JPH0612769B2 - Method and device for cutting semiconductor wafer - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a semiconductor wafer cutting method and apparatus.

More specifically, the present invention relates to a method and an apparatus for cutting a semiconductor wafer for manufacturing a substrate for a discrete device such as a transistor, and to improvement of efficiency in the cutting.

[Prior Art] Conventionally, the applicant of the present invention has previously proposed a semiconductor wafer cutting means for manufacturing a substrate for a discrete element (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 3-145726).

That is, in a cutting means for cutting a semiconductor wafer having an impurity diffusion layer in which impurities are diffused on both sides from the central portion of its thickness width, the purpose is to efficiently perform a cutting process without damaging the semiconductor wafer. is there.

Further, regarding the previous proposal of the present applicant, a method of forming a reinforcing material (contact plate) or the like at the end of cutting is further described in JP-A-3-
No. 181131.

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] In the above-mentioned prior proposal by the applicant, since the semiconductor wafer is extremely thin, the cutting speed is set to prevent the generation of fine cracks during cutting and to ensure accuracy. It has a point to be improved that it cannot be made as fast as a slice of a wafer from a normal ingot, and the cutting process is not efficient.

The present invention provides a semiconductor wafer cutting method for efficiently and simultaneously cutting a plurality of semiconductor wafers by one cutting mechanism when the diameter of the target wafer is relatively smaller than the inner diameter of the cutting blade. It is an object of the present invention to provide a device suitable for carrying out this method.

[Means for Solving the Problems] In order to solve the above problems, the semiconductor wafer cutting method according to the present invention employs the following means.

That is, according to claim 1, in the semiconductor wafer cutting method of cutting a semiconductor wafer into two halves from a central portion of its thickness width by an inner peripheral cutting mechanism, a plurality of wafers are cut in a cutting action plane of a cutting blade of the cutting mechanism. The semiconductor wafers of 1 are arranged in a single row in a direction perpendicular to the feeding direction for cutting, and are held and cut by vacuum suction while maintaining the positional relationship in that direction, and a plurality of wafers are cut by one cutting feeding operation. It is characterized in that a semiconductor wafer is cut.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the semiconductor wafer cutting method according to the first aspect, the semiconductor wafer is useful as a wafer having a qualitative nonuniformity in the thickness direction such as an impurity diffusion layer in which impurities are diffused on both sides.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the method of cutting a semiconductor wafer according to the first or second aspect, a plurality of semiconductor wafers each having a reinforcing portion formed on a part of a peripheral edge thereof are cut and fed by the reinforcing portion on the rear side. It is characterized in that it is arranged so that the inner peripheral arc of the cutting blade is reached at the same time at the end of cutting at the center of the reinforced portion of the covered wafer outer periphery, and at the same time, cutting is completed and the linking operation with the recovery device is facilitated. .

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the semiconductor wafer cutting method according to the first aspect, the second aspect, or the third aspect, a main operation for supplying and recovering an unprocessed or processed semiconductor wafer is completed while the semiconductor wafer is being cut. The feature is that the cutting mechanism is operated efficiently.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the semiconductor wafer cutting processing method according to the fourth aspect, the cutting mechanism is avoided for delivering the unprocessed and processed semiconductor wafer to the holding mechanism that holds the semiconductor wafer and contacts and separates from the cutting mechanism. It is characterized by easy, safe and reliable operation at the position.

Further, in claim 6, in the method of cutting a semiconductor wafer according to claim 4 or 5, the method of delivering a plurality of unprocessed semiconductor wafers to a holding device and collecting the processed double wafers from the holding device. It is characterized in that the cutting mechanism is efficiently operated by simultaneously performing the following operations.

Further, in order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the semiconductor wafer cutting apparatus according to the present invention employs the following means.

That is, in claim 7, a cutting mechanism equipped with an inner peripheral cutting blade that rotates at a high speed to cut the semiconductor wafer from the center of its thickness width and divides the wafer into two parts so that the cutting action surface becomes vertical.
The holding mechanism, which holds a plurality of unprocessed semiconductor wafers on the cutting action plane of the cutting blade and continues to hold even if the number of processed semiconductor wafers is double, separates the cutting mechanism and the holding mechanism from each other. Position feeding mechanism for relatively moving in the horizontal direction, a cutting feeding mechanism for relatively moving the cutting mechanism and the holding mechanism in the vertical direction or the horizontal direction so as to move in the reverse direction, and the holding mechanism and the unprocessed semiconductor wafer supply unit. And a supply / recovery mechanism for transferring and delivering a plurality of semiconductor wafers and a doubled number of these semiconductor wafers to / from the processed semiconductor wafer recovery unit, and the holding mechanism has a holding function at a position separated from the cutting mechanism. The operation is set to transfer the unprocessed and processed semiconductor wafers intermittently to the supply / recovery mechanism, and the position feed mechanism cuts the cutting blade at the position where the holding mechanism is close to the cutting blade. The operation is set to index the central part of the thickness width of the unprocessed semiconductor wafer on the surface, and the supply / recovery mechanism conveys the processed semiconductor wafer to the recovery part during the cutting of the semiconductor wafer and stores it in a new unprocessed state. Operation is set so as to take out the semiconductor wafer from the supply unit, complete the transfer, and wait.

Further, in claim 8, in the semiconductor wafer cutting apparatus according to claim 7, the holding mechanisms are opposed to each other with a space adjustable.
A plurality of holding plates are provided, and the supply / recovery mechanism is provided with a plurality of supply-side hands having suction parts on one side and a plurality of recovery-side hands having suction parts on both sides, and the retention mechanism holds at least one A board holds an unprocessed semiconductor wafer, and the other holding board operates the holding function at the latest just before the end of cutting of the unprocessed semiconductor wafer to continue cutting and holds each processed semiconductor wafer divided into two. , The collecting side hand is inserted between the processed semiconductor wafers and simultaneously receives both processed semiconductor wafers, so that the supply side hand can spread the unprocessed semiconductor wafers so that the holding plate interval is increased. The operation is set.

According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, in the semiconductor wafer cutting apparatus according to the seventh or eighth aspect, the supply unit and the recovery unit have a cassette structure in which the semiconductor wafers are arranged in parallel, and the semiconductor wafers are taken out and stored in a parallel direction at a constant pitch every time they are stored. It is characterized in that it comprises a moving drive and the supply and recovery mechanism functions in a vertical plane of motion.

According to a tenth aspect of the invention, in the semiconductor wafer cutting apparatus of the seventh, eighth or ninth aspect, the supply / recovery mechanism has an unprocessed semiconductor wafer supply system and a processed semiconductor wafer recovery system adjacent to each other in a common series. It is characterized by being integrated.

[Operation] According to the above-mentioned means, according to claim 1, a plurality of semiconductor wafers are arranged in a predetermined arrangement with respect to the cutting mechanism to cut the semiconductor wafer. Since it is possible to cut a plurality of semiconductor wafers with one cutting stroke substantially close to the above, it is an object of the present invention to provide a semiconductor wafer cutting method that efficiently and simultaneously cuts a plurality of semiconductor wafers with one cutting blade. Is solved.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, in the action of the first aspect, the hard semiconductor wafer in which the impurities are diffused is targeted for cutting.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the operation of the first aspect, the cutting portion of the semiconductor wafer is reinforced by the reinforcing portion, and the plurality of semiconductor wafers are started to be cut at substantially the same time, and the cutting is ended at the same time. It will be easier.

Further, in the fourth aspect, in addition to the action of the first aspect, the operations of supplying and collecting the semiconductor wafers proceed simultaneously with the cutting process.

According to the fifth aspect of the invention, in the operation of the fourth aspect, the presence of the cutting blade does not hinder the transfer operation of the semiconductor wafer, which is safe and reliable.

According to claim 6, in the operation of claim 4, a plurality of unprocessed semiconductor wafers and two or more processed semiconductor wafers are simultaneously supplied to the holding device and are simultaneously recovered from the holding device. Efficient operation of the cutting machine can be measured.

Further, in claim 7, the cutting mechanism, the holding mechanism, and the operation mechanism, which are set so as to satisfy the functions of claims 1 to 6,
Since the position feed mechanism, the cutting feed mechanism, and the supply / recovery mechanism are provided, it is suitable to carry out a semiconductor wafer cutting method for efficiently cutting a plurality of semiconductor wafers simultaneously or simultaneously by one cutting mechanism. The problem of providing a device is solved.

Further, in the eighth aspect, in the operation of the seventh aspect, the holding mechanism and the supply and recovery mechanism are smoothly linked.

Further, in the ninth aspect, in the operation of the seventh aspect, the supply / recovery mechanism, the supply section, and the recovery section are smoothly linked.

Further, in claim 10, in the operation of claim 7, the installation structure of the supply / recovery mechanism can be made compact and compact, and convenience in operation can be achieved.

[Embodiment] An embodiment of a semiconductor wafer cutting method and apparatus according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a basic schematic diagram showing an embodiment of a semiconductor wafer cutting method according to the present invention.

FIG. 1 (A) shows a reinforcing portion P at a part of the peripheral edge in the cutting action plane of the cutting blade 12 of the inner peripheral type cutting mechanism 1 for cutting the semiconductor wafer W into two parts from the center of the thickness width. The two unprocessed semiconductor wafers W each formed with the reinforcing portion P are cut and fed at the rear side, and at the end of the cutting at the center of the reinforcing portion of the outer circumference of the wafer covered with the reinforcing portion, at the same time as the inner circular arc of the cutting blade 12 is cut. Arrange them in a single row so that they can reach, and 2 in 1 cutting feed operation of the cutting mechanism 1.
The semiconductor wafers W are cut at the same time.
As shown in FIG. 2, the reinforcing portion P formed on the semiconductor wafer W is formed by depositing an adhesive or the like or adhering a resin material or the like that has been previously molded. The purpose is to prevent damage to the cut end of W (particularly, a thin and hard semiconductor wafer for a discrete element substrate having an impurity diffusion layer in which impurities are diffused).

According to such an embodiment, two semiconductor wafers W can be simultaneously cut and cut at the same time, so that the semiconductor wafer W can be cut efficiently, and in addition, unprocessed and processed. The supply and recovery of the semiconductor wafers W and W'is made simpler in the linkage mechanism with the holding device, and the efficiency is improved. Further, there is an advantage that the cutting stroke of the cutting mechanism 1 is about half per single wafer.

It should be noted that the cutting mechanism 1 is provided with two from two locations indicated by a and b.
It is desirable that the cooling liquid be supplied to each of the unprocessed semiconductor wafers W.

Further, as another example of the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 (A), three semiconductor wafers W are simultaneously cut as shown in FIG.
It is also possible to simultaneously cut four semiconductor wafers W as shown in FIG. Further, as shown in FIG. 1 (D), it is possible to simultaneously cut a plurality of semiconductor wafers W having different diameters, and in this case also, it is preferable to arrange the semiconductor wafers W so that the cutting ends are made at the same time.

It should be noted that S in the drawing is a minimum stroke for simultaneously finishing the cutting of each wafer.

FIGS. 3 and 4 show an embodiment of a cutting apparatus suitable for cutting two semiconductor wafers as shown in FIG. 1 (A).

In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3 and FIG. 4, a cutting mechanism 1 and a cutting feeding mechanism 4 provided for a cutting process and a holding mechanism 2 linked to each process of a cutting process, a supplying process and a collecting process. The position feed mechanism 3 and the supply / recovery mechanism 5 used for the supply process and the recovery process.

The cutting mechanism 1 is composed of an inner peripheral cutting blade, and has a dish-shaped chuck 11 that is connected to a rotary shaft and rotates at a high speed, a disk-shaped cutting blade 12 having a cutting edge such as a diamond layer on the inner peripheral edge, and a cutting blade. And a ring-shaped attachment member (13) for tensioning and fixing (12) to the circumference of the chuck (11).

This cutting mechanism 1 is preferably fixedly installed with the cutting action surface of the cutting blade 12 being vertical in the entire apparatus, and the cutting blade 12 is rotated at a high speed on the fixed cutting action surface so that two cutting blades are installed. Each unprocessed semiconductor wafer W is cut from the center of its thickness and divided into two parts.

The holding mechanism 2 includes two sets of holding plates 21, 21 'and 22, 22' which are made of a porous material or the like and which vertically face each other and are connected to a vacuum pump (not shown) to perform the holding function of the suction structure. Both holding plates 21 and 21 'are connected to each other via a rod 23 and both holding plates 2
A space adjusting drive unit 24 such as an air cylinder for adjusting the space between 1, 21 'and 22, 22', and both holding plates 21, 21 'and 22, 22'.
And a base 25 that allows the cutting mechanism 1 to approach and separate from the cutting mechanism 1 on a horizontal plane. Of these, one set of holding boards 21, 21 '
Is connected to the position feed mechanism so that two unprocessed semiconductor wafers W can be arranged in the cutting action plane of the cutting blade 12 of the cutting mechanism 1.

This holding mechanism 2 holds and releases an unprocessed semiconductor wafer W and a processed semiconductor wafer W'by operating and releasing the holding function of both holding plates 21, 21 'and 22, 22'. Both holding plates 21, 21 'and 22, 22' enable the supply of the unprocessed semiconductor wafer and the removal of the processed semiconductor wafer W'only at the positions separated from the cutting mechanism 1, and at the time of this removal. As shown in FIG. 3 (B), the two holding plates 21, 21 'and 22, 22' are separated from each other. Also,
The holding mechanism 2 operates by holding the one of the holding plates 21 and 21 'to cut the supplied unprocessed semiconductor wafer W in a sucked and held state, and at the latest just before the end of the cutting including the reinforcing portion P. The holding functions of the other holding plates 22 and 22 'are also operated so that the one processed semiconductor wafer W'cut by the cutting mechanism 1 is continuously held without being cut off.

The position feed mechanism 3 includes two sets of two holding plates 21 and 2 of the holding mechanism 2.
1 'and 22, 22' are composed of, for example, a servo motor which horizontally and integrally moves on the base 25 to and away from the cutting action surface of the cutting mechanism 1.

The position feeding mechanism 3 brings the holding mechanism 2 close to the cutting action surface of the cutting mechanism 1 so as to index the central portion of the thickness width of the unprocessed semiconductor wafer W to the cutting action surface of the cutting blade 12 of the cutting mechanism 1. In addition, the holding mechanism 2 is separated from the cutting action surface of the cutting mechanism to avoid the cutting blade 12 of the cutting mechanism 1 and to be linked with the supply and recovery mechanism 5 described later.

The cutting / feeding mechanism 4 is composed of a servo motor or the like that moves the holding mechanism 2 holding the unprocessed semiconductor wafer W together with its base 25 in the vertical direction or the horizontal direction.

The cutting feed mechanism 4 starts to move after the position feed mechanism 3 indexes the central portion of the thickness width of the unprocessed semiconductor wafer W to the cutting action surface of the cutting blade 12 of the cutting mechanism 1. . The position feed mechanism 3 does not operate while the cutting feed mechanism 4 is operating.

The supply / recovery mechanism 5 includes a moving unit 51 that uses a stepping motor or the like that can reciprocate within a certain range, and two roboting arm units 52 and 53 that are connected to the moving unit 51.

The moving part 51 has an unprocessed semiconductor wafer W arranged adjacent to the transfer position where the holding mechanism 2 is farthest from the cutting mechanism 1.
A first moving section 51a disposed between the supply section 6 in which is stored and the recovery section 7 in which the processed semiconductor wafer W'is stored.
And a second moving part 51b supported by the first moving part 51a to complement the reciprocating motion of the first moving part 51a, and a roboting arm part that is supported adjacent to the second moving part 51b at regular intervals.
It is provided with a pair of supply side moving part 51c and recovery side moving part 51d which directly operate 52 and 53.

The roboting arm parts 52 and 53 are composed of a supply side moving part 51c, a supply side corresponding to the collecting side moving part 51d, and a collecting side.
Rotatable arms 52a and 53a whose rear ends are connected to the supply-side moving portion 51c and the recovery-side moving portion 51d, respectively, and rotary portions 52b and 5 such as rotary actuators that serve as pivotal fulcrums of the arms 52a and 53a.
3b, two supply-side hands 52c, 52d attached to the tips of the arms 52a, 53a, respectively, for holding the unprocessed semiconductor wafer W by suction means, and two pairs for holding the processed semiconductor wafer W'by suction means, etc. The collecting side hands 53c and 53d are provided. These supply side hands 52c, 52d, recovery side hands 53c, 5
3d has an arrangement corresponding to the holding plates 21, 21 'and 22, 22' of the holding mechanism 2, and in particular, the collecting hands 53c, 53d can hold four processed semiconductor wafers W'at the same time. It has a paired structure so that you can. The robots 52, 53 are provided with the rotating parts 52b, 53b because the cutting mechanism is on the work horizontal moving side fixedly arranged at a fixed position. This is because the reinforcing portion P is set to the cutting end side by rotating it by 90 degrees between the storage and the delivery to the holding mechanism 2.

The supply unit 6 and the recovery unit 7 have a cassette structure in which unprocessed and processed semiconductor wafers W and W'can be arranged side by side. A constant stepping motor or the like is used every time the semiconductor wafers W and W'are taken out and stored. It is arranged to move in a parallel direction at a pitch (pitch of taking out and storing the semiconductor wafers W and W '). Further, the supply unit 6 and the recovery unit 7 are respectively 2
Supply side hands 52c, 52d consisting of two pairs, collection side hand
Corresponding to 53c and 53d, it has a structure in which two columns can be arranged in parallel.

According to such an embodiment, first, the holding mechanism 2 is moved by the position feeding mechanism 3 so that the supply / recovery mechanism 5 can avoid the cutting blade 12 of the cutting mechanism 1 and operate in cooperation with the holding mechanism 2.
Is separated from the cutting mechanism 1 to hold the holding plates 21 and 2 of the holding mechanism 2.
Spread 1'and 22, 22 '. Then, at this time, as shown in FIG. 4 (A), the supply / recovery mechanism 5 operates at a position where the first moving portion 51a and the second moving portion 51b are closest to the delivery side of the holding mechanism 2. When the supply side moving unit 51c is moved downward, the arm 52a of the supply side roboting arm unit 52 connected to the supply side moving unit 51c is lowered to release the suction mechanism of the supply side hands 52c and 52d and the holding mechanism 2 By operating the suction function of one of the holding plates 21 and 21 ', the two unprocessed semiconductor wafers W sucked and fed by the supply hands 52c and 52d are sucked and held by the holding mechanism 2. You can

Next, as shown in FIG. 3 (A), the holding mechanism 2 that holds the two unprocessed semiconductor wafers W by suction is brought close to the cutting mechanism 1 by the position feed mechanism 3 and is held by suction by the holding mechanism 2. The central portion of the thickness width of the unprocessed semiconductor wafer W is indexed to the cutting action surface of the cutting blade 12 of the cutting mechanism 1. In this state, the cutting feed mechanism 4 is operated and the holding mechanism is horizontally moved to cut the two unprocessed semiconductor wafers W. This cutting state is as shown in FIG. 1 as described above, and efficient cutting can be performed. At the end of this cutting, the other holding plates 22 and 22 'of the holding mechanism 2 operate to prevent the cut semiconductor wafer W'from being cut off.

During such a cutting process, from the state of FIG. 4 (A) described above, as shown in FIG. 4 (B), the arm of the roboting arm part 52 on the supply side is moved by the upward movement of the supply side moving part 51c.
Raise 52a. The collecting-side hand 53 of the collecting-side roboting arm 53 connected to the collecting-side moving unit 51d.
The processed semiconductor wafer W'is held by c and 53d, which will be described in detail later.

Further, subsequently, as shown in FIG. 4 (C), the supply / recovery mechanism 5 is moved to a position where the first moving section 51a and the second moving section 51b are closest to the supply section 6 and the collecting section 7 side. , Fig. 4 (D)
As shown in FIG. 2, the lower part of the supply side moving part 51c straightens and lowers the arm 52a of the supply side roboting arm part 52, and the new two sheets stored in the supply part 6 by the supply side hands 52c and 52d. The unprocessed semiconductor wafer W is gripped, and the arm 53a of the collecting-side roboting arm portion 53 is straightened by the lower operation of the collecting-side moving unit 51d to lower the collecting-side hand 5.
At the same time, the operation of sequentially storing the four processed semiconductor wafers W ′ held by 3c and 53d in the recovery unit 7 is started. Then, as shown in FIG. 4 (E), the arms 52a, 53a of both roboting arm parts 52, 53 are raised to rotate the rotating part 52.
A position where the collecting side hands 53c, 53d of the collecting side roboting arm portion 53 can be linked to the holding mechanism 2 as shown in FIG. 4 (F) after being bent into an L shape through b and 53b. The two unprocessed semiconductor wafers W are prepared in the supply-side hands 52c and 52d of the supply-side roboting arm portion 52, and the two unprocessed semiconductor wafers are held by the holding mechanism 2 in advance. It will wait for the end of the cutting process of W.

That is, during the process of cutting two unprocessed semiconductor wafers W, 4
Most of the operations of collecting the processed semiconductor wafers W ′ and supplying new two unprocessed semiconductor wafers W can be simultaneously performed.

Further, after the cutting process is completed, as shown in FIG. 3 (B), the position feeding is performed so that the supply / recovery mechanism 5 avoids the cutting blade 12 of the cutting mechanism 1 and can operate in cooperation with the holding mechanism 2. The holding mechanism 2 is separated from the cutting mechanism 1 by the mechanism 3 and
Holding mechanism 2 for holding the processed semiconductor wafers W ′
The holding plates 21, 21 'and 22, 22' of the above are spread. And
As shown in FIG. 4 (G), the collecting side moving part 51d is moved downward to lower the arm 53a of the collecting side roboting arm part 53, and the four collecting side hands 53c and 53d are used to process the four processed semiconductors. Hold the wafer W'at the same time, and hold both the holding plates 2 of the holding mechanism 2.
Release the adsorption function of 1, 21 'and 22, 22'.

After this, the collection side moving unit 51d is moved upward to move the arm 53a of the collection side roboting arm unit 53 to the collection side hand 53.
The four processed semiconductor wafers W ′ are held and raised by c and 53d, and the second moving portion 51b is moved to a position closest to the transfer position of the holding mechanism 2 as shown in FIG. 4 (H). Let
The operation of FIG. 4 (A) is repeated.

In such an embodiment, because of the structure of the supply / recovery mechanism 5, the supply system for the unprocessed semiconductor wafer W and the recovery system for the processed semiconductor wafer W ′ are adjacently integrated, so that the installation area is reduced. It is possible to reduce the size and make the structure of the device compact, and at the same time, the functionality in terms of operation and operation is improved.

FIG. 5 shows an embodiment of a cutting apparatus suitable for cutting the three semiconductor wafers W as shown in FIG. 1 (C).

In this embodiment, the supply end 6 for accommodating the unprocessed semiconductor wafer W has a cutting end at the center point of the reinforcing part on the outer circumference of the wafer.
The cutting mechanism 1 is arranged in parallel in advance in three rows on an arc line having a radius R so as to reach the inner peripheral edge (radius R) of the cutting blade at the same time.
It is easy to arrange the three unprocessed semiconductor wafers W on the cutting surface.

As described above, in addition to the illustrated embodiment, the position feeding mechanism 3 and the cutting feeding mechanism 4 can be linked to the cutting mechanism 1 side to form a cutting mechanism moving type embodiment. In the case of such an embodiment, it is possible to simplify the omission of the rotating parts 52b and 53b of the supply and recovery mechanism 5 and the commonization of the first moving part 51a and the second moving part 51b.

[Effects of the Invention] As described above, according to the semiconductor wafer cutting processing method of the present invention, a plurality of semiconductor wafers can be cut by one cutting feed operation of the cutting mechanism. There is an effect that can be done efficiently.

Further, according to the second aspect, there is an effect that it is possible to effectively carry out the cutting process of a thin and hard semiconductor wafer for a discrete element substrate having an impurity diffusion layer in which impurities are diffused.

Further, according to claim 3, due to the peculiarity of the arrangement of the semiconductor wafers to be cut, the cutting time (cutting stroke) is shortened, the efficiency of the cutting process is further improved, and the peripheral part of the reinforcing portion This is effective in preventing damage to the semiconductor wafer.

Further, according to claims 4, 5, and 6, since the processes related to the cutting process are smoothly linked, there is an effect that the efficiency of the cutting process is further improved.

Furthermore, the semiconductor wafer cutting apparatus according to the present invention has an effect that the above-described cutting processing method can be effectively carried out.

Further, according to claims 8 and 9, there is an effect that supply and recovery of the semiconductor wafer can be carried out smoothly and reliably.

Further, according to claim 10, there is an effect that the supply and recovery system of the semiconductor wafer can be made compact.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 (A) is a basic schematic view showing an embodiment of a semiconductor wafer cutting method according to the present invention, and FIGS. 1 (B) to 1 (D) are other examples of FIG. 1 (A), respectively. FIG. 2 (A) is a front view showing the semiconductor wafer used in FIG. 1, and FIG. 2 (B) is FIG.
FIG. 3 (A) is a side view, FIG. 3 (A) is a plan view of essential parts showing an embodiment of a semiconductor wafer cutting apparatus according to the present invention, and FIG. 3 (B) is an operation diagram of FIG. 3 (A). FIG. 3 (C) is a front view of FIG. 3 (B), and FIG. 4 is a simplified diagram showing an embodiment of a supply / recovery mechanism of a semiconductor wafer cutting apparatus according to the present invention (A) to (H). FIG. 5 is a simplified view showing another example of FIG. 3 and FIG. 1 ... Cutting mechanism 2 ... Holding mechanism 3 ... Position feeding mechanism 4 ... Cutting feeding mechanism 5 ... Supply / collection mechanism 12 ... Cutting blade W ... Unprocessed semiconductor wafer W '... Processed semiconductor wafer P: Reinforcement part

Claims (10)

[Claims] 1. A method of cutting a semiconductor wafer in which a semiconductor wafer is cut into two parts from a center portion of its thickness width by an inner peripheral cutting mechanism, wherein a plurality of semiconductors are provided in a cutting action plane of a cutting blade of the cutting mechanism. Wafers are arranged in a single row in a direction perpendicular to the feed direction for cutting, and are held and cut by vacuum suction while maintaining the positional relationship in that direction, and a plurality of semiconductor wafers are cut by one cutting feed operation. A method for cutting and processing a semiconductor wafer, which comprises cutting. 2. The method of cutting a semiconductor wafer according to claim 1, wherein the semiconductor wafer has non-uniformity in a thickness direction such as an impurity diffusion layer in which impurities are diffused on both sides. Method. 3. The method of cutting a semiconductor wafer according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of semiconductor wafers each having a reinforcing portion formed on a part of a peripheral edge thereof are cut and fed, and the reinforcing portion is covered with the reinforcing portion on the rear side. Also, the semiconductor wafer cutting method is arranged such that the inner peripheral arc of the cutting blade is simultaneously reached at the end of cutting at the center of the reinforcing portion of the outer peripheral portion of the wafer. 4. The method of cutting a semiconductor wafer according to claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein a main operation for supplying and collecting an unprocessed and processed semiconductor wafer is completed during cutting of the semiconductor wafer. A method of cutting and processing a semiconductor wafer, comprising: 5. The method for cutting a semiconductor wafer according to claim 4, wherein the unprocessed and processed semiconductor wafer is delivered to a holding mechanism for holding the semiconductor wafer and bringing it into and out of contact with the cutting mechanism at a position avoiding the cutting mechanism. A method for cutting and processing a semiconductor wafer, which is performed. 6. An operation for delivering a plurality of unprocessed semiconductor wafers to a holding device and collecting the processed double wafers from the holding device in the method of cutting a semiconductor wafer according to claim 4 or 5. A method for cutting a semiconductor wafer, characterized in that a plurality of wafers are simultaneously processed. 7. A cutting mechanism equipped with an inner peripheral cutting blade, which is rotated at a high speed to cut a semiconductor wafer from a central portion of its thickness width and divides the wafer into two, so that a cutting action surface becomes vertical, and a plurality of cutting mechanisms. A holding mechanism that holds unprocessed semiconductor wafers in the cutting action plane of the cutting mechanism and continues to hold even if there are twice as many processed semiconductor wafers, and a horizontal position so that the cutting mechanism and the holding mechanism come close to and separate from each other. Position feed mechanism that moves relative to each other in the vertical direction, cutting feed mechanism that moves the cutting mechanism and holding mechanism relative to each other in the vertical direction or horizontal direction so as to move in parallel and reverse, the holding mechanism and the unprocessed semiconductor wafer supply unit, processed And a supply / recovery mechanism that simultaneously conveys and delivers a plurality of semiconductor wafers and a doubled number of these semiconductor wafers to and from the semiconductor wafer recovery unit. The holding mechanism intermittently holds the holding function at a position separated from the cutting mechanism. hand The operation is set so as to transfer the unprocessed and processed semiconductor wafers to and from the supply / recovery mechanism, and the position feed mechanism moves the unprocessed cutting surface of the cutting mechanism at the position where the holding mechanism is brought close to the cutting mechanism. The operation is set to index the central part of the thickness of the semiconductor wafer, and the supply / recovery mechanism conveys the processed semiconductor wafer to the recovery part during the cutting of the semiconductor wafer and stores it to supply a new unprocessed semiconductor wafer. An apparatus for cutting and processing a semiconductor wafer, which is set so that it is taken out of the unit, completes the transportation, and stands by. 8. A semiconductor wafer cutting apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the holding mechanism is provided with a plurality of sets of two opposing holding discs whose gaps can be adjusted, and the supply / recovery mechanism is provided with a plurality of supply sides having suction portions on one surface. The holding mechanism includes a hand and a plurality of collection-side hands having suction parts on both sides, and the holding mechanism holds the unprocessed semiconductor wafer by at least one holding plate and the other holding plate cuts the unprocessed semiconductor wafer at the latest. Immediately before the end, the holding function is operated to continue holding each of the processed semiconductor wafers that have been cut into two, and the collecting side hand is inserted between the processed semiconductor wafers to simultaneously process both processed semiconductor wafers. An apparatus for cutting and processing a semiconductor wafer, characterized in that operation is set so as to widen an interval of holding plates so that a hand of a receiving supply side can hand over an unprocessed semiconductor wafer. 9. The semiconductor wafer cutting apparatus according to claim 7 or 8, wherein the supply unit and the recovery unit have a cassette structure in which the semiconductor wafers are arranged in parallel, and each time the semiconductor wafer is taken out and stored, the semiconductor wafer is moved in the parallel direction at a constant pitch. An apparatus for cutting and processing a semiconductor wafer, comprising a drive unit, and the supply / recovery mechanism functions in a vertical operation plane. 10. The semiconductor wafer cutting / processing apparatus according to claim 7, 8 or 9, wherein the supply / recovery mechanism adjoins a supply system for the unprocessed semiconductor wafer and a recovery system for the processed semiconductor wafer in a common series. A semiconductor wafer cutting and processing apparatus characterized by the above.