KR102229886B1 - Method for regenerating retainer ring and retainer ring regenerated by the same, retainer ring regenerating mold - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a method for regenerating a retainer ring, a retainer ring regenerated thereby and a mold for regenerating a retainer ring. The method for regenerating a retainer ring according to the present invention comprises: a retainer ring washing step of washing a retainer ring of a regeneration target by using high-pressure deionized water (DIW); a retainer ring brushing step of removing, from the washed retainer ring, foreign substance that can remain on the surface of teeth of the retainer ring in brushing; a retainer ring tooth surface cutting step of cutting the surface of a tooth of the retainer ring to a predetermined thickness; an injection step using a mold, of injecting resin material such as the retainer ring to generate a tooth connection part of a certain thickness on a tooth of the retainer ring after loading the retainer ring on molds for regenerating a retainer ring that match teeth of the retaining ring one-on-one; and a thickness precision processing step of proceeding precise processing of the thickness with respect to the tooth connection part by polishing the surface after finishing the tooth connection part formed by injection of the resin material.

Description

Method for regenerating retainer ring and retainer ring regenerated by the same, retainer ring regenerating mold}

The present invention relates to a retainer ring regeneration method, a retainer ring regenerated according to the method, and a mold for regenerating retaining rings, and more specifically, it is possible to reinforce and reinforce only a worn part without using any kind of adhesive. Of course, it is possible to regenerate repeatedly, thereby contributing to cost reduction, a retaining regeneration method, a retaining ring regenerated according to the method, and a mold for retaining regeneration.

Among the semiconductor manufacturing processes, there is a polishing process in which a wafer is physically and chemically polished using a slurry to planarize the wafer surface.

When performing such a polishing process, the waiter must not be separated, and the retainer ring plays the role of confining the wafer so that it does not come off. The retaining ring is made of resin material (PEEK, PPS) and forms a donut-shaped ring structure.

On the other hand, when the wafer is polished, the retaining ring supporting the wafer is also worn together, so it is common to replace it after 150 hours of use.

For example, referring to FIG. 1, when the tooth depth T of the retaining ring 1 is approximately 1 mm or less, it is replaced.

In view of the fact that the retaining ring 1 is an expensive consumable and has a large number of used, the necessity of cost reduction is strongly required.

Therefore, it is desirable to recycle and use the worn retaining ring 1 without being discarded as it is, but the existing retaining ring regeneration method is not very effective, and the regeneration limit is limited to two or less. After 2 times, you inevitably need to use a new retaining ring. In the case of a new product, the depth T of the recessed portion of the retaining ring 1 is approximately 3 mm.

In addition, since the existing retaining regeneration method is not effective and has significant method limitations, the regeneration cost is similar to that of the new product, and the cost reduction effect is not so great. In fact, if there is no price difference between new and remanufactured products, there is no need to use remanufactured products.

On the other hand, the most ideal method for regenerating the worn retaining ring 1 is to increase the thickness by reinforcing only the worn part. If you want to increase the thickness by reinforcing only the worn parts like this, you can consider bonding with an adhesive.

However, in the case of using an adhesive, there is a high risk that the bonded portion falls due to external impact when bonding face-to-face, and it is difficult to maintain the bonding strength due to the characteristics of the resin materials (PEEK, PPS) forming the retaining ring 1.

In addition, when using an adhesive, there is a risk that the adhesive component may cause contamination in the semiconductor manufacturing process.However, considering the fact that it is practically difficult to find and verify an adhesive of a completely safe material, it is avoided from this method. There is a need to develop a technology for a new concept of retaining regeneration method.

Korean Intellectual Property Office Application No. 10-2012-0137490

An object of the present invention is that it is possible to reinforce and regenerate only a worn part without using any kind of adhesive, as well as to be able to regenerate repeatedly, thereby contributing to cost reduction, according to a retaining regeneration method and method thereof. It is to provide molds for recycled retainer ring and retainer ring recycle.

The object is a retaining washing step of washing a retainer ring to be regenerated using high-pressure deionized water (DIW); A retaining brushing step of removing foreign substances that may remain on the tooth surface of the retaining ring by brushing the washed retaining ring; A retaining ring tooth surface cutting step of cutting the tooth surface of the retaining ring to a predetermined thickness; After loading the retaining ring into a mold for regenerating the retaining ring that is one-to-one with the teeth of the retaining ring, a resin material such as the retaining ring is injected and injected to create a tooth joint of a certain thickness on the teeth of the retaining ring. Injection step using a mold; And Achieved by the retaining regeneration method, characterized in that it comprises a step of precision machining of the thickness of the tooth joint by polishing the surface after finishing the tooth joint portion formed by injection of resin material. do.

The object is a retaining washing step of washing a retainer ring to be regenerated using high-pressure deionized water (DIW); A retaining brushing step of removing foreign substances that may remain on the tooth surface of the retaining ring by brushing the washed retainer ring; A retaining ring tooth removal step of completely removing the tooth portion of the retaining ring; After loading the retaining ring into a mold for recycling a predetermined retaining ring, an injection step using a mold for injecting and injecting a resin material such as the retaining ring to create a joint portion having a predetermined thickness in the retaining ring; A tooth shape processing step of processing a tooth shape on the joint portion; And it is achieved by the retaining ring regeneration method, characterized in that it comprises a step of precision machining of the thickness of the bonded portion by polishing the surface after finishing the bonded portion of which the tooth shape is processed.

It may further include a checking step of whether the retaining ring is reproducible or not, of checking whether the retaining ring is reproducible or not before performing the retaining ring washing step.

The object includes: a lower mold having a loading portion into which a retainer ring is loaded, and a positioning pin protruding from the loading portion and determining a correct position of the retaining ring; And an upper mold coupled to the lower mold with a retaining ring loaded on the lower mold interposed therebetween, and having a resin injection hole for injecting a resin material such as the retaining ring into one end thereof. It is also achieved by means of a mold for ring regeneration.

In the upper mold, a plurality of tooth fitting grooves for one-to-one molding with the teeth of the retaining ring are formed, and the resin injection hole is formed for each of the tooth fitting grooves, and the tooth fitting groove portion so that the retaining ring does not contact the upper mold. The outer wall may be in close contact with the lower mold.

According to the present invention, it is possible to reinforce and regenerate only a worn part without using any kind of adhesive, as well as repetitive regeneration, thereby contributing to cost reduction.

1 is a view for explaining a replacement cycle of a conventional retainer ring.
2 is a diagram illustrating a state in which a retaining ring regenerated according to the retaining ring regeneration method according to the first embodiment of the present invention is applied to a wafer polishing process.
3 is a flowchart of a retaining regeneration method according to the first embodiment of the present invention.
4 is a perspective view of a retaining ring to be applied to the regeneration method of FIG. 3.
5 is an exploded view of a mold for recycling retaining rings.
6 is a rear perspective view of an upper mold.
7 is an assembly view of FIG. 5 including a retainer ring.
8 is a modeling image of FIG. 7.
9 is a flowchart of a retaining regeneration method according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings so that those of ordinary skill in the art may easily implement the present invention.

However, since the description of the present invention is merely an embodiment for structural or functional description, the scope of the present invention should not be construed as being limited by the embodiments described in the text.

For example, since the embodiments can be modified in various ways and have various forms, the scope of the present invention should be understood to include equivalents capable of realizing the technical idea.

In addition, since the object or effect presented in the present invention does not mean that a specific embodiment should include all or only such effects, the scope of the present invention should not be understood as being limited thereto.

In the present specification, the present embodiment is provided to complete the disclosure of the present invention, and to completely inform the scope of the present invention to those of ordinary skill in the art to which the present invention pertains. And the invention is only defined by the scope of the claims.

Accordingly, in some embodiments, well-known components, well-known operations, and well-known techniques have not been described in detail in order to avoid obscuring interpretation of the present invention.

Meanwhile, the meaning of the terms described in the present invention is not limited to the dictionary meaning, and should be understood as follows.

When a component is referred to as being "connected" to another component, it should be understood that it may be directly connected to the other component, but another component may exist in the middle. On the other hand, when it is mentioned that a component is "directly connected" to another component, it should be understood that there is no other component in the middle. On the other hand, other expressions describing the relationship between constituent elements, that is, "between" and "directly between" or "neighboring to" and "directly neighboring to" should be interpreted as well.

Singular expressions are to be understood as including plural expressions unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, and terms such as "comprises" or "have" refer to specified features, numbers, steps, actions, components, parts, or these. It is to be understood that it is intended to designate that a combination exists and does not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, numbers, steps, actions, components, parts, or combinations thereof.

All terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the field to which the present invention belongs, unless otherwise defined.

Terms defined in a commonly used dictionary should be interpreted as having the meaning of the related technology in context, and cannot be interpreted as having an ideal or excessively formal meaning unless explicitly defined in the present invention.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In the description of the embodiments, the same reference numerals are assigned to the same components, and descriptions of the same reference numerals are omitted in some cases.

(Example 1)

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a state in which a retaining ring regenerated according to a retaining ring regeneration method according to a first embodiment of the present invention is applied to a wafer polishing process, and FIG. 3 is a flowchart of a retaining ring regeneration method according to the first embodiment of the present invention. , FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a retaining ring to be applied to the regeneration method of FIG. 3, FIG. 5 is an exploded view of a retaining ring regeneration mold, FIG. 6 is a rear perspective view of an upper mold, and FIG. 7 is an assembly view of FIG. 5 including a retaining ring, and , FIG. 8 is a modeling image of FIG. 7.

Referring to these drawings, according to the retaining regeneration method according to the present embodiment, it is possible to reinforce and regenerate only the worn parts without using any kind of adhesive, as well as repetitive regeneration, which will contribute to cost reduction. I can.

The retainer ring 100 regenerated in this way can be used during the wafer polishing process as shown in FIG. 2.

The retainer ring 100 is made of a resin material (PEEK, PPS) as shown in FIG. 4, and forms a donut-shaped ring structure. A plurality of teeth 110 are formed on the circumferential surface. In FIG. 4, only some teeth 110 are shown for convenience, and these teeth 110 are formed at equal intervals on all of the circumferential surfaces of the retaining ring 100.

As previously described, if the depth of the groove 111 between the teeth 110 of the retaining ring 100 falls below a certain level, it is replaced, but in the case of this embodiment, it is reproduced and used by the following regeneration method.

The retaining ring 100, which has been regenerated, plays a role of confining the wafer so that it is not separated, as shown in FIG. 2. That is, the retaining ring 100 with the wafer interposed therebetween is disposed on the polishing pad 101. A membrane 102 is placed over the wafer to polish the wafer.

On the other hand, from the retaining ring 100 of this structure to the reproduction line L indicated by the dotted line is a reproduced portion. That is, the tooth joint portion (110a) is formed by being joined to the tooth (110) up to the regeneration line (L).

At this time, it is preferable that the total thickness of the teeth 110 including the tooth junction portion 110a is at least about 3mm.

To further explain, since the thickness of the wafer is usually about 0.725mm, the edge of the wafer rotates while being pushed against the wall of the retaining ring 100 during the polishing process.To prevent the wafer edge from touching, the total thickness of the teeth 110 including regeneration It is preferable to make at least about 3 mm.

On the other hand, the retaining ring regeneration method according to the present embodiment includes a retaining regeneration step (S11), a retaining cleaning step (S12), a retaining brushing step (S13), a retaining tooth surface cutting step (S14), and a mold. It includes an injection step (S15) and a precision processing step (S16) of the joint thickness using, and through these steps, the retaining ring 100 can be regenerated.

In particular, in the case of the present embodiment, it is a method of reinforcing and reinforcing only the worn teeth 110 without using any kind of adhesive. That is, the worn teeth 110 are not removed and only the worn parts are regenerated in a manner that is padded.

The checking whether the retaining ring can be reproduced (S11) is a process of checking whether the retaining ring 100 can be reproduced. Visual inspection, etc. may be conducted.

The retaining cleaning step (S12) is a process of washing the retaining ring 100 to be regenerated using high-pressure deionized water (DIW). Since high-pressure deionized water (DIW) is used, foreign matter can be removed.

The retaining brushing step (S13) is a process of removing foreign substances that may remain on the tooth surface of the retaining ring 100 by brushing the washed retaining ring 100.

On the other hand, the retaining tooth surface cutting step (S14) is a process of cutting the surface of the teeth 110 of the retaining ring 100 to a predetermined thickness. As described above, in this embodiment, the teeth 110 are not completely removed and regenerated.

The retaining ring 100 to be regenerated has a wear of 2 mm or less, and, for example, an additional 1 mm is further cut out for regeneration in the retaining tooth surface cutting step S14. Of course, the numerical value thereof is only an example, and the scope of the present invention is not limited to the numerical value.

In the injection step (S15) using a mold, the retaining ring 100 is loaded into the retaining ring regeneration mold 120 that is molded one-to-one with the teeth 110 of the retaining ring 100, and then the same as the retaining ring 100. This is a process of injecting and injecting a resin material to create a tooth joint portion 110a having a predetermined thickness in the teeth 110 of the retaining ring 100.

For this process, a retainer ring regeneration mold 120 is used. The retaining regeneration mold 120 may include a lower mold 130 and an upper mold 140.

The lower mold 130 includes a loading portion 131 in which the retaining ring 100 is loaded, and a positioning pin 132 protruding from the loading portion 131 and determining the correct position of the retaining ring 100. .

Since a plurality of positioning pins 132 are provided in the loading part 131 of the lower mold 130, and the retaining ring 100 is loaded on the positioning pins 132, precise reproduction of the retaining ring 100 Work can proceed.

The upper mold 140 is coupled to the lower mold 130 with the retaining ring 100 loaded in the lower mold 130 interposed therebetween, as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, but the same as the retaining ring 100 at one end. A resin injection port 141 for injecting a resin material is formed.

The upper mold 140 is formed with a plurality of tooth fitting grooves 142 that are molded one-to-one with the teeth 110 of the retaining ring 100.

Therefore, after loading the retaining ring 100 into the loading part 131 of the lower mold 130, the upper mold 140 is turned over and assembled to the lower mold 130, the tooth fitting groove 142 of the upper mold 140 ) They can be matched one-to-one with the teeth 110 of the retaining ring 100.

At this time, the outer wall body 143 of the tooth fitting groove 142 is in close contact with the lower mold 130 so that the retaining ring 100 does not contact the upper mold 140.

Since the resin injection hole 141 is formed for each tooth fitting groove 142, when the resin injection hole 141 is prepared as shown in Figs. 7 and 8, a resin material (PEEK, PPS) such as the retaining ring 100 is injected and injected, the retainer A tooth joint portion 110a having a predetermined thickness may be generated on the original teeth 110 of the ring 100. In particular, since this operation is performed without an adhesive, the efficiency is good.

The precision machining step of the joint thickness (S16) is a process of performing a precision processing of the thickness of the tooth joint region 110a by polishing the surface after finishing the tooth joint region 110a formed by injection of a resin material. By completing this process, the retaining ring 100 can be completely regenerated.

When the surface grinding work is finished, the regeneration thickness is 3mm or more in total. The reason why the regenerated thickness is 3mm or more is that the boundary surface of the regenerated teeth 110 does not affect the wafer. Of course, the numerical value thereof is only an example, and the scope of the present invention is not limited to the numerical value.

Hereinafter, a retaining regeneration method according to the present embodiment will be described.

First, it is a process of checking whether the retaining ring 100 can be regenerated. Visual inspection, etc. may be conducted.

Next, after washing the retaining ring 100 to be regenerated using high-pressure deionized water (DIW), the retaining ring 100 is then brushed. As a result, foreign substances that may remain on the tooth surface of the retaining ring 100 are removed.

Next, it is a process of cutting the surface of the teeth 110 of the retaining ring 100 to a predetermined thickness. As described above, in this embodiment, the teeth 110 are not completely removed and regenerated. The retaining ring 100 to be regenerated has a wear of 2 mm or less, and at this stage, for regeneration, for example, an additional 1 mm is further cut out.

Next, after loading the retaining ring 100 into the retaining ring regeneration mold 120 that is one-to-one with the teeth 110 of the retaining ring 100, a resin material such as the retaining ring 100 is injected and injected to retain the retainer. In the teeth 110 of the ring 100, a tooth junction portion 110a having a predetermined thickness is generated.

Then, the retaining ring 100 can be completely regenerated by performing the precision processing of the thickness of the tooth joint portion 110a by polishing the surface after finishing the tooth joint portion 110a formed by injection of a resin material. .

According to this embodiment, which acts based on the structure as described above, it is possible to reinforce only the worn part without using any kind of adhesive and to regenerate it, as well as to be able to regenerate it repeatedly, thereby contributing to cost reduction. There will be.

(Example 2)

9 is a flowchart of a retaining regeneration method according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to this drawing, even in the case of this embodiment, a method of regenerating the worn teeth 110 without using any kind of adhesive, or in the case of this embodiment, the worn teeth 110 are completely removed, and the removed spot After making the junction of a certain thickness, it takes a method of processing the teeth 110 again later.

Hereinafter, a retaining regeneration method according to the present embodiment will be described.

First, it is checked whether the object's retaining ring 100 can be reproduced (S21). Inspection may vary, including visual inspection.

Next, while washing the retaining ring 100 to be regenerated using high-pressure deionized water (DIW, Deionized water) (S22), the retaining ring 100 is Remove foreign substances that may remain on the surface of the teeth 110 (S23).

Next, the portion of the teeth 110 of the retaining ring 100 is completely removed (S24). After this step, the place where the teeth 110 were located is flat.

Next, after loading the retaining ring 100 into a predetermined retaining ring regeneration mold (not shown), a resin material (PEEK, PPS) such as the retaining ring 100 is injected and injected to a predetermined thickness in the retaining ring 100 The junction of the to be created (S25). In this case, the retaining ring regeneration mold (not shown) takes a form in which all the tooth fitting grooves 142a are not separated and are integrally connected in FIG. 6. One or two resin injection ports 141 may be formed.

Next, the shape of the teeth 110 is processed on the junction using a milling machine or the like (S26).

Then, after finishing the joint portion with the shape of the teeth 110 processed, the surface is polished to perform precision processing of the thickness of the joint portion (S27), thereby reproducing the high-quality retaining ring 100 at low cost.

Even if the present embodiment is applied, it is possible to reinforce only the worn part without using any kind of adhesive and to regenerate it, as well as to be able to regenerate it repeatedly, thereby contributing to cost reduction.

As described above, the present invention is not limited to the described embodiments, and it is obvious to those of ordinary skill in the art that various modifications and variations can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Therefore, it should be said that such modifications or variations belong to the claims of the present invention.

100: retaining ring 110: teeth
110a: tooth junction 111: groove
120: mold for recycling retaining ring 130: lower mold
131: loading part 132: positioning pin
140: upper mold 141: resin injection port
142: tooth fitting groove 143: outer wall

Claims (5)

A retaining ring washing step of washing a retainer ring to be regenerated using high-pressure deionized water (DIW);
A retaining brushing step of removing foreign substances that may remain on the tooth surface of the retaining ring by brushing the washed retaining ring;
A retaining ring tooth surface cutting step of cutting the tooth surface of the retaining ring to a predetermined thickness;
After loading the retaining ring into a mold for regenerating the retaining ring that is one-to-one with the teeth of the retaining ring, a resin material such as the retaining ring is injected and injected to create a tooth joint of a certain thickness on the teeth of the retaining ring. Injection step using a mold; And
Retaining a retaining ring regeneration method comprising the step of performing precision processing of the thickness of the tooth joint portion by polishing the surface after finishing the tooth joint portion formed by injection of a resin material.
A retaining ring washing step of washing a retainer ring to be regenerated using high-pressure deionized water (DIW);
A retaining brushing step of removing foreign substances that may remain on the tooth surface of the retaining ring by brushing the washed retaining ring;
A retaining ring tooth removal step of completely removing the tooth portion of the retaining ring;
After loading the retaining ring into a mold for recycling a predetermined retaining ring, an injection step using a mold for injecting and injecting a resin material such as the retaining ring to create a joint portion having a predetermined thickness in the retaining ring;
A tooth shape processing step of processing a tooth shape on the joint portion; And
And a precision machining step of a joint portion thickness precision processing step of performing precision processing of the thickness of the joint portion by polishing the surface after finishing the joint portion having the tooth shape processed.
The method according to claim 1 or 2,
And a retaining ring regeneration check step of checking whether a corresponding retaining ring can be regenerated before the retaining ring washing step is performed.
A lower mold having a loading portion on which the retaining ring is loaded, and a positioning pin protruding from the loading portion and determining a correct position of the retaining ring; And
Including; an upper mold coupled to the lower mold with a retaining ring loaded in the lower mold interposed therebetween, and having a resin injection hole for injecting a resin material such as the retaining ring into one end portion thereof;
In the upper mold, a plurality of tooth fitting grooves for one-to-one molding with the teeth of the retaining ring are formed, wherein the resin injection hole is formed for each of the tooth fitting grooves,
The retaining ring regeneration mold, characterized in that the outer wall of the tooth fitting groove is in close contact with the lower mold so that the retaining ring does not contact the upper mold.
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