JP5305151B2 - Polishing equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a polishing device capable of reducing cost which is generated according to enlargement of a polishing object. <P>SOLUTION: The polishing device includes: polishing modules 20 provided with fixed bases 25, polishing members 21, and XY stages 24; fixing pins 26, engagement holes 27, and seals 22 which are provided for the fixed bases 25 for connecting the plurality of polishing modules 20 by connecting the fixed bases 25 of the plurality of polishing modules 20 so that mutual polishing surfaces 21s are positioned side by side; a carrier for holding the polishing object in a state of connecting the plurality of polishing modules 20 and in a state of facing polishing surfaces 21s of the plurality of polishing modules 20; and a controller for making the polishing members 21 of the plurality of polishing modules 20 interlock/move and controlling to polish by the polishing members 21 in a state that XY stages 24 of the plurality of polishing modules 20 are made to work together and that the polishing surfaces 21a of the plurality of polishing modules 20 are made to contact a polished surface. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&amp;INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a polishing apparatus.

  As a polishing apparatus for polishing a surface to be polished such as a glass substrate or a semiconductor wafer, for example, a holding mechanism that holds the object to be polished while the surface to be polished is exposed, and a polishing that is held by the holding mechanism Equipped with a moving mechanism that moves the table while the polishing surface of the object is pressed against a polishing member such as a polishing pad affixed to the table, and moves the table while the polishing surface is pressed against the polishing member A polishing apparatus configured to polish an object to be polished is known (for example, see Patent Document 1). In addition to mechanical polishing for polishing by pressing the polishing member against the surface to be polished and moving the polishing member relative to the surface to be polished, an abrasive such as slurry is supplied to the polishing member, A polishing apparatus that performs chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) that promotes the polishing process by the chemical action of an abrasive is also known.

Japanese Patent No. 2968784

  By the way, in recent years, the size of a polishing object has been increased, and along with this, the polishing apparatus tends to be increased in size. When the polishing apparatus is increased in size, there is a problem in that the cost for the design and manufacture of the polishing apparatus, the conveyance and maintenance of the polishing apparatus, and the consumables such as the polishing cloth increases.

  This invention is made | formed in view of such a subject, and it aims at providing the grinding | polishing apparatus which can reduce the cost concerning the enlargement of a grinding | polishing target object.

  To achieve such an object, a polishing apparatus according to the present invention is provided on a base member, a polishing member having a polishing surface for polishing an object to be polished, and a base member so as to movably support the polishing member. A plurality of polishing modules provided with a polishing member moving mechanism (for example, the XY stage 24 in the embodiment) and a base member, and the base members of the plurality of polishing modules are positioned such that their polishing surfaces are aligned on the same plane. The plurality of polishing modules are connected by the module connecting means (for example, the fixing pin 26, the engagement hole 27, and the seal 22 in the embodiment) and the plurality of polishing modules are connected by the module connecting means. In this state, the pair that holds the object to be polished while facing the polishing surface of the plurality of polishing modules connected side by side on the same plane. An object holding mechanism (for example, the carrier 11 in the embodiment) and a polishing member moving mechanism of a plurality of polishing modules connected by the module connecting means are interlocked, so that the polishing surfaces of the plurality of polishing modules are polished surfaces of the object to be polished. A control mechanism (for example, the controller 40 in the embodiment) that controls the polishing members of a plurality of polishing modules to move in conjunction with the surfaces to be polished and to polish the surfaces to be polished by the polishing members in a state where they are in contact with each other. It is characterized by comprising.

  According to the polishing apparatus of the present invention, the polishing members of the plurality of connected polishing modules are controlled to move in conjunction with the polishing members of the polishing module in contact with the polishing target surface of the object to be polished. Since it is possible to perform synchronous control of the connected polishing modules, the number of polishing modules to be connected can be easily changed according to the size of the polishing object, so that the size of the polishing object can be increased. The associated costs can be reduced.

1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a polishing apparatus according to the present invention. It is a top view when the workpiece | work fixedly hold | maintained by the carrier is seen from upper direction. It is a schematic block diagram which shows the drive mechanism of an XY stage when a grinding | polishing module and a controller are electrically connected. It is a perspective view of a grinding | polishing module. It is a top view which shows the state which connected the polishing module. (A) is a figure when four units | sets and (b) are connecting nine units | sets of polishing modules. (A) is a perspective view of the grinding | polishing module comprised so that a slurry discharge path might be formed. (B) It is a top view which shows the state which connected nine said polishing modules. (C) It is a fragmentary sectional view between the polishing modules 20 which shows the state which formed the slurry discharge path of the V-shaped groove between the two polishing modules 20. FIG.

  Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. A schematic configuration of a polishing apparatus 1 to which the present invention is applied is shown in FIG. A polishing apparatus 1 to which the present invention is applied holds a workpiece that is an object to be polished, and moves the polishing cloth in a state where the surface to be polished is in contact with the polishing surface of the polishing cloth, thereby polishing the workpiece. A polishing apparatus that performs processing. The polishing apparatus 1 includes a transport mechanism 10, a carrier 11, a slurry supply device 15, a polishing module 20, a controller 40, and the like. In the following description, as indicated by an arrow in FIG. 1, the upward direction perpendicular to the workpiece 5 that is the object to be polished is the positive Z-axis direction, and the plane orthogonal to the Z-axis is the XY plane. Further, the left-right direction on the paper surface of FIG.

  The transport mechanism 10 and the carrier 11 are provided for transporting the work 5 in a fixed and held state, and the carrier 11 has a holding member 12 and a frame member 13 as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. Composed. The frame member 13 is made of stainless steel, and the outer peripheral portion is formed in a square frame plate shape. The holding member 12 is made of resin, is formed in a plate shape having a rectangular hole at the center, and is attached to the inside of the frame member 13. The hole is formed in accordance with the shape of the workpiece. In the present embodiment, the square workpiece 5 is fitted and held in the square hole. The workpiece 5 fixed and held by the holding member 12 in this way is conveyed onto the polishing surface 21s of the polishing member 21 by the transfer mechanism 10, and then a predetermined load is applied to the polishing surface 21s of the polishing member 21 by a pressing mechanism (not shown). It comes to be pressed by.

As shown in FIG. 1, the slurry supply device 15 has an opening on the upper surface of a table 23 which will be described in detail later, and a slurry supply path 16 extending downward from the opening into the polishing module 20. Thus, slurry as a polishing liquid is supplied to the polishing member 21 from the lower surface of the polishing member 21. The slurry contains abrasive grains, a dispersing agent, and the like for polishing the workpiece 5, and for example, ceria (CeO ₂ ) is used as a material for the abrasive grains. The slurry supplied via the slurry supply path 16 is discharged from the outside of the polishing module 20, and the discharged slurry is recovered in a recovery tank (not shown), and the recovered slurry Is filtered through a filter (not shown) and used again.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the controller 40 includes a motor control board 41, a servo amplifier 42 (X-axis and Y-axis servo amplifiers 42a and 42b), etc., and as shown in FIG. It is connected to an apparatus 15 and an XY stage 24 described in detail later. The motor control board 41 is a control board for controlling driving of an X-axis motor 31 and a Y-axis motor (not shown), which will be described in detail later, and controls the X-axis motor 31 and the Y-axis motor to the servo amplifier 42. The servo amplifier 42 performs drive control of the X-axis motor 31 and the Y-axis motor based on the received control signal. In this manner, the position of the XY stage 24 on the X axis and the Y axis with respect to the workpiece 5, and the moving speed and rotating speed in the X and Y directions can be controlled. In addition, by sending a control signal from the controller 40 to the slurry supply device 15, it is possible to control the amount of slurry discharged to the polishing member 21.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 4, the polishing module 20 includes a polishing member 21, a seal 22, a table 23 for providing the polishing member 21 on the upper surface, an XY stage 24 for driving the table 23, and a fixed base 25. The polishing module 20 has a square shape with a side slightly less than 50 cm when viewed from the positive direction of the Z-axis. The fixed base 25 is provided on the lower surface of the XY stage 24, and the XY stage 24 can be moved along the XY plane with respect to the fixed base 25. As shown in FIG. 4, the fixed base 25 has a rectangular parallelepiped shape, and has an upper surface (a surface when viewed from the positive Z-axis direction) and a bottom surface (a surface when viewed from the negative Z-axis direction). It is a square with a side of 50 cm. The four side surfaces (four surfaces orthogonal to the bottom surface) of the fixed base 25 are described in detail later on two side surfaces having the fixing pins 26, which will be described in detail later, and on the side opposite to the surface having the fixing pins 26. It is comprised by the two side surfaces which have the engaging hole 27 to do. The polishing member 21 is provided so as to cover the upper surface of the table 23, and is made of a material such as polyurethane foam. The polishing surface 5s of the workpiece 5 fixed and held by the carrier 11 is used as the polishing surface 21s of the polishing member 21. The workpiece 5 can be polished by moving the XY stage 24 in the X or Y direction while being in contact with the workpiece. The seal 22 is used when connecting the polishing module 20, and is used to fill a gap between the polishing member 21 and the table 23 generated when connecting the polishing module 20.

  As shown in FIG. 4A, the fixing pin 26 is provided on two side surfaces of the four side surfaces of the fixing base 25. The height from the lower surface of the fixing base 25 is h1 on one side surface. The distance from the left end of the fixed base 25 is one at the position w1, the height from the lower surface is h2 and the distance from the left end is one at the position w1, and the height from the lower surface is h1 and the distance from the right end. Is provided at a position of w1, a height from the lower surface is h2, and a distance from the right end is one at a position of w1, for a total of four. Further, on the two side surfaces opposite to the side surface on which the fixing pin 26 is provided, an engagement hole 27 for engaging the fixing pin 26 of another polishing module 20 is provided, and FIG. ), The height from the lower surface of the fixed base 25 is one at a position where the distance from the left end of the fixed base 25 is w1 and the height from the lower surface is h2 and the fixed base 25. The distance from the left end is 1 at the position of w1, the height from the bottom is h1 and the distance from the right is 1 at the position of w1, the height from the bottom is h2, and the distance from the right is w1. One in position and a total of four like the fixed pins 26 are provided. In this way, the fixing pin 26 and the engaging hole 27 are provided at exactly the same position on one side surface of the fixing base 25, and two such that the side surfaces with the fixing pin 26 are adjacent to each other, and the engaging hole 27. Since the two side surfaces on which the fixing pins 26 are provided are provided on the side opposite to the side surface on which the fixing pins 26 are provided, the fixing pins 26 of the other polishing modules 20 are engaged with the engaging holes 27 of the polishing module 20. A plurality of polishing modules 20 can be connected.

Further, at the time of polishing, the height (the distance from the lower surface of the fixed base 25 to the polishing surface 21s) h of the polishing surface 21s needs to be the same for each polishing module 20, but the fixed base 25, the XY stage 24, Alternatively, the polishing surface 21s may have a small difference (tolerance) in the height of the table 23 or the thickness of the polishing member 21 may vary due to the polishing member 21 being made of foamed polyurethane. May differ for each polishing module 20.
Therefore, before polishing the wafer 5, the polishing module 20 is connected in a state where a plurality of units (for example, nine units as shown in FIG. 5B) are connected, and the Z-axis positive direction of the connected polishing members 21 is connected. A dummy polishing object having a uniform planar shape, which is set to the same area as viewed from above, is polished, and the polishing surface 21s of the polishing member 21 made of a material such as polyurethane foam is flattened by this polishing process. It has come to be.

  The XY stage 24 is provided to move the table 23 covered with the polishing member 21 along the XY plane with respect to the fixed base 25. As shown in FIG. 3, the X-axis motor 31 and the Y-axis motor (see FIG. The XY stage 24 can be moved with respect to the fixed base 25 by not shown). Further, the movement amount of the XY stage 24 moved by the X-axis and Y-axis motors is detected by the X-axis and Y-axis linear encoders 38 and 39, and the rotation amounts of the X-axis and Y-axis motors are It is detected by an X-axis and Y-axis motor encoder (not shown) built in the X-axis and Y-axis motors. The detected movement amount of the XY stage 24 is applied to the motor control board 41 via the X-axis and Y-axis encoder cables 32 and 35, and the detected rotation amount of the motor is determined to be the X-axis and Y-axis motor encoder cable 34, 37 is transmitted to the X-axis and Y-axis servo amplifiers 42a and 42b. The X-axis and Y-axis motor power cables 33 and 36 are cables for transmitting a drive command transmitted from the servo amplifier 42 to the X-axis and Y-axis motors. Further, the XY stage 24 is connected to an X-axis motor 31 and a Y-axis motor (not shown) via a moving mechanism (not shown) including a gear G as shown in FIG. When the 31 or Y-axis motor is driven based on a drive command from the servo amplifier 42, it moves in the X-axis and Y-axis directions.

  The X-axis and Y-axis linear encoders 38 and 39 detect the actual movement amount of the XY stage 24 in the X direction and Y direction at predetermined time intervals (for example, every 10 ms), and are built in the X axis and Y axis motors. The X-axis and Y-axis motor encoders thus detected detect the actual rotation amounts of the X-axis motor 31 and the Y-axis motor every predetermined time (for example, every 10 ms). In FIG. 3, only one controller 40 and one polishing module 20 connected to the controller 40 are shown, but actually, when a plurality of polishing modules 20 are connected, one A plurality of polishing modules 20 are connected to the controller 40.

  In the polishing apparatus 1 configured as described above, the surface to be polished 5 s of the workpiece 5 held by the carrier 11 is polished in a state where the slurry is supplied from the Z-axis negative direction toward the polishing member 21 by the slurry supply apparatus 15. The workpiece 5 is polished by contacting the polishing surface 21s of the member 21 and moving the XY stage 24 in the XY direction. Therefore, for example, when polishing a square workpiece having a side length of less than 50 cm, the polishing process can be performed using only one polishing module 20 described above. However, for example, when polishing a 70 cm × 70 cm square workpiece, the polishing module 20 alone cannot be polished, and it is necessary to connect four units as shown in FIG. Furthermore, for example, when polishing a large square workpiece of 120 cm × 120 cm, the polishing cannot be executed unless nine units are connected as shown in FIG.

  As described above, when polishing a large workpiece, a plurality of polishing modules 20 are connected, and after polishing modules 20 are connected, polishing is performed. Specifically, the side surface of the polishing module 20 provided with the other fixing pin 26 is opposed to the side surface of the polishing module 20 provided with the engagement hole 27, so that The fixing pins 26 are engaged to join the side surfaces of the fixing base 25 of each polishing module 20. In this manner, the polishing module 20 is connected by engaging the side surface provided with the fixing pin 26 with the side surface provided with the engagement hole 27.

  A method of performing polishing using the polishing module 20 connected as described above will be described below. First, when the operator operates an input / output device (not shown), the dummy polished article is fixedly held by the carrier 11, and the dummy polished article fixedly held is transferred by the transfer mechanism 10. Then, the dummy polishing object is pressed against the polishing surface 21s by a pressing mechanism (not shown), and the XY stage 24 is operated in the pressed state. Thus, by polishing the dummy polishing object, the height of the polishing surface 21s is made uniform.

  After equalizing the height of the polishing surface 21s, the workpiece fixed and held by the carrier 11 is conveyed to the upper surface of the polishing surface 21s by the conveyance mechanism 10, and the surface to be polished of the workpiece is polished by a pressing mechanism (not shown). It is pressed against the polishing surface 21 s of the member 21. In this state, a command value of the same movement amount is output for each polishing module 20 from the motor control board 41 to the X-axis and Y-axis servo amplifiers 42a and 42b, and the X-axis motor 31 and the Y-axis motor are operated based on the command values. When the XY stage 24 is driven and moved in the XY direction, the surface to be polished is polished. Here, in the XY stage 24 via the moving mechanism (not shown) including the gear G in the present embodiment, even if the command value output from the motor control board 41 to each polishing module 20 is the same, play between the gears There may be a problem that the polishing module 20 does not move by exactly the same amount.

  In response to the above problems, in the polishing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment, an X-axis and Y-axis motor encoder (not shown) that is built in the X-axis and Y-axis motors and can detect the rotation amount of the motor is provided in the motor. While detecting the actual rotation amount, the X-axis and Y-axis linear encoders 38 and 39 attached to the XY stage 24 detect the actual movement amount in the X-axis and Y-axis directions, and the detected actual movement amount of the XY stage 24 Is transmitted to the motor control board 41, and the detected actual rotation amount is transmitted to the servo amplifiers 42a and 42b. The motor control board 41 compares the movement amount according to the command value and the detected actual movement amount for each polishing module 20, and the polishing module 20 having a difference between the movement amount according to the command value and the actual movement amount. On the other hand, the command value is corrected and the corrected command value is transmitted to the servo amplifiers 42a and 42b, and the movement amount of the XY stage 24 and the rotation amounts of the X-axis motor 31 and the Y-axis motor are corrected. As described above, the feedback control is performed to move the XY stage 24 of each polishing module 20 while correcting the movement amount of the XY stage 24 and the rotation amount of the motor, so that the movement amount differs for each polishing module 20. Therefore, cooperative control of the plurality of polishing modules 20 can be performed reliably.

  As described above, in the polishing apparatus 1 according to this embodiment described above, for example, as illustrated in FIG. 5, when polishing a large workpiece, the number of polishing modules 20 according to the size of the object to be polished is combined, It becomes possible to coordinately control the combined polishing module 20. As a result, even when polishing large workpieces, it can be used for polishing workpieces of various sizes, and the design, manufacturing and maintenance costs related to the polishing device itself, and consumables such as polishing cloths, etc. Such costs can be reduced. In addition, by combining a plurality of polishing modules 20, the size of the polishing apparatus can be made optimal for the size of the polishing object, so that the cost for consumables such as polishing cloth can be reduced. .

  In the polishing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment, the example of the polishing module 20 having a shape when viewed from above (Z-axis positive direction) is a square having a side of 50 cm is described. The thickness and shape are not limited to this.

  In the present embodiment, the example in which the slurry is supplied from below the polishing member 21 upward (from the Z-axis negative direction to the Z-axis positive direction) has been described, but the method for supplying the slurry is not limited thereto, For example, the polishing member 21 may be supplied from above to below (Z-axis positive direction to Z-axis negative direction) via a slurry nozzle or the like.

  In the present embodiment, the slurry supplied to the polishing member 21 is discharged from the outside of the polishing module 20 and the discharged slurry is recovered downward. However, the method for recovering the slurry is limited to this. For example, as shown in FIG. 6A, the area of the seal 22a when viewed from the Z-axis upward direction is slightly larger than the polishing member 21, and as shown in FIG. A gap 17 may be formed when a plurality of polishing modules 20 are connected, and the gap 17 may be used as a slurry discharge path. Further, a slurry discharge hole 18 penetrating in the Z-axis direction may be provided at the intersection of the slurry discharge paths, and the slurry may be discharged downward from the slurry discharge hole 18. Furthermore, as shown in the partial cross-sectional view of FIG. 6C, the polishing member 21 may be chamfered so that the slurry supply path becomes a V-shaped groove.

  Furthermore, in this embodiment, although the example which uses the fixing pin 26 and the engagement hole as a connection means for connecting the some polishing module 20 was demonstrated, you may use another connection means. Further, in order to match the height of the polishing member 21 when connecting the polishing module 20, the height of the fixing pin 26 and the engagement hole are all the same, and the polishing surface 21s is made uniform by using a dummy polishing object. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, a vertical position adjustment mechanism that can finely adjust the table 23 in the vertical direction is provided, and the height of the polishing member 21 between the polishing modules 20 is adjusted by the vertical position adjustment mechanism. Fine adjustment may be possible.

  In the present embodiment, the example in which the shape of the surface to be polished of the workpiece 5 is a quadrangle has been described. However, the shape is not limited to a quadrangle. For example, the polishing according to the present invention is also performed when a circular workpiece is polished. The device 1 can be applied. In this case, the work may be fixed and held using a holding member having a circular hole.

1 Polishing device 5 Workpiece (polishing object)
11 Carrier (object holding mechanism)
15 Slurry supply device (polishing liquid supply device)
20 Polishing module 21 Polishing member 22 Seal (module connecting means)
24 XY stage (Abrasive member moving mechanism)
25 Fixed base (base member)
26 Fixing pin (module connection means)
27 engaging hole (module connecting means)
38 X-axis linear encoder (movement amount detection means)
39 Y-axis linear encoder (movement amount detection means)
40 controller (control mechanism)

Claims (4)

A plurality of polishing modules including a base member, a polishing member having a polishing surface for polishing an object to be polished, and a polishing member moving mechanism provided on the base member and movably supporting the polishing member;
A module connecting means provided on the base member, wherein the plurality of polishing modules are connected so that their polishing surfaces are aligned on the same plane, and the plurality of polishing modules are connected together;
An object holding mechanism for holding the object to be polished in a state of facing the polishing surfaces of the plurality of polishing modules connected side by side on the same plane in a state where the plurality of polishing modules are connected by the module connecting means;
In a state where the polishing member moving mechanisms of the plurality of polishing modules connected by the module connecting means are interlocked, the polishing surfaces of the plurality of polishing modules are in contact with the surface to be polished of the object to be polished. A polishing apparatus comprising: a control mechanism for controlling the polishing member to polish the polishing surface by moving the polishing member of the polishing module along the polishing surface. Further comprising flattening means having a flat surface for flattening the polishing surfaces of the plurality of connected polishing modules;
The control mechanism is a state in which the polishing surfaces of the plurality of polishing modules are brought into contact with the flat surfaces of the flattening means in conjunction with the polishing member moving mechanisms of the plurality of polishing modules connected by the module connecting means. The polishing members of the plurality of polishing modules are controlled so as to be flattened by polishing and moving the polishing members of the plurality of polishing modules along the flat surface. The polishing apparatus as described. A moving amount detecting means provided in the polishing module for detecting the moving amount of the polishing member of the polishing module;
The control mechanism controls the polishing members of the plurality of polishing modules connected by the module connecting means to move in conjunction with the target movement amount along the surface to be polished of the object to be polished, and the movement amount of each polishing module The movement amount of the polishing member detected by the detection means is detected, and when the movement amount detected by the movement amount detection means of the polishing module is different from the target movement amount, the detected movement amount is set as the target movement amount. 3. The polishing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the polishing device is controlled to move so that the polishing member of the polishing module is moved. A polishing liquid supply device for supplying a polishing liquid for polishing the polishing members of the plurality of polishing modules;
The plurality of polishing modules are connected by the module connecting means with a gap for allowing the polishing liquid to flow between a polishing surface of a polishing module and a polishing surface of another polishing module. The polishing apparatus according to any one of 1 to 3.

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