatively thick portions from wafers by etching while measuring an actual etch quantity to thereby manufacture the wafers excellent in flatness quality on a mass-production basis. A conduit 20 of a plasma generator 2 is positioned above a relatively thick portion 111 of the wafer 110 to etch away a wafer material from the relatively thick portion 111 by ejecting a fluorine gas G. A laser beam L0 is emitted from a laser displacement meter 30 of a measuring apparatus 3 to detect an interference state between a reflected light beam L1 from the relatively thick portion 111 and a reflected light beam L2 form a reflecting plate 32 and count periodical changes of the interference state. When the count value m coincides with an integral value derived by dividing a desired etch quantity by a half wavelength of the laser beam L0, etching of the relatively thick portion 111 by the fluorine gas G is terminated.

Plasma etching method and plasma etching system for carrying out the same

The bottom of each collection groove for collecting a used abrasive slurry and a rinsing solution is formed like the letter V, an exhaust port is formed at the lowest position of the bottom of the groove, the collection pipe of a slurry supply unit and the collection pipe of a rinsing solution supply unit are connected to the exhaust port, and the collection pipe of the rinsing solution exhaust unit is connected to a suction pump for forcedly discharging the rinsing solution by suction.

Slurry circulation type surface polishing machine

A slurry recycling system of a CMP apparatus, and a method of the same, which restores the state of agglomeration of the abrasive grains to the initial state to enable reuse of the slurry and thereby reduces the cost of the polishing work and improves the operating rate of the CMP apparatus. Slurry S used in the CMP apparatus 1 is sent to a dispersion chamber 31. A vibration element 40 of an ultrasonic dispersion apparatus 4 mounted in the dispersion chamber 31 is made to vibrate by a vibrator 41 to generate ultrasonic vibration energy, whereby the agglomerated particles in the slurry S are made to disperse. Suitably thereafter, the slurry S is returned to the slurry feed apparatus 300 to enable reuse of the slurry S.

Slurry recycling system of CMP apparatus and method of same

A slurry recycling system for a CMP apparatus includes a flow path through which a slurry used in the CMP apparatus flows. A first filter is disposed in the flow path for filtering out foreign matter of a particle size of more than 0.5 microns mixed in said slurry. A second filter is preferably disposed in the flow path at a location upstream of and away from the first filter for filtering out foreign matter of a particle size of more than 10 microns mixed in said slurry. Preferably, provisions are made for a concentration adjuster for adjusting the concentration of abrasives in said slurry to substantially an initial value before use, and a pH adjuster for adjusting the pH of said slurry to substantially an initial pH value before use.

Slurry recycling system and method for CMP apparatus

A plasma etching method and apparatus are provided in which a distance between an ejection opening (20a) in a plasma generator (2) for ejecting an active species gas and a surface of an object to be etched can be changed to thereby shorten the time required for a surface flattening operation and reduce the cost of equipment as well. To this end, the ejection opening (20a) of a predetermined diameter is disposed in confrontation with a desired convex of the object to be etched in the form of a wafer (110). The active species gas in the form of an F gas (G) is ejected from the ejection opening (20a) to the convex to thereby flatten it through etching. A distance between the ejection opening and the convex is changed by means of a Z drive mechanism (4) to provide an etching area corresponding to an area of the convex, thus performing effective flattening of the wafer (110).

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Ayase, Japan

Shinya Iida