JPH07299713A - Semiconductor manufacturing device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To simplify the structure of a wafer grinding device for grinding a semiconductor wafer, and downsize the device. CONSTITUTION:For example, a chuck table 11a is fixed to X-axis stage 11b and Y-axis stage 11c. A semiconductor wafer HW held on the chuck table 11a is moved in the X-axis and Y-axis directions by these X-axis and Y-axis stages 11b, 11c. The whole face of the semiconductor wafer HW can be thus ground without rotating the chuck table 11a by making a grinding wheel 12a rotating at high speed cut in the semiconductor wafer HW which is moved in the X-axis and Y-axis directions.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus used for manufacturing a semiconductor device, for example, a wafer grinding apparatus for adjusting the thickness of a semiconductor wafer.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A conventional wafer grinding apparatus, for example, as shown in FIG. 5, holds a semiconductor wafer HW and a chuck table 1 which is rotated at a low speed, and a grindstone which is rotatable about a spindle shaft 2 at a high speed. It is composed of 3 etc.

Then, a blade (diamond tip) 4 attached to the outer peripheral portion of the grindstone 3 is positioned at the center of the semiconductor wafer HW and gradually lowered while rotating at a high speed of 2000 to 6000 rpm.

At this time, the semiconductor wafer HW is set to 500
The semiconductor wafer HW is gradually scraped by continuing to rotate at a low speed of rpm or less. However,
In the above-described wafer grinding apparatus, the size of the semiconductor wafer HW is increased because the grinding wheel 3 has a diameter larger than that of the semiconductor wafer HW.

In addition, since it is necessary to rotate the semiconductor wafer HW during grinding, the structure of the chuck table is considerably complicated and large-scaled. For example, it is difficult to rotate a chuck table of a system such as a freezing chuck that requires piping, wiring, etc. for supplying cooling water to the table.
As described above, the conventional wafer grinding apparatus described above has a problem that it is not suitable for downsizing the apparatus.

[0006]

As described above, the conventional structure has a problem that the structure is complicated and is not suitable for miniaturization. Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus capable of simplifying the structure and reducing the size.

[0007]

In order to achieve the above object, in the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus of the present invention, a semiconductor wafer is held, and the held wafer is held along the X-axis and Y-axis.
It comprises a holding means that moves in the axial direction and a grinding means that grinds the semiconductor wafer held on the holding means with a grindstone that is rotatably supported.

Further, in the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus of the present invention, the holding table for holding the semiconductor wafer and the holding table for holding the semiconductor wafer are X-shaped.
And a stage for moving the semiconductor wafer held on the holding table, which is moved in the X-axis and Y-axis directions by the stage, and has a diameter larger than that of the semiconductor wafer. And a motor for rotating the whetstone.

Further, in the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus of the present invention, holding means for holding the semiconductor wafer, and the semiconductor wafer held on the holding means are rotatably supported by the X-axis and Y of a grindstone. And a grinding means for grinding by moving in the axial direction.

Further, in the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus of the present invention, holding means for holding a semiconductor wafer and moving the held wafer in the X-axis and Y-axis directions, and the semiconductor held on the holding means. And a grinding means for grinding the wafer by moving a grindstone rotatably supported in the X-axis and Y-axis directions.

[0011]

According to the present invention, since the semiconductor wafer can be ground without rotating the table by the means described above, a complicated structure for rotating the table can be eliminated.

[0012]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows a schematic configuration of a wafer grinding apparatus according to the present invention. That is, this wafer grinding apparatus is used, for example, for a semiconductor wafer H to be ground.
A holding mechanism section (holding means) 11 for holding W, and the semiconductor wafer HW held on the holding mechanism section 11
And a grinding mechanism section (grinding means) 12 for grinding.

The holding mechanism section 11 holds the surface of the semiconductor wafer HW horizontally and holds it by a method such as a vacuum suction chuck or a method such as a freeze chuck, for example, as a holding table, and a chuck table 11a. 11a includes an X-axis stage 11b that moves in the X-arrow direction (X-axis direction) and a Y-axis stage 11c that moves the chuck table 11a in the Y-arrow direction (Y-axis direction).

In this case, the holding mechanism section 11 has the X-axis,
The movement of the chuck table 11a can be freely programmed by controlling the Y-axis stages 11b and 11c.

That is, by combining the movements of the X-axis stage 11b and the Y-axis stage 11c, the chuck table 11a can be moved so that the semiconductor wafer HW draws a circle.

On the other hand, the grinding mechanism section 12 has a grindstone 12 for grinding the surface of the semiconductor wafer HW held on the chuck table 11a of the holding mechanism section 11.
a, a spindle shaft 12b for rotatably supporting the grindstone 12a (a grindstone shaft as a rotating shaft), a spindle motor 12c for rotating the grindstone 12a at a high speed by rotating the shaft 12b, and the grindstone 12a for the spindle shaft. It is composed of an elevating mechanism 12d and the like that moves in the Z arrow direction (Z-axis direction) along the 12b.

In this case, as the grindstone 12a, for example, one having a circular planar shape and having a smaller diameter than the semiconductor wafer HW (larger than the radius of the semiconductor wafer HW) is used.

That is, the X-axis and Y-axis stages 11b, 1
By moving the chuck table 11a in both X and Y axis directions by 1c, the entire surface can be ground by one grindstone 12a having a smaller diameter than the semiconductor wafer HW.

The movements of the grindstone 12a and the semiconductor wafer HW will be described with reference to FIGS.
That is, the semiconductor wafer HW held on the chuck table 11a has the X-axis and Y-axis stages 11b and 11c.
2 by the movement in the directions of the X and Y axes shown in FIG.
As indicated by a broken line in (a), the grindstone 12a is gradually moved around the center.

Then, as shown in FIG. 2B, for example, the semiconductor wafer HW is moved so that its central portion does not rotate along the outer circumference of the grindstone 12a and circles under the grindstone 12a. Be exercised.

In this case, as shown in FIG. 3, for example, the grindstone 12a is slightly rotated in the direction of the arrow in the figure while rotating at a high speed on the surface of the semiconductor wafer HW with its outer peripheral portion positioned at the center of the semiconductor wafer HW. It is equivalent to moving one by one.

This makes it possible to grind the entire surface without rotating the chuck table 11a and with one grindstone 12a smaller than the diameter of the semiconductor wafer HW.

As described above, since the entire surface of the semiconductor wafer HW can be ground without rotating the chuck table 11a, the structure of the chuck table 11a can be simplified.

For example, it becomes possible to leave the piping and wiring to the chuck table 11a as they are,
The complicated structure for rotating is unnecessary,
The device can be downsized.

Moreover, since the diameter of the grindstone 12a can be reduced, the size can be further reduced. Further, by avoiding rotating the chuck table 11a, it is possible to reduce the occurrence of vibration and the like.

In the apparatus of this embodiment, the semiconductor wafer HW before grinding is set on the chuck table 11a by a loader, and the semiconductor wafer HW after grinding is reset by an unloader (neither is shown). It is done automatically by.

Next, the grinding procedure will be described. First, the unground semiconductor wafer HW supplied by a loader (not shown) is placed on the chuck table 11a and held by a vacuum suction chuck or a freeze chuck.

After that, the table 11a is moved by the X-axis and Y-axis stages 11b and 11c,
The semiconductor wafer HW held on the table 11a is moved in a circle.

On the other hand, in moving the table 11a,
The grindstone 12a is rotated at high speed by the spindle motor 12c. Then, the grindstone 12a is gradually lowered by the elevating mechanism 12d at a predetermined speed, so that the grinding of the semiconductor wafer HW by the grindstone 12a is started.

By gradually cutting the grindstone 12a into the surface of the semiconductor wafer HW, the entire surface of the semiconductor wafer HW is uniformly ground. Thereafter, when the grindstone 12a is lowered by a predetermined amount (distance) and the semiconductor wafer HW is ground to a predetermined thickness, the rotation of the spindle motor 12c is stopped and the lifting mechanism 12 is moved.
The grindstone 12a is raised to a predetermined position by d.

Further, after the movement of the chuck table 11a is stopped and the holding by the chuck table 11a is released, the semiconductor wafer H ground to a predetermined thickness.
W is removed from the chuck table 11a by an unloader (not shown).

By repeating the series of operations described above, the grinding of the semiconductor wafer HW is continuously and automatically performed. As described above, the semiconductor wafer can be ground without rotating the chuck table.

That is, the entire surface of the semiconductor wafer can be ground by moving the chuck table in the X and Y axis directions. As a result, the piping and wiring to the table can be ground as they are, so that a complicated structure for rotating the table can be eliminated. Therefore, since the structure can be simplified, the size can be reduced.

Moreover, since it becomes possible to use a grindstone having a diameter smaller than that of a semiconductor wafer, it is advantageous for downsizing and cost reduction. Further, since the grinding streaks (streak marks drawn by the abrasive grains formed by grinding) do not extend in one direction, it is possible to improve the bending strength when the semiconductor chips are divided into semiconductor chips later.

In the above embodiment, the case where there is one grindstone has been described as an example, but the present invention is not limited to this, and for example, FIG.
As shown in FIG. 5, it is also possible to use a plurality of (here, four) grindstones 12a to grind one semiconductor wafer HW.

As the grindstone, a grindstone having a plane shape other than a circular shape, for example, an elliptical shape or another shape can be used. Further, the semiconductor wafer is not limited to be moved in the X and Y axis directions. For example, the position of the semiconductor wafer may not be moved and only the grindstone may be moved in the X and Y axis directions. Both may be configured to be moved in the X and Y axis directions, respectively.

Further, in addition to a wafer grinding apparatus for adjusting the thickness of a semiconductor wafer, it can be similarly applied to, for example, a polishing apparatus for mechanically flattening a wafer. Of course, various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the invention.

[0038]

As described above in detail, according to the present invention, it is possible to provide a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus which can be simplified in structure and can be miniaturized.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of a wafer grinding apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining the movement of the semiconductor wafer with respect to the grindstone.

FIG. 3 is a diagram similarly shown for explaining the movement of the grindstone with respect to the semiconductor wafer.

FIG. 4 is a plan view showing an essential part of the structure of a wafer grinding apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a schematic configuration diagram of a wafer grinding apparatus shown for explaining a conventional technique and its problems.

[Explanation of symbols]

11 ... Holding mechanism part, 11a ... Chuck table, 11b
... X-axis stage, 11c ... Y-axis stage, 12 ... Grinding mechanism section, 12a ... Grinding stone, 12b ... Spindle shaft, 12c ...
Spindle motor, 12d ... Lifting mechanism, HW ... Semiconductor wafer.

Claims (11)

[Claims] 1. A holding means for holding a semiconductor wafer and moving the held wafer in the X-axis and Y-axis directions, and the semiconductor wafer held on the holding means by a grindstone rotatably supported. A semiconductor manufacturing apparatus comprising: grinding means for grinding. 2. The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the holding unit moves the semiconductor wafer in a circular motion by moving in the X-axis and Y-axis directions. 3. The holding means comprises a holding table for holding the semiconductor wafer, and a stage for moving the holding table in the X-axis and Y-axis directions. The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1. 4. The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein movement of the stage is freely programmable. 5. The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the grinding means includes a mechanism capable of moving the grindstone in the Z-axis direction along the rotation axis direction thereof. 6. The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the grinding means is provided with one or a plurality of grindstones. 7. The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the grindstone has a circular planar shape, and its diameter is smaller than the diameter of the semiconductor wafer. 8. A holding table for holding a semiconductor wafer, a stage for moving the holding table for holding the semiconductor wafer in the X-axis and Y-axis directions, and a stage for moving the holding table in the X-axis and Y-axis directions by the stage. A semiconductor manufacturing method, comprising: a grindstone having a diameter smaller than that of the semiconductor wafer, for grinding the semiconductor wafer held on the holding table, and a motor for rotating the grindstone. apparatus. 9. The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the grinding means includes a mechanism capable of moving the grindstone in an X-axis direction and a Y-axis direction orthogonal to a rotation axis direction thereof. 10. Holding means for holding a semiconductor wafer, and grinding means for grinding the semiconductor wafer held on the holding means by moving a grindstone rotatably supported in the X-axis and Y-axis directions. A semiconductor manufacturing apparatus comprising: 11. A holding means for holding a semiconductor wafer and moving the held wafer in the X-axis and Y-axis directions, and a grinding stone rotatably supporting the semiconductor wafer held on the holding means. A semiconductor manufacturing apparatus comprising: a grinding unit that grinds by moving in the X-axis and Y-axis directions.