Apparatus for manufacturing semiconductor devices
First Claim
1. An apparatus for the molecular bonding of semiconductor devices, the apparatus comprising:
- a bonding module comprising a vacuum chamber to provide bonding of a first wafer and a second wafer under a pressure below atmospheric pressure, and at least a first bonding chuck and a second bonding chuck configured to hold the first wafer and the second wafer, respectively, with the main surfaces of the first and second wafers arranged face-to-face in vertical orientation with respect to a horizontal plane whereupon the bonding module is located, wherein the first bonding chuck is separate from the second bonding chuck;
a loadlock module connected to the bonding module and configured and dimensioned for wafer transfer to the bonding module and also connected to a first vacuum pumping device configured to reduce the pressure in the loadlock module to below atmospheric pressure, wherein the loadlock module comprises a first gate that can be opened and closed for receipt of the first and second wafers from an external environment and a second gate that can be opened and closed for transfer of the first and second wafers from the loadlock module to the bonding module; and
a control unit configured to control the first and the second bonding chucks to move towards each other to locate the first and the second wafers at a predetermined distance from each other, such that the first and the second wafers locally become sufficiently close to each other that molecular bonding is initiated between the first wafer and the second wafer, and to release the first and second wafers at the predetermined distance, andwherein the bonding and loadlock modules remain at a pressure below atmospheric pressure while at least one of the first wafer and the second wafer is transferred from the loadlock module into the bonding module through the second gate.
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Abstract
The present invention relates to an apparatus for the manufacture of semiconductor devices wherein the apparatus includes a bonding module that has a vacuum chamber to provide bonding of wafers under pressure below atmospheric pressure; and a loadlock module connected to the bonding module and configured for wafer transfer to the bonding module. The loadlock module is also connected to a first vacuum pumping device configured to reduce the pressure in the loadlock module to below atmospheric pressure. The bonding and loadlock modules remain at a pressure below atmospheric pressure while the wafer is transferred from the loadlock module into the bonding module.
63 Citations
11 Claims
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1. An apparatus for the molecular bonding of semiconductor devices, the apparatus comprising:
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a bonding module comprising a vacuum chamber to provide bonding of a first wafer and a second wafer under a pressure below atmospheric pressure, and at least a first bonding chuck and a second bonding chuck configured to hold the first wafer and the second wafer, respectively, with the main surfaces of the first and second wafers arranged face-to-face in vertical orientation with respect to a horizontal plane whereupon the bonding module is located, wherein the first bonding chuck is separate from the second bonding chuck; a loadlock module connected to the bonding module and configured and dimensioned for wafer transfer to the bonding module and also connected to a first vacuum pumping device configured to reduce the pressure in the loadlock module to below atmospheric pressure, wherein the loadlock module comprises a first gate that can be opened and closed for receipt of the first and second wafers from an external environment and a second gate that can be opened and closed for transfer of the first and second wafers from the loadlock module to the bonding module; and a control unit configured to control the first and the second bonding chucks to move towards each other to locate the first and the second wafers at a predetermined distance from each other, such that the first and the second wafers locally become sufficiently close to each other that molecular bonding is initiated between the first wafer and the second wafer, and to release the first and second wafers at the predetermined distance, and wherein the bonding and loadlock modules remain at a pressure below atmospheric pressure while at least one of the first wafer and the second wafer is transferred from the loadlock module into the bonding module through the second gate. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
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Specification