TW202111857A - Wafer transmission manipulator and wafer overturning method thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention discloses a wafer transmission manipulator and a wafer overturning method thereof. The wafer transmission manipulator comprises a transverse transmission shaft which is only located at one side of a cleaning unit; a transverse transmission carriage which is arranged on the transverse transmission shaft and can make transverse movement along the transverse transmission shaft; a firstvertical lifting shaft which is arranged on the transverse transmission carriage and can perform vertical movement on the transverse transmission carriage; a rotating table which is arranged on the first vertical lifting shaft; and a first claw clamping arm which is connected with the rotating table and is driven by the rotating table to perform rotating movement. Free conversion of the wafer in horizontal and vertical states can be met; and the transverse transmission carriage does not run directly above the drying unit so as to eliminate the possibility of scattering impurity particles on the moving parts of the wafer transmission manipulator onto the wafer during the drying process.

Description

Wafer transfer manipulator and its wafer turning method

The invention relates to the field of equipment for manufacturing semiconductor integrated circuit wafers, in particular to a wafer transfer manipulator and a wafer turning method thereof.

With the rapid development of the semiconductor industry, the feature size of integrated circuits continues to be miniaturized, and semiconductor chips continue to develop in the direction of small size, high circuit density, fast speed, and low power consumption. Integrated circuits have now entered the ultra-large integrated circuit. Circuit (Ultra-Large-scale integration, ULSI) sub-micron technology stage. With the gradual increase in the diameter of silicon wafers, the width of the scribed lines in the device has gradually decreased, and the number of metal layers has increased. Therefore, the high planarization of the semiconductor film surface has an important impact on the high performance, low cost, and high yield of the device. As a result, the flatness requirements on the surface of silicon wafers will become increasingly strict.

At present, as the only planarization technology chemical mechanical polishing technology that can obtain a global planarization effect, chemical mechanical planarization (Chemical Mechanical Planarization, CMP) has been developed into a chemical mechanical integration of online measurement, online endpoint detection, cleaning and other technologies. Polishing technology is the product of the development of integrated circuits to miniaturization, multilayer, thinning, and flattening processes. After the wafer is processed by CMP, the processed removal and polishing liquid will remain on the surface of the wafer. In order to remove the contaminants on the wafer surface in time, the CMP equipment needs to be used with cleaning equipment. In the process of drying the wafer, a basic requirement is to dry the wafer and prevent any particles originally attached to the solution from reattaching to the wafer.

In order to achieve a better cleaning effect for the entire cleaning module, a configuration in which the drying unit is placed horizontally and the other cleaning units are placed vertically can be used. In this configuration, in order to convert the wafer from a vertical state to a horizontal state, the wafer transfer manipulator needs to provide a flip function to cooperate to complete this work. In the conventional cleaning robots, some of the claw gripping arms do not have a rotation function, and can only have a single degree of freedom for the up and down movement of the Z axis, and the flip of the wafer is realized through the wafer claw end. However, this implementation method requires the robot to be moved to the top of the drying equipment so that the claw gripper arm can put the wafers that have been turned over by the wafer claws into the drying equipment. In the placement process, it is easier to introduce impurity particles into the final drying process, reducing the cleanliness of the wafer. Moreover, the lateral stroke of the wafer transfer manipulator runs through the entire cleaning module, and the long-stroke transfer also has a certain impact on the transfer efficiency.

The purpose of the present invention is to provide a wafer transfer manipulator and a wafer turning method thereof to meet the process requirements of chemical mechanical planarization by realizing the conversion of the wafer in the horizontal and vertical states, and eliminate the need for the chemical mechanical planarization process during the drying process. Possibility of impurity particles on the moving parts of the wafer transfer robot scattered on the wafer.

In order to achieve the above objective, the present invention provides a wafer transfer manipulator, which is used for wafer transfer in the cleaning module of a chemical mechanical planarization device to complete the cleaning of the wafer in the cleaning unit of the cleaning module in a vertical state. It is then taken out, and then placed in the drying unit of the cleaning module in a horizontal state after being turned over, which includes: The transverse transmission shaft is located only on one side of the cleaning unit; The horizontal transmission carriage is arranged on the horizontal transmission shaft and can move laterally along the horizontal transmission shaft; The first vertical lifting shaft is arranged on the lateral transmission pallet, and can perform vertical movement on the lateral transmission pallet; The rotating table is arranged on the first vertical lifting shaft; The first jaw clamping arm is connected with the rotating table and is driven by the rotating table to make a rotation movement for picking and placing wafers.

In the above-mentioned wafer transfer robot, a switchable door is installed on the cleaning unit and the drying unit for automatic opening or closing when the wafer transfer robot picks and places wafers.

In the above wafer transfer robot, the cleaning unit includes: a pre-drying unit and other units of the cleaning module; the drying unit and other units of the cleaning module are located on both sides of the pre-drying unit; The unit operates in a vertical direction; the wafers in the pre-drying unit are transferred to the drying unit by the first jaw clamping arm; and the other units of the cleaning module are wafer transition units, megasonic cleaning units, One or more of the scrubbing units.

In the above-mentioned wafer transfer manipulator, the wafer transfer manipulator further includes: at least one second vertical lifting shaft, which is arranged on the lateral transfer carriage and can be used for vertical movement on the lateral transfer carriage. Movement; the first vertical lifting shaft is located between the second vertical lifting shaft and the drying unit; each of the second vertical lifting shaft is also provided with a second jaw gripping arm, used to and the first A jaw clamping arm cooperates with the wafer transfer from other units of the cleaning module to the pre-drying unit.

The present invention also provides a wafer turning method of the above-mentioned wafer transfer manipulator, which includes a wafer placement step and a manipulator returning step; The wafer placement step includes: after the first jaw clamping arm takes out the wafer from the pre-drying unit of the cleaning unit, it is realized by linkage or non-linkage action in the three movement directions of horizontal, vertical, and rotation The wafer is turned from the vertical state to the horizontal state, and the wafer is placed in the drying unit; The manipulator returning step includes: after the first jaw clamping arm places the wafer in the drying unit, the horizontal state is restored to the vertical state through linkage or non-linkage actions in the three movement directions of horizontal, vertical, and rotation, And return to the original position.

In the above-mentioned wafer turning method of a wafer transfer robot, the wafer placing step specifically includes: After the first jaw clamping arm takes out the wafer from the pre-drying unit, it moves in the following three directions at the same time: the lateral transport carriage drives the first jaw clamping arm to the direction away from the drying unit The rotating table drives the first jaw holding arm to rotate to the side close to the drying unit until the wafer reaches a horizontal state, and the first vertical lifting shaft drives the first jaw holding arm to move vertically to a certain position; Subsequently, the horizontal transfer carriage drives the first jaw clamping arm to move laterally in the direction close to the drying unit until the wafer is located above the drying unit; the first vertical lifting shaft drives the first jaw clamping arm to move vertically downward to The wafer is located on the designated mechanism inside the drying unit; the first jaw clamping arm releases the wafer so that the wafer is located on the designated mechanism inside the drying unit.

In the above-mentioned wafer inversion method of a wafer transfer robot, the wafer placement step specifically includes: after the first jaw clamping arm takes out the wafer from the pre-drying unit, laterally transfer the carriage Drive the first jaw holding arm to move laterally away from the drying unit; then the rotating table drives the first jaw holding arm to rotate to the side close to the drying unit until the wafer reaches a horizontal state; then the first The vertical lifting shaft drives the first jaw holding arm to move vertically to a certain position; then the lateral transport carriage drives the first jaw holding arm to move laterally towards the drying unit until the wafer is above the drying unit; A vertical lifting shaft drives the first jaw clamping arm to move vertically downward until the wafer is located in the designated mechanism inside the drying unit; the first jaw clamping arm releases the wafer so that the wafer is located on the designated mechanism inside the drying unit.

In the above-mentioned wafer inversion method of a wafer transfer robot, the wafer placement step specifically includes: after the first jaw clamping arm takes out the wafer from the pre-drying unit, laterally transfer the carriage Drive the first jaw holding arm to move laterally away from the drying unit; then the rotating table drives the first jaw holding arm to rotate to the side close to the drying unit until the wafer reaches a horizontal state; then lateral transfer The carriage drives the first jaw clamping arm to move laterally in the direction close to the drying unit until the wafer is located above the drying unit; the first vertical lifting shaft drives the first jaw clamping arm to move vertically downward until the wafer is located The internal designated mechanism of the drying unit; the first jaw clamping arm releases the wafer so that the wafer is located on the internal designated mechanism of the drying unit.

In the above-mentioned wafer turning method of a wafer transfer robot, the wafer placing step specifically includes: after the first jaw clamping arm takes out the wafer from the pre-drying unit, the rotating table drives the first A jaw clamping arm rotates to the side close to the drying unit until the wafer reaches a horizontal state; then the lateral transport carriage drives the first jaw clamping arm to move laterally until the wafer is above the drying unit; the first vertical lift The shaft drives the first jaw clamping arm to move vertically downward until the wafer is located in the designated mechanism inside the drying unit; the first jaw clamping arm releases the wafer, so that the wafer is located on the internal designated mechanism in the drying unit.

In the above-mentioned wafer turning method of the wafer transfer robot, the returning step of the robot specifically includes: when the wafer is placed in the drying unit, it simultaneously moves in the following three directions: the lateral transfer carriage drives the second A claw clamping arm moves laterally away from the drying unit; the rotating table drives the first claw clamping arm to rotate downward until the first claw clamping arm is in a vertical state; the first vertical lifting shaft drives the first claw clamping arm to be vertical. A jaw clamping arm moves vertically upward to a certain position.

In the above-mentioned wafer turning method of a wafer transfer robot, the robot returning step specifically includes: when the wafer is placed in the drying unit, the first vertical lifting shaft drives the first jaw clamping arm to move vertically upwards To a certain position; then the horizontal transmission carriage drives the first jaw clamping arm to move laterally away from the drying unit to a certain position; then the rotating table drives the first jaw clamping arm to rotate down to the first jaw The clamping arm is in a vertical state.

In the above-mentioned wafer turning method of a wafer transfer robot, the robot returning step specifically includes: when the wafer is placed in the drying unit, the lateral transfer carriage drives the first jaw clamping arm to move away from the The direction of the drying unit moves laterally to a certain position; then the first vertical lifting shaft drives the first jaw holding arm to move vertically upward to a certain position; then the rotating table drives the first jaw holding arm to rotate down to the first jaw The clamping arm is in a vertical state.

Compared with the conventional technology, the present invention has the following beneficial effects: 1. The wafer transfer manipulator provided by the present invention is set in the cleaning module of the chemical mechanical planarization equipment, which can effectively meet the conversion of the wafer in the horizontal and vertical states, and meet the actual production requirements. The manipulator flipping process There is no need to increase the space for turning, nor will it interfere with other institutions, and the space utilization is high. 2. The wafer transfer manipulator of the present invention enables the drying unit to select the wafer placement mode (vertical or horizontal placement) with the best effect as the goal, and there is no need to change the wafer placement mode of the drying unit to facilitate wafer transfer. The remaining units of the cleaning module are the same. 3. Since the stroke of the transverse transfer axis of the wafer transfer robot only reaches the unit before drying, the stroke is compact. After the robot is turned over, the transverse transfer carriage will not run to the side of the drying unit during the process of placing the wafer into the drying unit. This eliminates the possibility of scattering the impurity particles on the moving parts of the wafer transfer manipulator on the wafer during the drying process.

The present invention will be further described below through specific embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings. These embodiments are only used to illustrate the present invention and are not intended to limit the scope of protection of the present invention.

In the preferred embodiment shown in FIG. 1, the wafer transfer robot provided by the present invention is used to transfer the wafer 8 in the cleaning module of the chemical mechanical planarization equipment to transfer the wafer 8 in a vertical state. After the cleaning is completed in the cleaning unit of the cleaning module, it is taken out, and then placed in the drying unit 10 of the cleaning module in a horizontal state after being turned over. In some preferred embodiments, the cleaning unit and the drying unit 10 are equipped with a switchable pneumatic door for automatically opening or closing the wafer 8 when the wafer transfer robot picks and places the wafer 8.

The cleaning unit of the cleaning module includes: a pre-drying unit 9 and other units of the cleaning module; the drying unit 10 and other units of the cleaning module are located on both sides of the pre-drying unit 9; in some preferred embodiments, the pre-drying unit The unit 9 can select a scrubbing unit in which the wafer 8 is operated in a vertical direction; the other units of the cleaning module can be one or more of a wafer transition unit, a megasonic cleaning unit, and a scrubbing unit. The specific settings of the cleaning unit can be freely combined according to actual production needs to flexibly apply to various situations.

In this embodiment, the wafer transfer robot provided by the present invention includes: a transverse transfer shaft 1, a transverse transfer carriage 2, a first vertical lift shaft 3, a second vertical lift shaft 5, and a first jaw clamping arm 7 and the second jaw clamping arm 6.

Wherein, the lateral transmission carriage 2 is arranged on the lateral transmission shaft 1 and can move laterally along the lateral transmission shaft 1; the lateral transmission shaft 1 is only located on one side of the cleaning unit, so that the lateral transmission carriage 2 It will not run to the side of the drying unit 10, thereby eliminating the possibility that the impurity particles on the moving parts of the wafer transport robot will be scattered on the wafer 8 during the drying process. It should be noted that the position of the horizontal transmission shaft 1 only needs to satisfy that the horizontal transmission carriage 2 does not run to the side of the drying unit, and the spatial relative position of the horizontal transmission shaft 1 and the cleaning unit is not particularly limited. The lateral transfer shaft 1 can be lower than the cleaning unit, and only needs to satisfy that the wafer transfer robot can complete the picking and placing of the wafer 8. More preferably, the transverse transmission shaft 1 is arranged above the cleaning unit to achieve a better arrangement.

A first vertical lifting shaft 3 and a second vertical lifting shaft 5 are arranged side by side on the lateral transmission carriage 2, which can independently move vertically and upwardly on the lateral transmission carriage 2 respectively. Wherein, the first vertical lifting shaft 3 is also provided with a rotating table 4 for driving the first claw clamping arm 7 connected to it to rotate. The driving form of the rotary table 4 is pneumatic or electric. The second vertical lifting shaft 5 is directly connected with the second jaw clamping arm 6. The first jaw gripping arm 7 is closer to the drying unit 10 than the second jaw gripping arm 6, and is used to transfer the wafer 8 from the pre-drying unit 9 to the drying unit. Unit 10.

The second jaw clamping arm 6 is used to transfer the wafer 8 from other units of the cleaning module to the pre-drying unit 9. In this embodiment, the second jaw holding arm 6 is provided for the purpose of immediately after the first jaw holding arm 7 removes the wafer 8 from the pre-drying unit 9, the wafer 8 to be processed can enter the pre-drying unit 9 for processing. Work to achieve higher production efficiency. However, in some embodiments, the absence of the second jaw clamping arm 6 does not affect the technical problems solved by the present invention and the technical effect achieved. Therefore, the present invention has a limited number of second jaw clamping arms 6 There is no restriction, and it can be prepared according to the actual production situation.

The horizontal transmission shaft 1 is arranged on one side of the pre-drying unit 9, and the other units of the cleaning module are placed under the horizontal transmission shaft 1 in the order shown in FIG. 1. The second jaw clamping arm 6 can be raised and lowered in the Z-axis direction through the second vertical lifting shaft 5, the first jaw clamping arm 7 can be rotated clockwise or counterclockwise by the rotating table 4, and the rotating table 4 can pass through the first The vertical lifting shaft 3 moves in the Z-axis direction, and the horizontal transmission carriage 2 moves in the X-axis direction through the horizontal transmission shaft 1. The pre-drying unit 9 and the other units of the cleaning module are all pre-process units for drying the wafer 8. The function of the drying unit 10 is to dry and clean the surface of the cleaned wafer 8. The function of the wafer transfer manipulator is to transport the wafer 8 to each unit of the cleaning module through the lateral movement, the vertical movement and the rotational movement after the wafer 8 is clamped.

The present invention also provides a wafer 8 turning method of the above-mentioned wafer transfer robot. The method includes a wafer 8 placing step and a robot returning step.

The step of placing the wafer 8 includes: after the first jaw clamping arm 7 takes out the wafer 8 from the cleaning unit, the wafer 8 is realized by linkage or non-linkage actions in the three movement directions of horizontal, vertical, and rotation. The circle 8 is turned from the vertical state to the horizontal state, and the wafer 8 is placed in the drying unit 10.

The manipulator returning step includes: after the first jaw clamping arm 7 places the wafer 8 in the drying unit 10, it is restored from the horizontal state to the horizontal state through linkage or non-linkage actions in the three movement directions of horizontal, vertical, and rotation. Vertical state, and return to the original position.

With regard to the wafer 8 turning method based on the above-mentioned wafer transfer robot provided by the present invention, the following seven embodiments will be specifically described. Of course, the specific implementations that can implement the above-mentioned wafer 8 inversion method of the present invention are not limited to the following seven embodiments.

Example 1:

After the first jaw gripping arm 7 moves along the Z-axis direction and takes out the wafer 8 from the pre-drying unit 9 (as shown in part ① in Fig. 2), as shown in part ② in Fig. 2, the carriage 2 is transferred laterally Move in the X+ direction, while the turntable 4 drives the wafer 8 to rotate clockwise along A+, and the first vertical lifting shaft 3 carries the first claw clamping arm 7 to move downward in the Z- direction, the first claw clamping arm 7 The wafer 8 moves together in the three directions of X+, A+, and Z- to coordinate and complete the state transition process of the wafer 8 from vertical to horizontal. As shown in part ③ of Figure 2, the wafer 8 has reached the horizontal state. . During the inversion of the wafer 8, the designated mechanism inside the drying unit 10 is ready to put the wafer 8 in. Subsequently, the lateral transport carriage 2 drives the first jaw clamping arm 7 to move in the X-direction until the wafer 8 is located above the drying unit 10 (as shown in part ④ in FIG. 2). The first jaw clamping arm 7 moves down in the Z-direction until the wafer 8 is located in the designated mechanism inside the drying unit 10 (as shown in part ⑤ in Figure 2), and the first jaw clamping arm 7 releases the wafer 8 , The wafer 8 is located on the designated mechanism inside the drying unit 10.

Example 2:

After the first jaw gripping arm 7 moves along the Z-axis direction and takes out the wafer 8 from the pre-drying unit 9 (as shown in part ① in Fig. 3), as shown in part ② in Fig. 3, the carriage 2 is transported laterally Move a certain distance in the X+ direction, and then the rotating table 4 drives the first jaw clamping arm 7 to rotate clockwise along A+ to a certain angle to make the wafer 8 reach a horizontal state (as shown in parts ③ and ④ in Fig. 3). Then, the first vertical lifting shaft 3 carries the first jaw clamping arm 7 and moves downward to a certain position in the Z-direction. During the inversion of the wafer 8, the designated mechanism inside the drying unit 10 is ready to put the wafer 8 in. Subsequently, the lateral transport carriage 2 drives the first jaw clamping arm 7 to move in the X-direction until the wafer 8 is located above the drying unit 10 (as shown in part ⑤ of FIG. 3). The first jaw holding arm 7 moves downward in the Z-direction until the wafer 8 is located in the designated mechanism inside the drying unit 10 (as shown in part ⑥ in Figure 3), and the first jaw holding arm 7 releases the wafer 8 , The wafer 8 is located on the designated mechanism inside the drying unit 10. The above steps are the result of a combination of individual movements in each direction.

Example 3:

After the first jaw gripping arm 7 moves along the Z-axis direction and takes out the wafer 8 from the pre-drying unit 9 (as shown in part ① in Fig. 4), as shown in part ② in Fig. 4, the carriage 2 is transported laterally Move a certain distance in the X+ direction, and then the rotating table 4 drives the first jaw clamping arm 7 to rotate clockwise along A+ to a certain angle to make the wafer 8 reach a horizontal state (as shown in parts ③ and ④ in Fig. 4). Then the transverse transmission carriage 2 drives the first jaw clamping arm 7 to move in the X-direction (as shown in part ⑤ in Fig. 4), and then the first vertical lifting shaft 3 carries the first jaw clamping arm 7 to the Z-direction. The direction moves downward until the wafer 8 is located in the designated mechanism inside the drying unit 10 (as shown in part ⑥ in Fig. 4). Finally, the first jaw clamping arm 7 releases the wafer 8, and the wafer 8 is located on a designated mechanism inside the drying unit 10.

Example 4:

After the first jaw holding arm 7 moves along the Z-axis direction to take out the wafer 8 from the pre-drying unit 9 (as shown in part ① in Fig. 5), the first jaw holding arm 7 directly moves along the A+ direction. Rotate the hour hand to a certain angle to make the wafer 8 reach a horizontal state (as shown in part ② in Figure 5), and then move the horizontal transport carriage 2 in the X+ or X- direction according to the actual length of the gripping arms of different jaws ( Fine adjustment) to make the wafer 8 directly above the drying unit 10, and then the first vertical lifting shaft 3 carries the first jaw clamping arm 7 and moves downward in the Z-direction until the wafer 8 is located in the designated mechanism inside the drying unit 10. Finally, the first jaw clamping arm 7 releases the wafer 8, and the wafer 8 is located on a designated mechanism inside the drying unit 10.

After the wafer 8 is placed in the designated mechanism inside the drying unit 10, the manipulator will then return to the original state, and the following embodiments 5-7 can be used to complete the entire loop.

Example 5:

The action of placing the wafer 8 can choose to apply any of the schemes in the embodiments 1-4. After the wafer 8 is placed in the designated mechanism inside the drying unit 10, the robot will then return to the original state and transfer the carriage 2 laterally to X+ Moving in the direction, the rotating table 4 drives the wafer 8 to rotate clockwise along A-, the first vertical lifting shaft 3 carries the first claw clamping arm 7 upwards in the Z+ direction, and the first claw clamping arm 7 is at X+, A- , Z+ move together in three directions, and coordinate to complete the process from horizontal to vertical.

Example 6:

The action of placing the wafer 8 can choose to apply any of the schemes in the embodiments 1-4. After the wafer 8 is placed in the designated mechanism inside the drying unit 10, the robot will then return to the original state, the first card being horizontally placed. The claw clamping arm 7 first rises to a certain high position in the Z+ direction, and then moves a certain distance in the X+ direction, the first claw clamping arm 7 rotates in the A- direction until it returns to a vertical state, completing the entire loop.

Example 7:

The action of placing the wafer 8 can choose to apply any of the schemes in the embodiments 1-4. After the wafer 8 is placed in the designated mechanism inside the drying unit 10, the robot will then return to the original state, the first card being horizontally placed. The jaw clamping arm 7 first moves in the X+ direction for a certain distance, and then rises to a certain high position in the Z+ direction, and then the first jaw clamping arm 7 rotates in the A- direction until it returns to a vertical state, completing the entire loop.

In short, wafer 8 placement can be linked or non-linked, and robot return can be linked or non-linked. Examples 1-4 regarding wafer 8 insertion and Examples 5-7 regarding robot return can be based on actual conditions. It needs to be combined freely to adapt to various actual production environments.

To sum up, the wafer transfer robot provided by the present invention is set in the cleaning module of the chemical mechanical planarization equipment, which can effectively meet the conversion of the wafer in the horizontal and vertical states, and meet the actual production requirements. The hand-turning process does not need to increase the space for turning, nor will it interfere with other mechanisms, and the space utilization rate is high. The wafer transfer manipulator of the present invention enables the drying unit to select the wafer placement mode (vertical or horizontal placement) with the best effect as the goal, without requiring the wafer placement mode and cleaning mode of the drying unit to facilitate wafer transfer. The remaining units of the group are the same. Since the stroke of the horizontal transfer axis of the wafer transfer robot only reaches the unit before drying, the stroke is compact. After the robot is turned over, the wafer is placed into the drying unit, and the horizontal transfer carriage will not run to the drying unit side, thus eliminating The possibility of impurity particles on the moving parts of the wafer transfer robot being scattered on the wafer during the drying process.

Although the content of the present invention has been described in detail through the above preferred embodiments, it should be recognized that the above description should not be considered as limiting the present invention. Various modifications and alternatives to the present invention will be obvious after reading the above content by those with ordinary knowledge in the technical field. Therefore, the scope of protection of the present invention should be limited by the scope of the attached patent application.

1: Horizontal transmission shaft 2: Horizontal transmission carriage 3: The first vertical lifting shaft 4: Rotating table 5: The second vertical lifting axis 6: The second jaw gripping arm 7: The first jaw gripping arm 8: Wafer 9: Unit before drying 10: Drying unit

FIG. 1 is a schematic structural diagram of a preferred embodiment of a wafer transfer robot according to the present invention; 2 is a schematic flow chart of Embodiment 1 of the wafer placement step in the wafer turning method of the present invention; 3 is a schematic flow chart of Embodiment 2 of the wafer placement step in the wafer turning method of the present invention; 4 is a schematic flowchart of Embodiment 3 of the wafer placement step in the wafer turning method of the present invention; FIG. 5 is a schematic flowchart of Embodiment 4 of the wafer placement step in the wafer turning method of the present invention.

1: Horizontal transmission axis

2: Horizontal transmission carriage

3: The first vertical lifting shaft

4: Rotating table

5: The second vertical lifting axis

6: The second jaw gripping arm

7: The first jaw gripping arm

8: Wafer

9: Unit before drying

10: Drying unit

Claims (12)

A wafer transfer manipulator is used for wafer transfer in a cleaning module of a chemical mechanical planarization device, so that the wafer is removed in a cleaning unit of the cleaning module in a vertical state after being cleaned, and then turned over Then it is placed in a horizontal state into a drying unit of the cleaning module, which includes: A transverse transmission shaft, located only on one side of the cleaning unit; A horizontal transmission carriage, which is arranged on the horizontal transmission shaft and can move laterally along the horizontal transmission shaft; A first vertical lifting shaft, which is arranged on the horizontal transmission pallet, and can perform vertical movement on the horizontal transmission pallet; A rotating table arranged on the first vertical lifting shaft; A first jaw clamping arm is connected to the rotating table and driven by the rotating table to make a rotating movement for picking and placing wafers. The wafer transfer manipulator described in item 1 of the scope of patent application, wherein the cleaning unit and the drying unit are equipped with switchable doors for automatic opening when the wafer transfer manipulator picks up and places wafers Or close. As described in the first item of the scope of patent application, the cleaning unit includes: a pre-drying unit and other units of the cleaning module; the drying unit and other units of the cleaning module are located in the pre-drying unit The pre-drying unit is operated in a vertical direction; the wafers in the pre-drying unit are transferred to the drying unit by the first gripper arm; the other units of the cleaning module are wafer transition units, megasonics One or more of the cleaning unit and the scrubbing unit. For the wafer transfer robot described in item 3 of the scope of patent application, the wafer transfer robot further includes: at least one second vertical lifting shaft, which is arranged on the lateral transfer carriage and can transfer in the lateral direction. The carriage moves vertically; the first vertical lifting shaft is located between the second vertical lifting shaft and the drying unit; the second vertical lifting shaft is also provided with a second jaw clamping arm for contacting the second vertical lifting shaft. A jaw clamping arm cooperates with the wafer transfer from other units of the cleaning module to the pre-drying unit. A wafer turning method for a wafer transfer robot according to item 3 or 4 of the scope of patent application, wherein the wafer turning method includes a wafer placing step and a robot returning step; The wafer placement step includes: after the first jaw clamping arm takes out the wafer from the pre-drying unit of the cleaning unit, the wafer is realized by linkage or non-linkage of the three movement directions of horizontal, vertical, and rotation. Turn over from the vertical state to the horizontal state, and place the wafer in the drying unit; The returning step of the manipulator includes: after the first jaw clamping arm places the wafer in the drying unit, the horizontal state is restored to the vertical state through linkage or non-linkage actions in the three movement directions of horizontal, vertical, and rotation, and Return to the original position. As described in the fifth item of the scope of patent application, the wafer turning method of the wafer transfer robot, wherein the wafer placement step specifically includes: After the first jaw clamping arm takes out the wafer from the pre-drying unit, it moves in the following three directions at the same time: The lateral transport carriage drives the first jaw holding arm to move laterally away from the drying unit, and the rotating table drives the first jaw holding arm to rotate to the side close to the drying unit until the wafer reaches the level State, the first vertical lifting shaft drives the first jaw clamping arm to move vertically to a certain position; Then the lateral transport carriage drives the first jaw clamping arm to move laterally in a direction close to the drying unit until the wafer is located above the drying unit; The first vertical lifting shaft drives the first claw clamping arm to move vertically downward until the wafer is located in the designated mechanism inside the drying unit; the first claw clamping arm releases the wafer so that the wafer is located in the drying unit On the internal designated agency. As described in the fifth item of the scope of patent application, the wafer inverting method of the wafer transfer robot, wherein the wafer placement step specifically includes: after the first jaw clamping arm takes out the wafer from the pre-drying unit , The lateral transfer carriage drives the first claw clamping arm to move laterally away from the drying unit; then the rotating table drives the first claw clamping arm to rotate to the side close to the drying unit to the wafer Reach the horizontal state; then the first vertical lifting shaft drives the first jaw clamping arm to move vertically to a certain position; then the horizontal transmission carriage drives the first jaw clamping arm to move laterally towards the direction of the drying unit Until the wafer is located above the drying unit; the first vertical lifting shaft drives the first jaw holding arm to move vertically downward until the wafer is located in the designated mechanism inside the drying unit; the first jaw holding arm is released The wafer is placed on the designated mechanism inside the drying unit. As described in the fifth item of the scope of patent application, the wafer inverting method of the wafer transfer robot, wherein the wafer placement step specifically includes: after the first jaw clamping arm takes out the wafer from the pre-drying unit , The lateral transfer carriage drives the first claw clamping arm to move laterally away from the drying unit; then the rotating table drives the first claw clamping arm to rotate to the side close to the drying unit to the wafer Reach a horizontal state; then the lateral transport carriage drives the first jaw clamping arm to move laterally towards the direction of the drying unit until the wafer is above the drying unit; the first vertical lifting shaft drives the first jaw The clamping arm moves vertically downwards until the wafer is located in the designated mechanism inside the drying unit; the first jaw clamping arm loosens the wafer so that the wafer is located on the designated mechanism inside the drying unit. As described in the fifth item of the scope of patent application, the wafer inverting method of the wafer transfer robot, wherein the wafer placement step specifically includes: after the first jaw clamping arm takes out the wafer from the pre-drying unit , The rotating table drives the first jaw holding arm to rotate to the side close to the drying unit until the wafer reaches a horizontal state; then the lateral transfer carriage drives the first jaw holding arm to move laterally until the wafer is located at the Above the drying unit; the first vertical lifting shaft drives the first jaw holding arm to move vertically downward until the wafer is located in the designated mechanism inside the drying unit; the first jaw holding arm loosens the wafer to make the wafer The circle is located on the designated mechanism inside the drying unit. As described in item 5 of the scope of patent application, the wafer turning method of the wafer transfer robot, wherein the robot returning step specifically includes: when the wafer is placed in the drying unit, simultaneously performing the following three directions Movement: The horizontal transmission carriage drives the first jaw clamping arm to move laterally away from the drying unit; the rotating table drives the first jaw clamping arm to rotate downward until the first jaw is clamped The arm is in a vertical state; the first vertical lifting shaft drives the first jaw clamping arm to move vertically upward to a certain position. As described in the fifth item of the scope of patent application, the wafer turning method of the wafer transfer robot, wherein the robot returning step specifically includes: when the wafer is placed in the drying unit, the first vertical lifting shaft drives the The first jaw clamping arm moves vertically upwards to a certain position; then the horizontal transmission carriage drives the first jaw clamping arm to move laterally away from the drying unit to a certain position; then the rotating table drives the first The claw clamping arm rotates downwards until the first claw clamping arm is in a vertical state. As described in the fifth item of the scope of patent application, the wafer turning method of the wafer transfer robot, wherein the returning step of the robot specifically includes: when the wafer is placed in the drying unit, the lateral transfer carriage drives the second A jaw clamping arm moves laterally away from the drying unit to a certain position; then the first vertical lifting shaft drives the first jaw clamping arm to move vertically upward to a certain position; then the rotating table drives the first The claw clamping arm rotates downwards until the first claw clamping arm is in a vertical state.

Images