KR100875386B1 - Apparatus for processing wafer surface - Google Patents

Abstract

The apparatus for treating the surfaces of wafer is provided to remove the foreign material like the chemical remaining in the exterior of the transfer arm and wafer chuck by cleaning the transfer unit by the cleaning unit. The apparatus for treating the surfaces of wafer(1000) comprises the load stock(100), the surface processing part(200), the transport unit(300), the cleaning unit(400). The load stock is to load the wafer(10) whose surface is processed by the chemical(20). The surface processing part is filled with the chemical for processing the surface of wafer. The transport unit has the transfer arm(320) connected to the wafer chuck to transfer the wafer held by the wafer chuck(310). The cleaning unit cleans the foreign material remaining in the exterior of the transfer arm. The cleaning unit comprises the cleaning chamber(410), the chuck cleaning unit(420), and the transfer arm cleaning unit(430).

Description

Wafer Surface Treatment Apparatus {APPARATUS FOR PROCESSING WAFER SURFACE}

The present invention relates to a wafer surface treatment apparatus, and more particularly, to an apparatus for etching a surface of a wafer or removing foreign matter remaining on the surface during a process for manufacturing a semiconductor device.

In general, semiconductor devices are fabricated from wafers based on silicon. Specifically, the semiconductor device is manufactured including a deposition process, a photolithography process, an etching process, an ion implantation process, a cleaning process, an inspection process, and the like.

In the above etching process, the wafer is added to an etching chemical to remove the film to be etched from the surface of the wafer. Alternatively, in the cleaning step, the wafer is introduced into the cleaning chemical to remove foreign substances remaining on the surface of the wafer.

For example, in the etching process or the cleaning process, the wafer is first introduced into a container filled with a strongly acidic sulfuric acid (H 2 SO 4) solution to advance the process. Next, the sulfuric acid solution remaining on the wafer is removed by pouring into a container filled with deionized water.

In this process, in the etching process or the cleaning process, a separate transfer unit is used to transfer the wafer to the respective containers. The transfer section includes a wafer chuck holding the wafer and a transfer arm associated with the wafer chuck to substantially transport the wafer chuck.

However, since the sulfuric acid solution remains in the wafer chuck and the transfer arm during the etching process or the cleaning process, the remaining sulfuric acid solution may be transferred to other parts during the operation of the transfer unit to contaminate it. .

Accordingly, the present invention has been made in view of such a problem, and an object of the present invention is to provide a wafer surface treatment apparatus capable of cleaning a transfer portion for transferring a wafer.

In order to achieve the above object of the present invention, a wafer surface treatment apparatus according to one aspect includes a loading portion, a surface treatment portion, a transfer portion, and a cleaning portion. The stack is loaded with a wafer whose surface is processed by chemical. The surface treatment unit is filled with chemicals for treating the surface of the wafer. The transfer section has a wafer chuck for holding a wafer loaded on the loading section and a transfer arm connected to the wafer chuck for transferring a wafer held on the wafer chuck. The cleaning unit cleans the transfer arm like the wafer chuck and removes foreign substances remaining on the outer surface when the wafer chuck of the transfer unit waits in front of the loading unit to hold the wafer loaded on the loading unit.

The cleaning unit simultaneously cleans the wafer chuck and the transfer arm. The cleaning unit includes a cleaning chamber having an opening through which the wafer chuck is inserted while the transfer arm is exposed, a chuck cleaning unit for cleaning the wafer chuck installed in the cleaning chamber and inserted into the cleaning chamber. And a transfer arm cleaning unit installed at a position where the opening of the cleaning chamber is formed to clean the transfer arm connected to the wafer chuck.

The chuck cleaner includes a first sprayer for injecting a cleaning liquid onto the wafer chuck from a first side of the wafer chuck and a second sprayer for spraying the cleaning liquid from a second side of the wafer chuck opposite to the first side. .

The transfer arm cleaner is formed inside the cover part and the cover part which moves along the upper surface of the cleaning chamber to cover the transfer arm exposed from the opening when the wafer chuck is inserted into the cleaning chamber. It includes an injection unit for injecting the cleaning liquid.

The transfer arm cleaner may further include a rod part coupled to the cover part and a moving part coupled to the rod part to move the rod part linearly, and a linear motion of the rod part between the cover part and the drive part. It may further include a guide portion formed with a guide hole for guiding.

On the other hand, the wafer surface treatment apparatus may further include a cleaning unit filled with a cleaning liquid in order to remove the chemical remaining on the surface-treated wafer in the surface treatment unit.

According to such a wafer surface treatment apparatus, the wafer chuck and the transfer arm, which are the components thereof, are cleaned through the cleaning portion for the transfer portion for transferring the wafer between the loading portion and the surface treatment portion, thereby remaining on the outer surface of the wafer chuck and the transfer arm. It can remove foreign substances such as chemicals.

That is, the cleaning of the wafer chuck and the transfer arm may prevent contamination of other parts due to foreign substances such as chemicals remaining therein during the operation of the transfer unit. For example, when the chemical is a sulfuric acid solution, it is possible to prevent the other parts from corrosion through this.

With reference to the accompanying drawings will be described in detail a wafer surface treatment apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. As the inventive concept allows for various changes and numerous embodiments, particular embodiments will be illustrated in the drawings and described in detail in the text. However, this is not intended to limit the present invention to the specific disclosed form, it should be understood to include all modifications, equivalents, and substitutes included in the spirit and scope of the present invention. In describing the drawings, similar reference numerals are used for similar elements. In the accompanying drawings, the dimensions of the structure is shown to be larger than the actual size for clarity of the invention, or to reduce the actual size to understand the schematic configuration.

In addition, terms such as first and second may be used to describe various components, but the components should not be limited by the terms. The terms are used only for the purpose of distinguishing one component from another. For example, without departing from the scope of the present invention, the first component may be referred to as the second component, and similarly, the second component may also be referred to as the first component.

On the other hand, unless otherwise defined, all terms used herein, including technical or scientific terms, have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art. Terms such as those defined in the commonly used dictionaries should be construed as having meanings consistent with the meanings in the context of the related art and shall not be construed in ideal or excessively formal meanings unless expressly defined in this application. Do not.

1 is a schematic diagram illustrating a wafer surface treatment apparatus according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view illustrating a transfer part and a cleaning part of the wafer surface treatment apparatus of FIG. 1.

1 and 2, a wafer surface treatment apparatus 1000 according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a loading part 100, a surface treatment part 200, a transfer part 300, and a cleaning part 400. .

The wafer 100 is loaded with a plurality of wafers 10, which are core components for manufacturing a semiconductor device. In this case, the wafer 10 may be bundled and loaded in a predetermined number. This is to improve the overall process efficiency by allowing the wafer 10 to be processed by the surface treatment unit 200 a predetermined number at a time.

The surface treatment unit 200 is filled with a chemical 20 for processing the surface of the wafer 10. In detail, the surface treatment unit 200 may etch the surface of the wafer 10. Alternatively, the surface treatment unit 200 may remove foreign matter remaining on the surface of the wafer 10. In the case of etching or cleaning the surface of the wafer 10 as described above, sulfuric acid solution is generally used as the chemical 20. In this case, the chemical 20 composed of the sulfuric acid solution may be outward due to the exothermic reaction due to its characteristics.

The transfer part 300 transfers the wafer 10 between the loading part 100 and the surface treatment part 200. In detail, the transfer part 300 may carry the wafer 10 from the loading part 100 and insert the wafer 10 into the chemical 20 filled in the surface treatment part 200 or the surface treatment part 200. The wafer 10 processed by the chemical 20 is carried out to the loading part 100 again. Here, the wafer surface treatment apparatus 1000 further includes a cleaning part 500 to remove the remaining chemical 20 from the wafer 10 processed by the surface treatment part 200.

The washing unit 500 is filled with a washing liquid 30 for washing the chemical 20 therein. For example, the washing unit 500 may typically be deionized water used to wash chemicals. The cleaning unit 500 may be continuously disposed on the surface treatment unit 200 and one body.

Thus, the transfer part 300 passes through the cleaning part 500 before the wafer 10 processed by the surface treatment part 200 is carried out to the loading part 100. In this case, the transfer unit 300 transfers the wafer 10 at a time by a predetermined number in order to improve the processing efficiency of the surface treatment unit 200.

The transfer part 300 substantially includes a wafer chuck 310, a transfer arm 320, and a transfer body 330. The wafer chuck 310 holds or releases a certain number of the wafers 10 at one time. That is, the wafer chuck 310 is composed of two to hold both sides of the wafers 10, and they are pinched toward the wafers 10, spread outwards of the wafers 10.

Accordingly, the wafer chuck 310 holds or releases the wafers 10 in the loading unit 100. In other words, the wafer chuck 310 catches the wafers 10 loaded from the stacking unit 100 at once, passes through the surface treatment unit 200 and the cleaning unit 500, and then again stacks the stacking unit. Let go at 100. Here, the wafer chuck 310 may be made of quartz material so as not to react with the chemical 20 filled in the surface treatment part 200.

The transfer arm 320 is connected to the wafer chuck 310. The transfer arm 320 substantially moves the wafer chuck 310. In addition, the transfer arm 320 may transmit power for the operation of lifting and unfolding the wafer chuck 310 from the transfer body 330. Unlike this, the transfer arm 320 may generate and transmit power for the operation of the wafer chuck 310.

The transfer body 330 is connected to the transfer arm 320. The transfer body 330 generates power by itself to transfer the transfer arm 320 or to operate the wafer chuck 310 through the transfer arm 320. The transfer body 330 is seated on the ground and serves as a center for supporting the transfer unit 300 as a whole. In addition, the transfer body 330 may move along the ground to allow the wafer chuck 310 to move to the surface treatment unit 200 or the cleaning unit 500. In this case, a separate rail may be installed on the ground to guide the movement of the transfer body 330.

On the other hand, the transfer arm 320 is typically connected perpendicular to the wafer chuck 310. This is because the wafer chuck 310 holds the wafers 10 toward the ground, and the transfer body 330 is seated on the ground in a direction parallel to the wafer chuck 310.

The cleaning unit 400 prepares the wafer chuck 310 and the transfer arm when the wafer chuck 310 of the transfer unit 300 prepares to hold the wafer 10 loaded on the loading unit 100. The wafer chuck 310 and the transfer arm 320 are cleaned to remove foreign substances remaining on the outer surface of the 320. Here, the foreign matter may be represented by the chemical 20 filled in the surface treatment unit 200.

The cleaning unit 400 includes a cleaning chamber 410, a chuck cleaning unit 420, and a transfer arm cleaning unit 430. The cleaning chamber 410 may have a size similar to that of the surface treatment part 200 and the cleaning part 500. That is, the cleaning chamber 410 may be continuously disposed in one body with the surface treatment part 200 and the cleaning part 500.

The cleaning chamber 410 is disposed so that the transfer body 330 is in front. The cleaning chamber 410 has an opening 412 formed thereon. Thus, the wafer chuck 310 is inserted into the opening 412. That is, since the transfer arm 320 is vertically connected to the wafer chuck 310, the transfer arm 320 is exposed to the upper portion of the opening 412.

The chuck cleaner 420 is installed inside the cleaning chamber 410 to clean the wafer chuck 310. Specifically, the chuck cleaning unit 420 is opposite to the first injection unit 422 and the first side for spraying the cleaning liquid 40 onto the wafer chuck 310 from the first side of the wafer chuck 310. And a second sprayer 424 for spraying the cleaning liquid 40 onto the wafer chuck 310 on the second side of the wafer chuck 310.

Thus, when the first and second injection units 422 and 424 are structurally fixed to the inner wall of the cleaning chamber 410, the wafer chuck 310 moves up and down through the transfer arm 320. It is cleaned from the first and second sprayers 422 and 424. On the contrary, the wafer chuck 310 may be cleaned by moving the first and second sprayers 422 and 424 up and down. The first and second sprayers 422 and 424 may be spray nozzles having a predetermined spray angle.

The transfer arm cleaning unit 430 is installed at the outside of the cleaning chamber 410 to which the transfer arm 320 is exposed to clean the transfer arm 320. Here, since the transfer arm 320 is substantially exposed from the upper portion of the opening 412, the transfer arm cleaning unit 430 is installed on the upper surface on which the opening 412 is installed.

Hereinafter, a state in which the transfer arm 320 is cleaned by the transfer arm cleaning unit 430 will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4.

FIG. 3 is a view schematically illustrating a state in which the transfer arm cleaning unit cleans the transfer arm of the transfer unit of FIG. 2, and FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line II ′ of FIG. 3.

3 and 4, the transfer arm cleaner 430 includes a cover 431 and a third sprayer 433.

When the wafer chuck 310 is inserted into the opening 412, the cover 431 moves along the upper surface of the cleaning chamber 410 to cover the exposed transfer arm 320. This is to prevent interference with the cover part 431 when the wafer chuck 310 is inserted into the opening 412. In addition, since the cover part 431 has a structure in which the transfer arm 320 is substantially inserted when the cover part 431 is transferred along the upper surface of the cleaning chamber 410, the front part is formed to be opened.

Thus, the cleaning chamber 410 is further extended to the side opposite to the transfer body 330 so that the cover portion 431 is spaced apart from the opening 412, the upper portion, the extended position The cover part 431 is inserted therein is formed a protrusion 415 which can be protected. That is, the protrusion 415 has an insertion groove 416 formed at a position facing the transfer arm 320 so that the cover 431 can be inserted. Therefore, the cover portion 431 is inserted into the insertion groove 416 of the protrusion 415, it is possible to prevent the cover portion 431 is exposed to the outside to look aesthetically bad.

A plurality of third sprayers 433 may be formed inside the cover 431. The third sprayer 433 sprays the cleaning liquid 40, which is the same as that sprayed by the first and second sprayers 424, to the transfer arm 320. Thus, the third injection unit 433 is formed in a plurality at regular intervals in order to uniformly spray the cleaning liquid 40 to the transfer arm (320). The third sprayer 433 may be a spray nozzle, similar to the first and second sprayers 422 and 424.

As such, the wafer surface treatment apparatus 1000 may use the wafer chuck 310 and the transfer arm 320 of the transfer unit 300, respectively, for the chuck cleaner 420 and the transfer arm cleaner of the cleaner 400. By removing the foreign substances such as the chemical 20 remaining in the wafer chuck 310 and the transfer arm 320 to be made at the same time all at the 430, it is possible to prevent contamination of other parts due to the remaining foreign matter Can be.

FIG. 5 is a view of the transfer arm cleaning unit viewed from the right side of the wafer surface treatment apparatus of FIG. 2; FIG.

2 and 5, the protrusion 415 of the cleaning chamber 410 substantially includes a cleaning liquid 40 generated during the cleaning of the wafer chuck 310 and the transfer arm 320 through the cleaning unit 400. Exhaust port 417 for exhausting the steam of () is formed.

In addition, the exhaust port 417 is formed at the position where the transfer arm cleaning unit 430 of the insertion groove 416 of the protrusion 415 is inserted. Thus, the cover part 431 of the transfer arm cleaning unit 430 has a feature that is open to expose the exhaust port 417 on the opposite side, as well as the position facing the transfer arm 320. As a result, the cover part 431 may be prevented from being indirectly affected by the role of the exhaust port 417.

6 is a perspective view illustrating in detail the transfer arm cleaning unit of the wafer surface treatment apparatus of FIG. 2.

2 and 6, the transfer arm cleaner 430 further includes a moving part 434 and a guide part 438.

The moving part 434 moves the cover part 431 along the upper surface of the cleaning chamber 410 so that the cover part 431 covers the transfer arm 320. Specifically, the moving part 434 includes a rod part 435 and a driving part 437.

One end of the rod part 435 is fixed to an upper surface of the cover part 431. That is, the rod part 435 has a first fixing part 436 is formed at the one end, the cover part 431 is a second fixing part 432 to which the first fixing part 436 is coupled Is formed. The first and second fixing parts 432 may be fixed according to, for example, a screwing method, or may be welded to maximize the fixing force.

The driving part 437 is connected to the other end of the rod part 435 opposite to the one end and linearly moves the rod part 435 to move the cover part 431 along the upper surface. Thus, the drive unit 437 may be formed of a cylinder for generating a linear motion by air or oil. Alternatively, the drive unit 437 may use a drive motor for generating a rotational motion and a pinion gear and a rack gear for converting the rotational motion into a linear motion.

The guide part 438 is disposed between the cover part 431 and the driving part 437. The guide part 438 guides linear motion of the cover part 431 and the rod part 435 connected to the driving part 437. That is, the guide part 438 controls the rod part 435 to perform a linear motion accurately and does not exceed a certain stroke or more. In other words, the guide part 438 is formed with a guide hole 439 for guiding the rod part 435.

Accordingly, the transfer arm cleaning unit 430 allows the cover unit 431 to move along the upper surface of the cleaning chamber 410 accurately through the moving unit 434 and the guide unit 438. The part 431 may be configured to accurately cover the transfer arm 320. That is, the cleaning of the transfer arm 320 by the cover part 431 may be performed smoothly.

Although the detailed description of the present invention has been described with reference to the preferred embodiments of the present invention, those skilled in the art or those skilled in the art will have the idea of the present invention described in the claims to be described later. It will be understood that various modifications and variations can be made in the present invention without departing from the scope of the present invention.

The present invention described above can prevent contamination of the entire equipment due to the foreign matter by cleaning both the sulfuric acid solution and the position where the foreign matter can remain in the transfer device for transferring the wafer in the field of the surface wet process of the wafer. .

1 is a schematic diagram illustrating a wafer surface treatment apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view illustrating a transfer part and a cleaning part of the wafer surface treatment apparatus of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a view schematically illustrating a state in which the transfer arm cleaner of the washing unit of FIG. 2 cleans the transfer arm of the transfer unit.

4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line II ′ of FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is a view of the transfer arm cleaning unit viewed from the right side of the wafer surface treatment apparatus of FIG. 2; FIG.

6 is a perspective view illustrating in detail the transfer arm cleaning unit of the wafer surface treatment apparatus of FIG. 2.

<Explanation of symbols for the main parts of the drawings>

10: wafer 20: chemical

100: loading part 200: surface treatment part

300: transfer unit 310: wafer chuck

320: transfer arm 400: cleaning unit

410: cleaning chamber 420: chuck cleaning unit

430: transfer arm cleaning unit 1000: wafer surface treatment apparatus

Claims (7)

A loading unit on which a wafer whose surface is processed by chemical is loaded; A surface treatment part filled with a chemical for treating the surface of the wafer; A transfer unit having a wafer chuck for holding a wafer loaded on the loading unit and a transfer arm connected to the wafer chuck for transferring the wafer held on the wafer chuck; And When the wafer chuck of the transfer unit waits in front of the loading unit to hold the wafer loaded on the loading unit, the cleaning unit for cleaning the transfer arm like the wafer chuck to remove foreign matter remaining on the outer surface of the transfer arm. Including, The cleaning unit, A cleaning chamber having an opening through which the wafer chuck is inserted while the transfer arm is exposed; A chuck cleaner installed in the cleaning chamber to clean the wafer chuck inserted into the cleaning chamber; And And a transfer arm cleaning unit installed at a position where the opening of the cleaning chamber is formed to clean the transfer arm connected to the wafer chuck. The wafer surface treatment apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the cleaning unit simultaneously cleans the wafer chuck and the transfer arm. delete According to claim 1, wherein the chuck cleaning unit A first injector for injecting a cleaning liquid into the wafer chuck from a first side of the wafer chuck; And And a second spraying portion for spraying the cleaning liquid on the second side of the wafer chuck opposite to the first side. According to claim 1, wherein the transfer arm cleaning unit A cover part which moves along the upper surface of the cleaning chamber to cover the transfer arm exposed from the opening when the wafer chuck is inserted into the cleaning chamber; And And a spraying portion formed inside the cover portion to spray a cleaning liquid onto the transfer arm. The method of claim 5, wherein the transfer arm cleaning unit A moving part having a rod part coupled to the cover part and a driving part coupled to the rod part to linearly move the rod part; And And a guide portion having a guide hole for guiding linear movement of the rod portion between the cover portion and the driving portion. The wafer surface treatment apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a cleaning unit filled with a cleaning liquid in order to remove chemicals remaining on the surface-treated wafer in the surface treatment unit.

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