Wafer carrier

• US 4,471,716 A
• Filed: 08/20/1982
• Issued: 09/18/1984
• Est. Priority Date: 01/15/1981
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Fluoroware, Inc. (Entegris Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Fluoroware, Inc. (Entegris Incorporated)
• Inventors: Milliren, Guy L.
• Primary Examiner(s): Smith, John D.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Plantz, Bernard F.
• Application Number:
  US06/409,841
• Time in Patent Office: 760 Days
• Field of Search: 118/500, 118/728, 118/428, 118/320, 118/52, 211/40, 211/41, 269/962, 269/903, 269/46, 206/454, 206/587, 206/332, 206/334, 206/328, 206/564, 134/137, 134/144, 134/148, 134/149, 134/157, 134/158, 134/198, 134/199, 134/201
• US Class Current: 118/500
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/6733 characterized by a material, a roughness, a coating or the like
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 134/902 Semiconductor wafer
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 206/833 Apertured side walls

Abstract

A PFA Teflon carrier for silicon wafers being processed in hot baths in the production of integrated circuit chips with sidewalls having wafer spacing webs and grooves receiving the wafers in confronting and spaced relation. The sidewalls having outboard channel supports or stiffening bars extending substantially to the ends of the sidewalls and adjacent offsets in the sidewalls which connect to the end walls of the receptacle, one end wall being H-shaped and having a cross bar panel with elongate parallel stiffener bars thereon at the level of the bottom edge of the wafer confining panels in the sidewalls, the stiffener bars in the end walls having their ends spaced from the sidewalls.

Claims

1. A carrier for silicon wafers being processed in a centrifugal spray device in the production of integrated circuit chips, comprising

a rectangular receptacle of molded plastic resistant to high temperatures and corrosive chemicals of the processing liquids for the wafers, the receptacle having end walls and sidewalls and also having an open top extending transversely across the receptacle to the sidewalls thereof to accommodate insertion and removal of wafers, the receptacle also having an open bottom,

the sidewalls having upper portions with wafer confining panels for confronting and confining the edges of the wafers in the receptacle, the sidewalls also having offset lower portions converging obliquely toward the open bottom and the offset lower portions of the sidewalls also defining wafer supporting panels defining the open bottom of the receptacle and also having outer edges,

and the sidewalls also having integrally formed wafer spacing webs on the inner sides thereof and defining a multiplicity of wafer receiving grooves therebetween, the wafer spacing webs having upper portions extending vertically downwardly from the wafer confining panel and having lower portions extending obliquely downwardly in the offset lower portions of the sidewall and to the wafer supporting panels, the upper and lower portions of the sidewalls having elongate wash slots between the adjacent wafer spacing webs to pass sprayed liquid therethrough, said wash slots extending along the lower portions of the wafer spacing webs and traversing the offset lower portion of the sidewalls to the outer edges of the water supporting panels whereby the wash slots in the lower offset portions of the sidewalls cooperate with the open bottom to freely pass spray and flow of liquids moving across the wafers adjacent the wafer confining panels and to and from the open top.

2. A carrier according to claim 1 and the wafer confining panels having side faces with lower portions to confront and engage the edges of the wafers to minimize movement thereof, said lower portions of the side faces of the confining panels being spaced downwardly from the open top by a distance approximately half the width of the carrier between the two wafer confining panels.

3. A carrier according to claim 1 and the wafer confining panels having lower portions located approximately midway between the top of the carrier and the wafer supporting panels to confront and engage the edges of the wafers and minimize movement thereof.

4. A carrier according to claim 1 wherein the wafer supporting panels have oblique wafer supporting faces in downwardly converging relation to each other, outer edges of the oblique wafer supporting panels being located approximately midway said obliquely oriented offset lower portions of the sidewalls.

5. A carrier for circular silicon wafers being processed in a centrifugal spray device in production of integrated circuit chips, comprising

a rectangular receptacle of molded plastic resistant to high temperature and corrosive chemicals of the processing liquids for the wafers, the receptacle having an open top for insertion and removal of the wafers and an open bottom, the receptacle having end walls and sidewalls, the open top extending transversely across the receptacle to the sidewalls thereof,

the sidewalls having upright upper portions and also having oblique lower portions with wafer supporting panels spaced from each other to define said open bottom, the supporting panels having upper faces upon which the wafers are supported, the upper portions of the sidewall having wafer confining panels with upright front faces and lower edges, the front faces confronting and engaging the edges of the wafers in the receptacle,

and the sidewalls also having a multiplicity of wafer spacing webs on the inner side thereof and defining a multiplicity of wafer receiving grooves therebetween, the wafer spacing webs having upper and lower portions in the respective upper and lower portions of the sidewalls, the upper portions of the webs extending downwardly from the wafer confining panels and the lower portions of the webs extending obliquely downwardly to the wafer supporting panels, the sidewalls having elongate wash slots between the adjacent wafer spacing webs to accommodate free passage of liquid spray therethrough, said wash slots extending from the lower ledge of the wafer confining panels and along the wafer spacing webs and to the wafer supporting panel, the wash slots traversing the lower portions of the sidewalls adjacent the wafer supporting panels to pass sprayed liquid parallel to and across the wafer confining panels and across peripheral areas of the wafers and also in other directions across the wafers.

6. A carrier according to claim 5 and the lower portion of each of the sidewalls including an upright elevating panel depending from the lower edge of the oblique wafer supporting panel, said elevating panels being widely spaced from each other in confronting relation and defining the open bottom of the receptacle.

7. A carrier according to claim 5 wherein the wafer confining panels have lower edges located approximately at the opposite ends of horizontal diameters of the circular wafers on the supporting panels.