JP2005056983A - Spindle - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide such a spindle that can accurately control the position of a blade. <P>SOLUTION: The spindle 400 is provided with a blade 410 that is attached or detached freely to cut a work into a plurality of sections. It is also provided with a spindle shaft 430 to couple the blade 410 with a motor 420 for rotary-driving the blade 410, a thrust bearing 440 that is provided closer to the motor 420 than the blade 410 and is a positional reference in the axial direction of the blade 410, a spindle housing 450 that is provided with a bearing 452 for thrust bearing for engaging with the thrust bearing 440 and houses the motor 420 and the spindle shaft 430, and a flange 460 that is provided closer to the blade 410 than the thrust bearing 440 and connects the spindle housing 450 and a moving mechanism for moving the spindle housing 450 along the axial direction. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention generally relates to a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus, and more particularly to a spindle that holds a blade for cutting or grooving so as to be rotatable at high speed. The present invention is suitable, for example, for a dicing apparatus that cuts a workpiece into a large number of pieces.

  With the recent high performance and widespread use of electronic equipment, semiconductor manufacturing equipment must more and more efficiently manufacture high-quality semiconductor devices (such as CSP (Chip Size Package)) used in such electronic equipment. It must be gone. In the assembly process (post-process) of the semiconductor manufacturing process, dicing is performed to divide a work (for example, a wafer or a molded substrate) that has completed the wafer processing process (pre-process) into a large number of regions (corresponding to elements such as chips). Apply. In dicing, a workpiece is vacuum-sucked on a table called an index table, positioned and fixed, and then the workpiece is cut with a blade that rotates at high speed while moving the index table in the XY direction, and divided into a number of regions (individual pieces). ). The index table is configured to be rotatable, and when cutting of the workpiece in one direction is completed, the index table is rotated 90 degrees to cut in the orthogonal direction. For this reason, the divided | segmented area | region becomes a rectangular shape normally. Note that, as represented by CSP, semiconductor devices are extremely miniaturized, and it has been required to control the cutting site of a workpiece with a blade with high accuracy.

In the conventional dicing apparatus, a spindle shaft with a blade attached to the tip and a motor for rotating the spindle shaft are housed in the spindle housing, and both ends in the longitudinal direction of the spindle housing are attached to the moving mechanism by connecting fittings. The spindle shaft is provided with a thrust bearing that serves as a reference for the position of the blade, and the position of the blade is controlled by managing the position of the thrust bearing. More specifically, the position of the blade is obtained by adding the distance from the thrust bearing designed in advance to the blade to the position of the thrust bearing (see, for example, Patent Document 1).
JP 2000-61933 A

  In dicing, it is necessary to control the position of the blade with high precision in order to efficiently manufacture a high-quality semiconductor device. However, in the conventional dicing apparatus, the spindle housing is held at two locations (both ends) by the coupling bracket, so the coupling bracket, the spindle shaft and the spindle housing are not related (independently) due to the heat generated by the motor. As a result of thermal expansion, it was impossible to grasp in which direction the thrust bearing was displaced. For this reason, the position of the blade cannot be controlled with high accuracy, and efficient production of a high-quality semiconductor device cannot be achieved due to a shift in the cutting site. A semiconductor device whose cutting site is shifted must be discarded, and the yield decreases.

  It is also possible to prevent the displacement of the thrust bearing by configuring the spindle shaft and the spindle housing using a material having a small thermal expansion. However, such a material is expensive, resulting in an increase in cost, Contrary to demand for efficiency.

  Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a spindle that can control the position of the blade with high accuracy and can efficiently manufacture a high-quality semiconductor device.

  In order to achieve the above object, a spindle according to one aspect of the present invention is a spindle on which a blade for cutting a workpiece into a plurality of sections is detachably mounted, and the motor that rotationally drives the blade and the blade. A spindle shaft that connects the blade, a thrust bearing that is provided closer to the motor than the blade, and that serves as a reference for the axial position of the blade, and a thrust bearing that engages the thrust bearing A spindle housing having a bearing portion and accommodating the motor and the spindle shaft, and a moving mechanism for moving the spindle housing and the spindle housing provided in a position closer to the blade than the thrust bearing is in the axial direction. Connect along And having a flange.

  According to such a spindle, the thrust bearing is provided in the vicinity of the motor and the flange is provided in the vicinity of the blade rather than the thrust bearing, thereby defining the direction of thermal expansion caused by the heat generation of the motor, and the position of the thrust bearing due to the thermal expansion. Deviation can be reduced. Specifically, the thermal expansion of the spindle shaft and the direction of thermal expansion of the spindle housing can be reversed to cancel each other's thermal expansion. Further, since the flange is connected to the moving mechanism in the axial direction of the blade, the influence of the thermal expansion of the flange can be reduced.

  A semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to another aspect of the present invention includes a blade for cutting a workpiece into a plurality of sections, and the above-described spindle on which the blade is detachably mounted. According to such a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus, the position of the blade can be controlled with high accuracy, and a high-quality semiconductor device can be efficiently manufactured.

  Further objects and other features of the present invention will become apparent from the preferred embodiments described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the position of a braid | blade can be controlled with high precision and the spindle which can manufacture a high quality semiconductor device efficiently can be provided.

  Hereinafter, a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to an aspect of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. In addition, the same reference number is attached | subjected about the same member in each figure, and the overlapping description is abbreviate | omitted. Here, FIG. 1 is a schematic front view of a dicing apparatus 1 as an example of the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a schematic top view of the dicing apparatus 1 shown in FIG. FIG. 3 is a schematic side view of the dicing apparatus 1 shown in FIG. In FIGS. 1 and 3, the state where the blade 410 is lowered is indicated by a two-dot broken line.

  1 to 3, the dicing apparatus 1 is an apparatus that cuts and partitions a workpiece such as a wafer or a molded substrate into a plurality of chips, and includes an index table (not shown), a moving mechanism 200, and a support member 300. And a spindle 400.

  An index table (not shown) has, for example, a disk shape, and fixes and positions a workpiece through a suction hole arranged near the center. The index table has a function of separating workpieces in cooperation with a blade 410 described later. The index table is configured to be rotatable at least 90 degrees by the rotation mechanism and to be translated by the translation mechanism.

  The apparatus frame 100 is attached so that the spindle 400 can move through a moving mechanism 200 described later. In the apparatus frame 100, a Y-axis guide rail 212 that constitutes a part of the moving mechanism 200 is provided in parallel with the axial direction of the blade 410 of the spindle 400 (the axis of the spindle shaft 430), and a concave groove 110 is formed. .

  As shown in FIG. 3, the concave groove 110 has a concave cross section and has a function of accommodating the Y-axis motor 218. The concave groove 110 is formed in parallel with the Y axis because the Y axis motor 218 moves in the Y axis direction in synchronization with the movement of the spindle 400 in the Y axis direction. The recessed groove portion 110 can save an extra space for installing the Y-axis motor 218. In other words, the concave groove 110 has a function of reducing the distance between the device frame 100 and a Y-axis plate 214 described later.

  The moving mechanism 200 is connected to the apparatus frame 100 via the Y-axis guide rail 212, and can move the spindle 400 in the Y-axis direction and the Z-axis direction. In this embodiment, the moving mechanism 200 includes a Y-axis moving unit 210 and a Z-axis moving unit 220. However, such a configuration is exemplary, and the use of a moving mechanism having the same operation and effect as this is used. It does not prevent.

  The Y axis moving unit 210 has a function of moving the spindle 400 in the Y axis direction, and includes a Y axis guide rail 212, a Y axis plate 214, a Y axis linear motion guide 216, and a Y axis motor 218.

  The Y-axis guide rail 212 is provided in the apparatus frame 100 in parallel with the Y-axis, and a Y-axis linear motion guide 216 described later is engaged so as to be movable. In this embodiment, the Y-axis guide rail 212 includes a first rail 212a and a second rail 212b, and is arranged on the device frame 100 so as to be parallel to each other. The number of rails constituting the Y-axis guide rail 212 is not limited to two and may be one or two or more.

  The Y-axis plate 214 is composed of a plate-shaped member, and as shown in FIG. 3, a pair of Y-axis linear motion guides 216 is provided on the surface 214a on the apparatus frame 100 side, and the spindle 400 is mounted on the other surface 214b. A Z-axis guide rail 222 and a Z-axis motor 228 described later are provided perpendicular to the axial direction of the blade 410 (the axis of the spindle shaft 430). Referring to FIG. 1, in this embodiment, the Y-axis plate 214 has a length in the Y-axis direction that substantially matches the length of the spindle housing 450, and a length in the Z-axis direction provided in the apparatus frame 100. The shaft guide rail 212 has a rectangular shape longer than the distance between the first rail 212a and the second rail 212b.

  A pair of Y-axis linear motion guides 216 are provided on the surface 214a of the Y-axis plate 214 so as to correspond to the Y-axis guide rails 212 of the apparatus frame 100, and movably engage with the Y-axis guide rails 212. Thereby, the Y-axis plate 214 can move in the Y-axis direction along the Y-axis guide rail 212. In addition, a Z-axis plate 224 (described later) connected to the Y-axis plate 214 also moves in the Y-axis direction in synchronization. As a result, the spindle 400 connected to the Z-axis plate 224 via the support member 300 also moves to the Y-axis guide rail 212. Along the Y axis direction.

  In this embodiment, the Y-axis linear motion guide 216 corresponds to the first rail 212a and the second rail 212b constituting the Y-axis guide rail 212, and is parallel to the Y-axis in the Z-axis direction of the Y-axis plate 214. The first guide 216a and the second guide 216b are disposed at both ends of the first and second guides. As a result, the connection positions of the apparatus frame 100 and the Y-axis plate 214 due to the engagement of the Y-axis guide rail 212 and the Y-axis linear motion guide 216 become both ends in the Z-axis direction of the Y-axis plate 214, and the connection is stabilized. Can be made. In addition, since the Y-axis guide rail 212 includes the first rail 212a and the second rail 212b, the Y-axis linear motion guide 216 corresponds to the first guide 216a and the second guide 216a. Two guides 216b are provided. If the number of Y-axis guide rails 212 is one, the Y-axis guide rail 212 rails are provided so that the corresponding Y-axis linear motion guide 216 is provided. Needless to say, the same number of guides may be provided.

  The Y-axis motor 218 is provided on the surface 214 a of the Y-axis plate 214 so as to be accommodated in the concave groove 110 of the apparatus frame 100, and the Y-axis plate 214 is interposed via the Y-axis guide rail 212 and the Y-axis linear motion guide 216. Has a function as a drive source for moving the lens in the Y-axis direction. In this embodiment, the Y-axis motor 218 is sandwiched between a pair of Y-axis linear motion guides 216 (that is, the first guide 216a and the second guide 216b) provided at both ends of the Y-axis plate 214 in the Z-axis direction. As shown in the figure, it is provided near the center of the surface 214 a of the Y-axis plate 214. This is to make the connection between the Y-axis plate 214 and the apparatus frame 100 more stable in consideration of the Y-axis motor 218 that tends to increase in weight.

  The Z-axis moving unit 220 has a function of moving the spindle 400 in the Z-axis direction, and includes a Z-axis guide rail 222, a Z-axis plate 224, a Z-axis linear guide 226, and a Z-axis motor 228.

  The Z-axis guide rail 222 is provided on the surface 214b of the Y-axis plate 214 in parallel with the Z-axis, and a Z-axis linear guide 226 described later is movably engaged therewith. In this embodiment, the Z-axis guide rail 222 includes a third rail 222a and a fourth rail 222b, and is disposed at the lower end of the Y-axis plate 214 so as to be parallel to each other. By arranging the Z-axis guide rail 222 at the lower end of the Y-axis plate 214, not only can the distance by which the spindle 400 is lowered in the Z-axis direction during dicing be reduced, but the length of the Z-axis guide rail 222 itself is also increased. Can be minimized. The number of rails constituting the Z-axis guide rail 222 is not limited to two, and may be one or two or more.

  The Z-axis plate 224 is composed of a plate-like member, and a pair of Z-axis linear motion guides 226 is provided on the surface 224a on the Y-axis plate 214 side, and the support member 300 is provided on the other surface 224b. The Z-axis plate 224 is connected to a Z-axis that is rotatably supported by a plurality of support plates 224c via, for example, a fixing portion 224d that is embodied as a nut. In the present embodiment, the Z-axis plate 224 has a substantially L-shape in which the length in the Y-axis direction substantially matches the length of the spindle housing 450. However, the shape of the Z-axis plate 224 is not limited to a substantially L shape, and may be, for example, a rectangular shape.

  A pair of Z-axis linear motion guides 226 is provided on the surface 224a of the Z-axis plate 224 so as to correspond to the Z-axis guide rail 222 of the Y-axis plate 214, and movably engages with the Z-axis guide rail 222. Accordingly, the Z-axis plate 224 can move in the Z-axis direction along the Z-axis guide rail 222. As a result, the spindle 400 connected to the Z-axis plate 224 via the support member 300 also moves along the Z-axis guide rail 222 in the Z-axis direction.

  In this embodiment, the Z-axis linear motion guide 226 corresponds to the third rail 222a and the fourth rail 222b constituting the Z-axis guide rail 222, and is parallel to the Z-axis in the Y-axis direction of the Z-axis plate 224. A third guide 226a and a fourth guide 226b are disposed at both ends. As a result, the connection positions of the Y-axis plate 214 and the Z-axis plate 224 due to the engagement of the Z-axis guide rail 222 and the Z-axis linear motion guide 226 become both ends of the Z-axis plate 224 in the Z-axis direction, and this connection is made. It can be stabilized. In addition, since the Z-axis guide rail 222 includes the third rail 222a and the fourth rail 222b, the Z-axis linear guide 216 corresponds to the third guide 226a and the fourth guide 226a. Two guides 226b are provided, but if the number of Z-axis guide rails 222 is one, the Z-axis guide rail 222 rails are provided so that the corresponding Z-axis linear motion guide 226 is provided. Needless to say, the same number of guides may be provided.

  The Z-axis motor 228 is fixed to the surface 224 a of the Z-axis plate 224 so as to be positioned between the Y-axis plate 214 and the Z-axis plate 224, and passes through the Z-axis guide rail 222 and the Z-axis linear motion guide 226. It has a function as a drive source for moving the Z-axis plate 224 in the Z-axis direction. In this embodiment, the Z-axis motor 228 is sandwiched between a pair of Z-axis guide rails 222 (that is, the third rail 222a and the fourth rail 222b) provided at both ends of the Y-axis plate 114 in the Y-axis direction. Thus, it is provided near the center of the surface 214b of the Y-axis plate 214. This is to make the connection between the Z-axis plate 224 and the Y-axis plate 214 more stable in consideration of the Z-axis motor 228 that tends to increase in weight. Further, by matching the position of the Z-axis motor 228 with the position of the Y-axis motor 214 provided on the surface 214a of the Y-axis plate 214, the Y-axis plate 214 can be made more stable.

  The support member 300 connects the Z-axis plate 224 and the spindle 400 and has a function of supporting the spindle 400. The support member 300 allows the spindle 400 to move in the Y-axis direction and the Z-axis direction in synchronization with the Z-axis plate 224. As shown in FIG. 3, the support member 300 has a substantially L-shaped side surface, and one end of the support member 300 serves as a first connection portion 310 connected to the Z-axis plate 224, and a side surface 320 near the other end will be described later. The second connection portion 320 is connected to the flange 460 of the spindle 400. In the support member 300, at least when the Z-axis plate 224 is moved down most in the Z-axis direction, the blade 410 of the spindle 400 is positioned lower than the lower ends of the Y-axis plate 214 and the Z-axis plate 224 (that is, The blade 410 protrudes as shown in FIG. The support member 300 is made of the same material as a spindle housing 450 and a flange 460 described later. This is to make the heat conductivity due to the heat generated by the motor 420 the same.

  In the present embodiment, the first connecting portion 310 is connected to the lower end in the Z-axis direction of the surface 224b of the Z-axis plate 224, that is, the same position as the Z-axis linear motion guide 226. This is because the blade 410 of the spindle 400 is positioned lower than the lower ends of the Y-axis plate 214 and the Z-axis plate 224 as described above. The first connecting portion 310 can be connected to the upper end of the Z-axis plate 224 in the Z-axis direction, but in this case, it is necessary to increase the length of the support member 300 in the Z-axis direction. Please note that.

  FIG. 4 shows the second connection portion 320 of the support member 300 when viewed through the spindle 400. Referring to FIG. 4, the second connecting portion 320 is connected to a flange 460 of the spindle 400 described later in the axial direction of the blade 410 (the axis of the spindle shaft 430). Such a connection is made, for example, by screwing with screws 322 arranged radially. However, the present invention is not limited to screwing with the screw 322, and may be configured to be connected to the flange 460 of the spindle 400 in the axial direction of the blade 410. In the present embodiment, eight screws 322 are arranged, but the number of screws 322 is not limited. By adopting a configuration in which the blade 410 is connected to the flange 460 in the axial direction of the blade 410, the thermal expansion of the flange 460 can be reduced by the support member 300.

  The spindle 400 has a function of detachably mounting the blade 410 and positioning the blade 410 in cooperation with the moving mechanism 200. As shown in FIG. 5, the spindle 400 includes a motor 420, a spindle shaft 430, a thrust bearing 440, a spindle housing 450, and a flange 460. Here, FIG. 5 is a partially transparent sectional view of the spindle 400 shown in FIG.

  The blade 410 is interchangeably attached to the spindle shaft 430, and has a function of cutting (cutting and grooving) a workpiece fixed and positioned on the index table by rotating at high speed around a rotation shaft (not shown). The blade 410 is injected with cooling water from a nozzle (not shown) in order to prevent frictional heat when the workpiece is cut and to prevent the workpiece from scattering. Therefore, the vicinity of the blade 410 is also cooled by the cooling water. In the present embodiment, the blade 410 is configured to be entirely exposed including the cutting portion 412. However, the blade 410 may be configured to cover a portion other than the cutting portion 412 with a cover (not shown).

  The motor 420 has a function of generating a rotational motion for rotating the blade 410 at a high speed. As the motor 420, for example, a brush motor having a commutator and a brush or a brushless motor including a magnetoelectric conversion element can be used. Further, the motor 420 generally generates heat when generating a rotational motion.

  The spindle shaft 430 is composed of a cylindrical member extending in the axial direction of the blade 410, and the blade 410 is attached to the front end 432 and the motor 420 is attached to the rear end 434. In other words, the spindle shaft 430 has a function of connecting the blade 410 and the motor 420 and imparting the rotational motion of the motor 430 to a rotation shaft (not shown) of the blade 410. The spindle shaft 430 undergoes thermal expansion due to the heat generated by the motor 420. As will be described later, since the spindle shaft 430 is related to the thermal expansion of the spindle housing 450, the influence of the positional deviation of the blade 410 can be reduced. . The spindle shaft 430 is provided with a thrust bearing 440.

  The thrust bearing 440 is composed of an annular member, and is disposed on the spindle shaft 430 at a position closer to the motor 420 than the blade 410. The thrust bearing 440 is disposed so as to contact the rear end 434 of the spindle shaft 430 to which the motor 420 is attached in order to cause the thrust bearing 440 to be displaced in a predetermined direction (arrow α ′ direction) as described later. Is preferred. The thrust bearing 440 serves as a reference for the position of the blade 410 in the axial direction. In other words, the position of the blade 410 can be detected from the position of the thrust bearing 440 provided on the spindle shaft 430.

More specifically, the distance _{L A} is determined from the position of the thrust bearing 440 provided on the spindle shaft 430 to the tip 432 of the spindle shaft 430, the distance from the tip 432 of the spindle shaft 430 to the blade 410 (cutting unit) L since also known from the design value _B, by adding up such distances _{L a} and _{L B,} the distance _{L S} of the blade 410 from the thrust bearing 440, i.e., detects the position of the blade 410.

  In the present embodiment, as will be described later, since the thermal expansion of the spindle shaft 430 and the thermal expansion of the spindle housing 450 due to the heat generation of the motor 420 are related, the displacement of the thrust bearing 440 can be reduced. The position of the blade 410 can be maintained with high accuracy.

  The spindle housing 450 accommodates the motor 420 and the spindle shaft 430 so that the motor 420 and the spindle shaft 430 can rotate, and the tip 432 of the spindle shaft 430 is exposed from the spindle housing 450. The spindle housing 450 is thermally expanded due to the heat generated by the motor 420. As will be described later, since the spindle housing 450 is related to the thermal expansion of the spindle shaft 430, the influence of the positional deviation of the blade 410 can be reduced. . The spindle housing 450 has a bearing portion 452 at a position corresponding to the thrust bearing 440 provided on the spindle shaft 430.

  The bearing portion 452 is formed by a groove having an annular concave shape, and engages with the thrust bearing 440. As a result, the bearing 452 positions the spindle shaft 430 via the thrust bearing 440. Further, the reduction in the displacement of the thrust bearing 440 also means that the displacement of the bearing portion 452 is reduced.

  The flange 460 is provided at a position closer to the blade 410 than the thrust bearing 440 in the spindle housing 450. As will be described later, the flange 460 is in contact with the tip 432 of the spindle shaft 430 to which the blade 410 is attached in order to cause the thrust bearing 440 to be displaced in the reverse direction (arrow β ′ direction) described above. It is preferable to arrange. As shown in FIG. 4, the flange 460 is formed of an annular member, and is screwed to the second connection portion 320 of the support member 300 via a screw 322. That is, the flange 460 has a function of connecting the spindle housing 450 and the moving mechanism 200 along the axial direction of the blade 410. Note that only one flange 460 is provided in the spindle housing 450, and the spindle 400 and the moving mechanism 200 are connected at one place where the flange 460 is disposed. The supporting member 300 fixes the vicinity of the blade 410 by the flange 460 so that the motor 420 and the thrust bearing 440 are not positioned in the vicinity of the supporting member 300. Thereby, the shake of the spindle 400 can be prevented. As described above, although there is only one support portion 300 (and flange 460) for supporting the spindle housing 450, the vibration source (ie, the thrust bearing 440) and the heat source (ie, the motor 420) that cause the spindle 400 to shake. ) Is not in the vicinity of the support member 300.

  Here, with reference to FIG. 5, the relationship between the thermal expansion of the spindle shaft 430 and the thermal expansion of the spindle housing 450 caused by the heat generation of the motor 420 in the spindle 400 will be described.

  First, the thermal expansion of the spindle shaft 430 will be considered. The spindle shaft 430 thermally expands (extends) in the direction of arrow α in the figure due to heat generated by the motor 420 attached to the rear end 434. This is because the motor 420 is fixed to the rear end 434 of the spindle shaft 430, so that the direction of thermal expansion (elongation) is limited to the direction from the rear end 434 toward the front end 432.

  As the spindle shaft 430 thermally expands in the direction of the arrow α, the thrust bearing 440 provided on the spindle shaft 430 similarly moves in the direction of the arrow α ′ to cause a positional shift.

  Next, the thermal expansion of the spindle housing 450 will be considered. The spindle housing 450 thermally expands (extends) in the direction of arrow β in the figure with the flange 460 as a reference plane due to heat generated by the motor 420. This is because the spindle housing 450 is fixed to the support member 300 via the flange 460, so that the direction of thermal expansion (elongation) is limited to the direction from the flange 460 toward the motor 420. In other words, the spindle housing 450 from the flange 460 to the blade 410 is not affected by thermal expansion. Therefore, if there is no restriction on the arrangement, it is desirable that the flange 460 is provided on the blade 410 closest to the spindle housing 450.

  As the spindle housing 450 thermally expands in the arrow β direction, the bearing portion 452 formed in the spindle housing 450 similarly moves in the arrow β ′ direction. As a result, the thrust bearing 440 defined by the bearing portion 452 also moves in the direction of the arrow β ′, causing a positional shift.

As described above, the thrust bearing 440 is displaced in the arrow α ′ direction due to the thermal expansion of the spindle shaft 430 and in the arrow β ′ direction due to the thermal expansion of the spindle housing 450, but the arrow α ′ direction and the arrow β ′ direction are Since the directions are opposite to each other, the displacement of the thrust bearing 440 is canceled out. That is, it can be seen that the thrust bearing 440 may be provided at a position where the positional deviation from the arrows α ′ and β ′ due to thermal expansion is offset. In order to cancel out the displacement of the thrust bearing 440, as described above, the motor 420 is arranged away from the blade 410 in the spindle housing 450, and the thrust bearing 440 is placed in the vicinity of the motor 420 and the supporting member. It is necessary to provide 300 near the blade 410. As a result, the displacement of the thrust bearing 440 due to the heat generated by the motor 420 can be reduced. Thus, from the position of the thrust bearing 440 by heat generation of the motor 420 to the tip 432 of the spindle shaft 430, the distance _{L B} or and the thrust bearing 440 from the tip 432 of the spindle shaft 430 to the blade 410 of the distance _{L S} of the blade 410 fluctuates And the position of the blade 410 can be controlled with high accuracy.

  Further, in order to reduce the displacement of the thrust bearing 440, the thermal expansion of the spindle shaft 430 and the spindle housing 450 caused by the heat generation of the motor 420 is used, so that the thermal expansion of the spindle shaft 430 and the spindle housing 450 is small. There is no need to use expensive materials. In other words, the present invention positively utilizes the thermal expansion caused by the heat generation of the motor 420, and determines the direction in which the thermal expansion occurs due to the arrangement of the motor 420, the spindle shaft 430, the thrust bearing 440, the spindle housing 450, and the flange 460. By controlling, the displacement of the thrust bearing 440 is prevented.

  Hereinafter, the operation of the dicing apparatus 1 will be described. Here, as shown in FIG. 6, a case where the lead frame R is divided into a plurality of semiconductor devices W will be described as an example. In the present embodiment, the semiconductor device W is, for example, a resin-encapsulated part PMP that is embodied as a CSP and separated into pieces through a dicing process in a lead frame R as a substrate. However, the present invention does not limit whether the semiconductor device W is resin-sealed. As shown in FIG. 6, the lead frame top R includes a plurality of resin sealing portions PMP, and each resin sealing portion PMP includes a plurality of semiconductor devices W defined by cutting lines or cutting grooves SL. . In addition to the semiconductor device W, the resin sealing portion PMP actually has an end material portion unnecessary as a product, but is omitted. Here, FIG. 6 is a plan view showing the semiconductor device W singulated through a dicing process.

  First, the lead frame R is fixed to a predetermined position of an index table (not shown) by using an alignment mechanism such as a calibration camera. Next, the blade 410 is mounted on the spindle 400. At this time, the wear state of the blade 410 may be detected in the initial state or when the blade is replaced.

Next, the spindle 400 is operated by the moving mechanism 200 to partition the lead frame R for each of the plurality of semiconductor devices W. Specifically, the blade 410 is moved onto the cutting groove SL _x using the Y-axis moving unit 210. Then, the blade 410 causes a high speed, is contacted by lowering the blade 410 by using the Z-axis moving unit 220 to the cutting groove SL _x, cutting the lead frame R at a certain cutting groove SL _x. Then, raise the blade 410 by using the Z-axis moving unit 220, by using the Y-axis moving unit 210 moves the blade 410 on the next cutting groove SL _x. Then, cut along the cutting groove SL _x lowered the blade 410 by using the Z-axis moving unit 220.

After the cutting of all the cutting grooves SL _x is completed, the index table is rotated 90 degrees by the rotation mechanism, and the blade 410 is moved onto the cutting groove SL _y using the Y-axis moving unit 210. Thereafter, repeating the same tasks and cutting of the cutting groove SL _x, and disconnect all the cutting groove SL _y, singulating the lead frame R to a plurality of semiconductor devices W.

When the blade 410 is moved to the cutting grooves SL _x and SL _y , the position of the blade 410 is controlled from the position of the thrust bearing 430 of the spindle 400. At this time, since the thrust bearing 430 is not affected by thermal expansion, the position of the blade 410 can be controlled with high accuracy, and the blade 410 can be accurately positioned with respect to the cutting groove grooves SL _x and SL _y . Is possible. Therefore, it is possible to efficiently produce a high-quality semiconductor device by preventing the displacement of the cut site, and to improve the yield.

  As mentioned above, although preferable embodiment of this invention was described, it cannot be overemphasized that this invention is not limited to these embodiment, A various deformation | transformation and change are possible within the range of the summary.

It is a schematic front view of the dicing apparatus as an example of the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus of this invention. It is a schematic top view of the dicing apparatus shown in FIG. It is a schematic side view of the dicing apparatus shown in FIG. It is an enlarged side view of the 2nd connection part of the support member shown in FIG. FIG. 2 is a partial transmission sectional view of the spindle shown in FIG. 1. It is a top view which shows the semiconductor device separated into pieces through the dicing process.

Explanation of symbols

1 Semiconductor manufacturing equipment (dicing equipment)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 Apparatus frame 200 Moving mechanism 210 Y-axis moving part 220 Z-axis moving part 300 Support member 310 1st connection part 320 2nd connection part 322 Screw 400 Spindle 410 Blade 420 Motor 430 Spindle shaft 440 Thrust bearing 450 Spindle housing 452 Bearing 460 Flange

Claims (1)

A spindle on which a blade for cutting a workpiece into a plurality of sections is detachably mounted,
A spindle shaft that connects the blade and a motor that rotationally drives the blade;
A thrust bearing provided at a position closer to the motor than the blade in the spindle shaft, and serving as a reference for the axial position of the blade;
A spindle housing having a thrust bearing portion engaged with the thrust bearing, and housing the motor and the spindle shaft;
A spindle provided with a flange that is provided closer to the blade than the thrust bearing and connects the spindle housing and a moving mechanism that moves the spindle housing along the axial direction.

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