Single-chamber sequential curing of semiconductor wafers
First Claim
1. An apparatus for curing a plurality of wafers, the apparatus comprising:
- a chamber housing having a plurality of stationary semiconductor processing stations, wherein every one of the semiconductor processing stations is associated with a different, non-overlapping UV exposure area located sequentially along a nominally circular path;
a plurality of wafer supports,a plurality of ultraviolet (UV) light sources, each of which is associated with one and only one of the UV exposure areas, wherein each UV exposure area is configured to be illuminated by one and only one UV light source of the plurality of UV light sources when the UV light sources are powered, andat least one of the UV light sources includes a cold mirror that is configured to reflect light from the at least one of the UV light sources onto the corresponding UV exposure area;
a rotational mechanism with an axis of rotation, the rotational mechanism configured to move the wafer supports along the nominally circular path.
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Abstract
The present invention relates to curing of semiconductor wafers. More particularly, the invention relates to cure chambers containing multiple cure stations, each featuring one or more UV light sources. The wafers are cured by sequential exposure to the light sources in each station. In some embodiments, the wafers remain stationary with respect to the light source during exposure. In other embodiments, there is relative movement between the light source and the wafer during exposure. The invention also provides chambers that may be used to independently modulate the cross-linking, density and increase in stress of a cured material by providing independent control of the wafer temperature and UV intensity.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. An apparatus for curing a plurality of wafers, the apparatus comprising:
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a chamber housing having a plurality of stationary semiconductor processing stations, wherein every one of the semiconductor processing stations is associated with a different, non-overlapping UV exposure area located sequentially along a nominally circular path; a plurality of wafer supports, a plurality of ultraviolet (UV) light sources, each of which is associated with one and only one of the UV exposure areas, wherein each UV exposure area is configured to be illuminated by one and only one UV light source of the plurality of UV light sources when the UV light sources are powered, and at least one of the UV light sources includes a cold mirror that is configured to reflect light from the at least one of the UV light sources onto the corresponding UV exposure area; a rotational mechanism with an axis of rotation, the rotational mechanism configured to move the wafer supports along the nominally circular path. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17)
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18. An apparatus for curing a plurality of wafers, the apparatus comprising:
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a chamber housing having a plurality of stationary semiconductor processing stations, wherein every one of the semiconductor processing stations is associated with a different, non-overlapping UV exposure area located sequentially along a nominally circular path; a plurality of wafer supports; a plurality of ultraviolet (UV) light sources, wherein; each of the UV light sources is associated with one and only one of the UV exposure areas, each UV exposure area is configured to be illuminated by one and only one UV light source of the plurality of UV light sources when the UV light sources are powered, and each UV light source is associated with a cold mirror configured to redirect UV light emitted from that UV light source towards the UV exposure area associated with that UV light source; and a rotational mechanism with an axis of rotation, the rotational mechanism configured to move the wafer supports along the nominally circular path. - View Dependent Claims (19, 20)
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Specification