Patent Application
20130068264
1. Field of the Invention
This invention generally relates to a wafer scrubber apparatus and more particularly to a wafer scrubber apparatus using a high speed spinning action to remove water from a surface of a wafer.
2. Description of the Related Art
Production of semiconductor devices having microscopic structures require high-precision technology. During processing, minute particles of dust on the circuits which constitute a semiconductor device may degrade the reliability of a finished semiconductor device. Even if dust contaminants produced during processing, which end up on a semiconductor wafer, do not adversely affect the circuit functions of the semiconductor device, they still may lead to fabrication difficulties. Therefore, a semiconductor device must be fabricated in a dirt-free environment, and the surface of the semiconductor wafer must be washed to remove minute particles of dust generated during processing.
Referring to
The invention provides a wafer scrubber apparatus, comprising a chamber, and holder connecting to a spindle disposed in the chamber, wherein the holder supports a wafer, and a gas purge pipe disposed at the top of a wall of the chamber, wherein the gas purge pipe comprises a plurality of gas injection holes facing downward to purge gas along the chamber wall making water flow along the chamber wall more smoothly and more quickly for preventing the water from scattering back to the wafer.
The invention further provides a wafer cleaning procedure, comprising providing a wafer scrubber apparatus, comprising a chamber, and holder connecting to a spindle disposed in the chamber, wherein the holder supports a wafer and a gas purge pipe disposed at the top of a wall of the chamber, and spinning the wafer to remove water thereon, wherein the gas purge pipe purges gas along the wall of the chamber making water flow along the wall of the chamber more smoothly and more quickly for preventing the water from scattering back to the wafer.
The invention can be more fully understood by reading the subsequent detailed description and examples with references made to the accompanying drawings, wherein,
It is understood that specific embodiments are provided as examples to teach the broader inventive concept, and one of ordinary skill in the art can easily apply the teaching of the present disclosure to other methods or apparatus. The following discussion is only used to illustrate the invention, not limit the invention.
Reference throughout this specification to “one embodiment” or “an embodiment” means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the present invention. Thus, the appearances of the phrases “in one embodiment” or “in an embodiment” in various places throughout this specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment. Furthermore, the particular features, structures, or characteristics may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments. It should be appreciated that the following figures are not drawn to scale; rather, these figures are merely intended for illustration.
Accordingly, a new scrubber cleaning apparatus and method are required to address the water scattering back issues
In an important aspect of the embodiment, a gas purge pipe 308 including a plurality of gas injecting holes 314 is disposed at the top of the chamber wall 312, and an exhaust piping 309 is disposed at the bottom of the chamber 310. In more detail, both the gas purge pipe 308 and the exhaust piping 309 are ring-shaped, and the gas purge pipe 308 surrounds the top of the chamber wall 312 with a plurality of gas injecting holes 314 facing downward and with a direction extending along the chamber wall 312. Therefore, the gas purge pipe 308 can perform a gas purge along the chamber wall 312 making the water 316 from the wafer 306 flow along the chamber wall 312 more smoothly and quickly (arrows 311 in this figure indicate gas flow). Accordingly, the chamber wall 312 (may be formed of hydrophilic materials) can be dried more quickly and more water 316 can be caught by the chamber wall 312 to prevent water from scattering back to the wafer 306. In an embodiment of the invention, the purge gas comprises N2, Ar.
In the embodiment, a gas purge pipe 416 including a plurality of gas injecting holes 418 surrounds the top of the chamber wall 410, and an exhaust piping 417 is disposed at the bottom of the chamber 406, wherein both the gas purge pipe 416 and the exhaust piping 417 are ring-shaped, and the gas injecting holes 420 of the gas purge pipe 416 face downward and with a direction extending along a direction of the chamber wall 410 (arrows 409 in this figure indicate gas flow). Therefore, the gas purge pipe 416 can perform a gas purge along the chamber wall 410 making the water 408 from the wafer 412 flow along the chamber wall 410 more smoothly and quickly. In an important aspect of the embodiment, the wafer holder 404 includes a plurality of gas purge holes 418 to purge gas to the backside of the wafer 412 for preventing scrubber water 408 from flowing to the wafer 412 backside (arrows 411 in this figure indicate the gas flow). With the gas purge pipe 416 on top the chamber wall 410 and the gas purge holes 418 in the wafer holder 404, the embodiment can use gas flow to control water 408 flow to prevent water 408 from scattering back to the wafer 412. Therefore, the water 408 scattering back issue can be eliminated.
While the invention has been described by way of example and in terms of the preferred embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments. It is intended to cover various modifications and similar arrangements (as would be apparent to those skilled in the art). Therefore, the scope of the appended claims should be accorded the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and similar arrangements.
