KR101586428B1 - semiconductor wafer cleaning apparatus having brush assembly - Google Patents

Abstract

A semiconductor cleaning apparatus according to the present invention comprises a brush assembly rotating in contact with a surface of a semiconductor wafer, and a chemical solution supply unit for supplying a chemical solution into the brush assembly. The brush assembly includes a brush body having a first inner hollow body, a brush formed on an outer peripheral surface of the brush body and having a support projection formed on an inner peripheral surface of the brush body and a brush projection contacting the surface of the semiconductor wafer, A brush holder having a holder body having a second inner hollow and a through body having an inner circumferential surface and an outer circumferential surface of the holder body, the holder body being inserted into the first inner hollow of the brush body so that the through- A core body inserted into the second inner hollow, a brush core provided inside the core body and having an inner liquid discharge pipe connected to the inner liquid supply pipe and an inner liquid supply pipe through which the liquid is supplied from the liquid supply portion and the brush assembly, A chemical liquid discharging portion for discharging the chemical liquid supplied inside is connected .

Description

Technical Field [0001] The present invention relates to a semiconductor wafer cleaning apparatus having a brush assembly,

The present invention relates to a semiconductor wafer cleaning apparatus, and more particularly, to a semiconductor wafer cleaning apparatus having a brush assembly.

In order to form a desired pattern on the surface of a semiconductor wafer, a number of steps are performed. Unnecessary thin films and various kinds of contaminants are formed and remain on the surface of the semiconductor wafer where a predetermined process is performed in each step. To remove this, the semiconductor wafer should be cleaned. .

Particularly, when a planarization process is performed on a semiconductor wafer using a chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) apparatus, the colloidal abrasive contained in the polishing slurry tends to aggregate and is present on the semiconductor wafer. Therefore, after the CMP process, a cleaning process must be performed to remove agglomerated abrasive particles before proceeding with the subsequent process.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a semiconductor wafer cleaning apparatus having a brush assembly capable of removing unnecessary thin film, contaminants and abrasive particles remaining on a semiconductor wafer.

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a semiconductor cleaning apparatus including a brush assembly rotating in contact with a surface of a semiconductor wafer, and a chemical solution supply unit for supplying a chemical solution into the brush assembly.

The brush assembly includes a brush body having a first inner hollow portion, a brush formed on an outer circumferential surface of the brush body and having a brush protrusion contacting the surface of the semiconductor wafer and a support protrusion formed on an inner circumferential surface of the brush body, A holder body having a second inner hollow smaller than the inner hollow and a through groove penetrating the inner circumferential surface and the outer circumferential surface of the holder body, A core body inserted into the second inner hollow, an inner liquid supply pipe provided inside the core body and supplied with a chemical solution from the liquid supply part, and an inner liquid discharge line connected to the inner liquid supply pipe, The brush assembly according to claim 1, Drug solution discharge portion for discharging the chemical liquid supplied to the inside of the brush assembly is coupled.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the brush body is formed in a cylindrical shape, and the brush protrusions are provided on the outer surface of the cylindrical brush body so as to be spaced apart from each other. The brush supporting protrusions are formed on the inner surface of the cylindrical brush body And a plurality of them may be provided apart from each other.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the holder body may be cylindrical, and the through-hole may be formed to be spaced apart from the inner circumferential surface and the outer circumferential surface of the cylindrical holder body.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the core body is formed in a cylindrical shape, and the internal chemical liquid discharge line includes a plurality of chemical liquid discharge holes provided in the internal chemical liquid supply pipe and a plurality of internal chemical liquid discharge holes Lt; / RTI >

In one embodiment of the present invention, the chemical liquid supply unit includes a plurality of chemical liquid sources, a chemical liquid source tube connected to the chemical liquid sources, a chemical liquid source pipe connected to the chemical liquid source pipe, and a chemical liquid supply pipe connected to the chemical liquid source pipe .

In one embodiment of the present invention, the chemical liquid source may include an etching source capable of etching the semiconductor wafer.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the brush assembly may further include a chemical liquid discharge unit for discharging the chemical liquid supplied into the brush assembly.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the chemical liquid discharge unit may include a chemical liquid discharge pipe connected to the brush assembly and a chemical liquid discharge valve installed in the chemical liquid discharge pipe.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the semiconductor wafer and the brush assembly may further include a cleaning nozzle unit for supplying a cleaning liquid to the semiconductor wafer and the brush assembly.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a semiconductor cleaning apparatus comprising: a brush assembly rotating in contact with a surface of a semiconductor wafer; a chemical solution supply unit for supplying a chemical solution into the brush assembly; And a cleaning nozzle unit for supplying the cleaning nozzle.

The brush assembly includes: a cylindrical brush body having a first inner hollow; a plurality of brush protrusions formed on an outer circumferential surface of the cylindrical brush body and contacting the surface of the semiconductor wafer and spaced apart from each other; A cylindrical holder body having a second inner hollow smaller than the first hollow hollow and a plurality of through holes spaced apart from each other and passing through the inner and outer circumferential surfaces of the cylindrical holder body, A brush holder in which the holder body is inserted into the first inner hollow of the brush body so that the through-holes and the support protrusions are coupled to each other, a cylindrical core body inserted into the second hollow, And a liquid supply unit And a plurality of internal chemical liquid discharge lines connected to the internal chemical liquid supply pipe and spaced apart from each other, wherein the brush assembly is provided with a chemical liquid supply unit for supplying the chemical liquid supplied into the brush assembly, The discharge part is connected.

In the semiconductor wafer cleaning apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, the brush assembly to which the chemical liquid is smoothly supplied can uniformly contact the semiconductor wafer.

In addition, the semiconductor wafer cleaning apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention can increase the surface etching uniformity of a semiconductor wafer by supplying a chemical solution, particularly an etching source, into the brush assembly.

Accordingly, the semiconductor wafer etching apparatus of the present invention can more easily remove unnecessary thin film, contaminants and abrasive particles present on a semiconductor wafer.

1 and 2 are a front view and a side view, respectively, for illustrating a semiconductor wafer cleaning apparatus having a brush assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention.
3 to 5 are exploded perspective views of a brush assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Fig. 6 is a perspective view showing a brush of a comparative example for comparison with Fig. 5. Fig.
FIG. 7 and FIG. 8 are coupling views illustrating a coupling relationship between a brush and a brush holder of the brush assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention.
9 to 11 are views for explaining a brush assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Figures 12 and 13 are views of comparative examples for comparison with the brush assemblies of Figures 9-11.

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

The embodiments of the present invention are described in order to more fully explain the present invention to those skilled in the art, and the following embodiments may be modified in various other forms, The present invention is not limited to the embodiment. Rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be more thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art. In the drawings, the thickness and size of each layer are exaggerated for convenience and clarity of explanation.

It is to be understood that throughout the specification, when an element such as a film, an area, or a substrate is referred to as being "on", "connected to", or "coupled to" another element, May be interpreted as being "on", "connected", or "coupled" to another element, or there may be other elements intervening therebetween. On the other hand, when one element is referred to as being "directly on", "directly connected", or "directly coupled" to another element, it is interpreted that there are no other components intervening therebetween do. Like numbers refer to like elements.

Although the terms first, second, etc. are used herein to describe various elements, components, regions, layers and / or portions, these members, components, regions, layers and / It is obvious that no. These terms are only used to distinguish one member, component, region, layer or section from another region, layer or section. Thus, a first member, component, region, layer or section described below may refer to a second member, component, region, layer or section without departing from the teachings of the present invention.

Also, relative terms such as "top" or "above" and "under" or "below" can be used herein to describe the relationship of certain elements to other elements as illustrated in the Figures. Relative terms are intended to include different orientations of the device in addition to those depicted in the Figures. For example, in the figures the elements are turned over so that the elements depicted as being on the top surface of the other elements are oriented on the bottom surface of the other elements. Thus, the example "top" may include both "under" and "top" directions depending on the particular orientation of the figure. If the elements are oriented in different directions (rotated 90 degrees with respect to the other direction), the relative descriptions used herein can be interpreted accordingly.

The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. As used herein, the singular forms "a," "an," and "the" include singular forms unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Also, " comprise "and / or" comprising "when used herein should be interpreted as specifying the presence of stated shapes, numbers, steps, operations, elements, elements, and / And does not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, operations, elements, elements, and / or groups.

The following embodiments of the invention are described with reference to the drawings schematically illustrating ideal embodiments of the present invention. In the figures, for example, variations in the shape shown may be expected, depending on manufacturing techniques and / or tolerances. Accordingly, the embodiments of the present invention should not be construed as limited to the particular shapes of the regions shown herein, but should include, for example, changes in shape resulting from manufacturing. The following embodiments of the present invention may be implemented in any one of the following embodiments, and the following embodiments may be implemented by combining one or more of them.

1 and 2 are a front view and a side view, respectively, illustrating a semiconductor wafer cleaning apparatus having a brush assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The semiconductor wafer cleaning apparatus 200 according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention may include a brush assembly 100, a chemical solution supply unit 250, a chemical solution discharge unit 270, and a cleaning nozzle unit 290.

The brush assembly 100 contacts the surface (FS, front surface) and back surface (BS) of the semiconductor wafer 202 and rotates to clean the semiconductor wafer 202. The brush assembly 100 has a brush protrusion 102 formed on the outer circumferential surface thereof and the brush protrusion 102 is brought into contact with the surface FS or the back surface BS of the semiconductor wafer 202 to clean the semiconductor wafer 202 The brush assembly 100 may be made of a PVA (polyvinyl alcohol) sponge, and the brush protrusion 102 may be made of a PVA sponge.

When the brush assembly 100 rotates, the semiconductor wafer 202 also rotates, so that the semiconductor wafer 202 can be cleaned. The brush assembly 100 may have a structure in which the chemical liquid supplied through the chemical liquid supply unit 250 can be smoothly supplied. The semiconductor wafer cleaning apparatus 200 may be configured to clean the semiconductor wafer 100 when the cleaning solution is supplied to the brush assembly 100 after supplying the chemical solution and the cleaning solution through the chemical solution supply unit 250 and the cleaning nozzle unit 290, 202 can be cleaned better. The structure of the brush assembly 100 will be described later in detail.

The chemical solution supply unit 250 can supply the chemical solution into the brush assembly 100. The chemical solution supply unit 250 includes chemical solution sources 210a and 210b connected to a plurality of chemical solution sources DI and HF and chemical solution sources DI and HF and a chemical solution source pipe 210a and 210b connected to the chemical solution source pipes 210a and 210b. (214) and a chemical liquid supply pipe (216) connected to the dispensing valve (214).

Among the chemical solution sources (DI, HF), an etch source HF capable of etching the semiconductor wafer 202 can be included. In this embodiment, DI (deionized water) and HF (hydrofluoric acid solution) are shown as chemical solution sources, but the present invention is not limited thereto. The hydrofluoric acid solution may be a solution diluted with deionized water. For example, the hydrofluoric acid solution may be a solution containing 0.5% hydrofluoric acid in deionized water.

The chemical solution source pipes 210a and 210b may be connected to the dispensing valve 214. [ The dispense valve 214 may be a 3-way valve. That is, the distribution valve 214 may have two input side lines and one output side line. Accordingly, the dispensing valve 214 can select one of the chemical liquid source pipes and supply the chemical liquid to the chemical liquid supply pipe 216. [

The semiconductor wafer cleaning apparatus 200 according to an embodiment of the present invention supplies a chemical solution such as an etching source HF through the chemical solution supply unit 250 to the inside of the brush assembly 100, It is possible to uniformly make contact with the base member 202. Accordingly, the semiconductor wafer cleaning apparatus 200 according to an embodiment of the present invention can increase the etching uniformity of the semiconductor wafer 202, and can easily remove unnecessary thin films, contaminants, and abrasive particles existing on the semiconductor wafer .

The cleaning nozzle unit 290 can supply the cleaning liquid to the semiconductor wafer 202 or the brush assembly 100. The cleaning nozzle unit 290 includes a cleaning liquid source SC1, a cleaning liquid source tube 208 connected to the cleaning liquid source SC1, a cleaning nozzle tube 204 connected to the cleaning liquid source tube 208, a cleaning nozzle tube 204, And a cleaning nozzle 206 mounted on the cleaning nozzle 206.

The cleaning liquid source SC1 may be a mixture of ammonia, hydrogen peroxide water and deionized water, but is not limited thereto. It is possible to clean the semiconductor wafer 202 more easily by using the brush assembly 100 by supplying the cleaning liquid to the semiconductor wafer 202 and the brush assembly 100 through the cleaning nozzle unit 290. [

The chemical liquid discharge unit 270 includes a first chemical liquid discharge pipe 218 connected to the brush assembly 100, a chemical liquid discharge valve 220 provided in the first chemical liquid discharge pipe 218, and a second chemical liquid discharge pipe 220 connected to the chemical liquid discharge valve 220. [ (Not shown). The chemical liquid discharging unit 270 can rapidly discharge the chemical solution faded into the brush assembly 100 through the nutrient discharge valve 220 and the chemical liquid discharge pipes 218 and 222. [

FIGS. 3 to 5 are exploded perspective views of a brush assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 6 is a perspective view illustrating a brush of a comparative example for comparison with FIG.

Specifically, the brush assembly 100 used in the semiconductor wafer cleaning apparatus 200 of the present invention includes the brush core 110 shown in Fig. 3, the brush holder 130 shown in Fig. 4, (150).

5, the brush holder 130 and the brush core 110 will be described below in order to simplify the explanation.

The brush 150 includes a brush body 152 having a first internal hollow 154 and a brush protrusion 158 formed on the outer circumferential surface of the brush body 152 and contacting the surface of the semiconductor wafer 202 And a support protrusion 156 formed on the inner circumferential surface of the brush body 152.

The first inner hollow 154 may be a through hole formed in the brush body 152 parallel to the rotation axis of the brush 150. The brush body 152 may be cylindrical. The difference between the inner and outer spans t1 of the brush body 152, that is, the outer thickness, can be set to be smaller than the difference between the inner and outer spans t2 of the brush body 152a constituting the brush 150a of the comparative example of Fig. have.

When the difference between the inner and outer spans of the brush body 152 is small, the chemical liquid flowing into the brush body 152 can be discharged to the outside better. In Fig. 6, reference numerals 154a and 158a may be internal hollows and brush protrusions, respectively.

A plurality of brush protrusions 158 may be provided on the inner surface of the cylindrical brush body 152. As described above, the brush body 152 and the brush protrusion 158 may be made of a PVA (polyvinyl alcohol) sponge, and may be filled with a chemical solution or a cleaning liquid.

The brush holder 130 may be inserted into the first inner hollow 154 of the brush body 152. The brush holder 130 includes a holder body 132 having a second inner hollow 134 smaller than the first inner hollow 154 of the brush body 152 and a second inner hollow 134 extending from the inner and outer circumferential surfaces of the holder body 132, (Not shown).

The holder body 132 may be inserted into the first inner hollow 154 of the brush body 152 such that the through hole 136 and the support protrusion 156 of the brush body 152 are coupled to each other. The holder body 132 may have a cylindrical shape. The through-holes 136 may extend between the inner surface and the outer surface of the cylindrical holder body 132, and may be spaced apart from each other.

The brush core 110 includes a core body 112 inserted into the second internal hollow 134 of the brush holder 130, an internal chemical liquid supply pipe 120 And internal chemical liquid discharge lines (116 and 118 in FIGS. 3 and 10) connected to the internal chemical liquid supply pipe (120 in FIG. 10).

The core body 112 may have a cylindrical shape with an internal chemical liquid supply pipe 120 installed therein. The inner liquid discharge line (116 and 118 in FIGS. 3 and 10) includes a plurality of liquid discharge holes (116 in FIGS. 3 and 10) provided in the inner liquid supply pipe (120 in FIG. 10) (FIG. 3 and FIG. 10) connected to the internal chemical liquid discharge paths (FIGS. 3 and 10).

FIG. 7 and FIG. 8 are coupling views illustrating a coupling relationship between a brush and a brush holder of the brush assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Specifically, FIGS. 7 and 8 are an exploded perspective view and a partial cross-sectional view for explaining the coupling relationship between the brush and the brush holder, respectively. As described above, the brush holder 130 may be inserted into the brush body 152, i.e., the inner hollow 154.

When the holder body 132 of the brush holder 130 is inserted into the brush body 152, the through-hole 136 of the brush holder 130 and the support protrusion 156 of the brush body 152 are aligned with each other .

The brush 150 may be fastened to the brush core 110 via the brush holder 130 as shown in FIG. Since the brush holder 130 does not increase the difference in the inner and outer diameters of the brush body 152, the brush holder 130 can be installed to more accurately fix the fastening relationship between the brush 150 and the brush core 110.

9 to 11 are views for explaining a brush assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIGS. 12 and 13 are views of a comparative example for comparison with the brush assemblies of FIGS. 9 to 11.

9 is a combined view of the brush core 110, the brush holder 130, and the brush 150, which are components of the brush assembly 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention, 9 is a cross-sectional view of the brush assembly 100, and Fig. 11 is a partially enlarged view of Fig.

12 is a view showing a combination of the brush core 110a and the brush 150a which are the components of the brush assembly 100a of the comparative example shown in Fig. 9, and Fig. 13 is a view showing the brush assembly of the comparative example Fig.

9 to 11, the brush assembly 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a brush (not shown) which can be cleaned or etched by being in contact with a semiconductor wafer (202 of FIGS. 1 and 2) (150). The brush 150 may include brush protrusions 158 on the outer surfaces of the brush body 152 and the brush body 152. A cover 160 that can open and close the inside of the brush body 152 may be installed on one side of the brush 150. The lid 160 can be fastened to the brush 150, the brush holder 130, and the brush core 110 through the fastening assisting member 162 as shown in Fig.

The bristles 150a of the brush assembly 100a of the comparative example of FIG. 12 may be configured such that the difference between the inner and outer spans t2 is larger than the inner and outer spans difference t1 of the brush assembly 100 of the present invention, have. 12 and 13, reference numeral 152a denotes a brush body, 158a denotes a brush projection, and 160a denotes a lid.

The brush assembly 100 of FIGS. 9 and 10 includes a brush holder 130 that can hold or fasten the brush core 110 inside the brush 150. As described above, the brush core 110 may include internal chemical liquid supply lines 120 to which the chemical liquid is supplied and internal chemical liquid discharge lines 116 and 118 connected to the internal chemical liquid supply line 120. The inner liquid discharge lines 116 and 118 may have a plurality of inner liquid discharge lines 116 and 118 connected to the inner liquid supply pipe 120 and spaced apart from each other.

The inner liquid discharge lines 116 and 118 include a plurality of liquid discharge holes 116 provided in the inner liquid supply pipe 120 and a plurality of inner liquid discharge channels 118 connected to the liquid discharge holes 116 . Fig. 13 is for comparison with Fig. 10, and shows an internal chemical liquid discharge line including chemical liquid discharge holes 116a and internal chemical liquid discharge channels 118a.

Compared with FIG. 10 of FIG. 13, the difference in the inner and outer diameters of the brush 150a is large, and the length of the chemical liquid discharge passages 118a is short, so that the chemical liquid may not flow well. Accordingly, the cleaning and etching effects of the semiconductor wafer may be deteriorated in the brush assembly 100a of FIGS.

While the present invention has been described in connection with what is presently considered to be practical exemplary embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments, but, on the contrary, You can understand that you can.

While the present invention has been particularly shown and described with reference to exemplary embodiments thereof, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments, but, on the contrary, is intended to cover various modifications and equivalent arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the appended claims. . It is to be understood that the above-described embodiments are illustrative and non-restrictive in every respect. The true scope of the present invention should be determined by the technical idea of the appended claims.

A cleaning liquid supply unit which supplies a cleaning liquid to the cleaning liquid supply unit and supplies the cleaning liquid to the cleaning liquid supply unit;

Claims (10)

A brush assembly rotating in contact with a surface of a semiconductor wafer; And
And a chemical liquid supply unit for supplying a chemical liquid into the brush assembly,
Wherein the brush assembly comprises:
A brush having a first inner hollow, a brush protrusion formed on an outer circumferential surface of the brush body and contacting a surface of the semiconductor wafer, and a support protrusion formed on an inner circumferential surface of the brush body;
A holder body having a second inner hollow smaller than the first hollow hollow and a through groove penetrating the inner circumferential surface and the outer circumferential surface of the holder body, A brush holder into which the holder body is inserted into the hollow; And
And a brush core having a core body inserted into the second inner hollow, an inner liquid supply pipe installed inside the core body and supplied with a chemical liquid from the chemical liquid supply unit, and an inner chemical liquid discharge line connected to the inner chemical liquid supply pipe,
Wherein the brush assembly is connected to a chemical liquid discharge unit for discharging the chemical liquid supplied into the brush assembly. The brush body according to claim 1, wherein the brush body is cylindrical,
A plurality of brush protrusions are provided on the outer surface of the cylindrical brush body,
Wherein the brush support protrusions are provided on the inner surface of the cylindrical brush body so as to be spaced apart from each other. [3] The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the holder body is cylindrical,
Wherein the through-holes penetrate through the inner circumferential surface and the outer circumferential surface of the cylindrical holder body, and a plurality of the through-holes are provided. 3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the core body is cylindrical,
Wherein the internal chemical liquid discharge line includes a plurality of chemical liquid discharge holes provided in the internal chemical liquid supply pipe and a plurality of internal chemical liquid discharge channels connected to the chemical liquid discharge holes. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the chemical liquid supply unit includes a plurality of chemical liquid sources, a chemical liquid source tube connected to the chemical liquid sources, a chemical liquid source pipe, and a chemical liquid supply pipe connected to the chemical liquid source pipe The semiconductor wafer cleaning apparatus comprising: The semiconductor wafer cleaning apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the chemical liquid source includes an etching source capable of etching the semiconductor wafer. delete 2. The semiconductor wafer cleaning apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the chemical liquid discharge portion includes a chemical liquid discharge pipe connected to the brush assembly and a chemical liquid discharge valve installed in the chemical liquid discharge pipe. The semiconductor wafer cleaning apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a cleaning nozzle unit for supplying a cleaning liquid to the semiconductor wafer and the brush assembly. A brush assembly rotating in contact with a surface of a semiconductor wafer;
A chemical liquid supply unit for supplying a chemical liquid into the brush assembly; And
And a cleaning nozzle unit for supplying a cleaning liquid to the semiconductor wafer and the brush assembly,
Wherein the brush assembly comprises:
A plurality of brush protrusions formed on an outer circumferential surface of the cylindrical brush body and contacting the surface of the semiconductor wafer and spaced apart from each other and a plurality of brush protrusions formed on the inner circumferential surface of the cylindrical brush body and spaced apart from each other A brush having a plurality of support protrusions;
A cylindrical holder body having a second inner hollow smaller than the first hollow hollow and a plurality of through holes spaced apart from each other through an inner circumferential surface and an outer circumferential surface of the cylindrical holder body, Wherein the holder body is inserted into the first inner hollow of the brush body. And
An inner chemical liquid supply pipe installed in the core body and supplied with a chemical liquid from the chemical liquid supply unit, and a plurality of inner chemical liquid discharge lines connected to the inner chemical liquid supply pipe and spaced apart from each other And a brush core,
Wherein the brush assembly is connected to a chemical liquid discharge unit for discharging the chemical liquid supplied into the brush assembly.

Images