# US 12,119,435 B2 · Semiconductor smoothing apparatus and method > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 12,119,435 B2 - Document ID: US12119435B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 16/946,222 - Filed: 2020-06-10 - Published: 2021-04-08 - Granted: 2024-10-15 - Earliest claimed: 2020-06-10 - Assignees: Intel Corporation - Applicants: Intel Corporation - Inventors: Khaled Ahmed; Thomas L. Sounart - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US12119435B2 ## CPC - H10H 20/857: Interconnections, e.g. lead-frames, bond wires or solder balls - B24B 7/228: {for grinding thin, brittle parts, e.g. semiconductors, wafers (grinding edges of thin, brittle parts B24B9/065)} - C09K 13/04: containing an inorganic acid - C09K 13/06: with organic material - C09K 13/08: containing a fluorine compound - H10D 86/40: characterised by multiple TFTs - H10D 86/60: wherein the TFTs are in active matrices - H10W 90/00: Package configurations - H10H 20/0364: {of interconnections} - H10H: INORGANIC LIGHT-EMITTING SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES HAVING POTENTIAL BARRIERS - B24B: MACHINES, DEVICES, OR PROCESSES FOR GRINDING OR POLISHING (grinding of gear teeth B23F, of screw-threads B23G1/36; by electro-erosion B23H; abrasive or related blasting B24C; tools for grinding, buffing or sharpening B24D; polishing compositions C09G1/00; abrasives C09K3/14; electrolytic etching or polishing C25F3/00; grinding arrangements for use on assembled railway tracks E01B31/17); DRESSING OR CONDITIONING OF ABRADING SURFACES; FEEDING OF GRINDING, POLISHING, OR LAPPING AGENTS - C09K: MATERIALS FOR MISCELLANEOUS APPLICATIONS, NOT PROVIDED FOR ELSEWHERE - H10D: INORGANIC ELECTRIC SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES - H10W: GENERIC PACKAGES, INTERCONNECTIONS, CONNECTORS OR OTHER CONSTRUCTIONAL DETAILS OF DEVICES COVERED BY CLASS H10 ## Abstract An semiconductor manufacturing apparatus and method to smooth surfaces of discrete pads on a substrate. The method includes placing a surface of one of the discrete pads in registration with a first chamber of a set of chambers of a smoothing tool, the set corresponding to a smoothing cycle of the smoothing tool; etching, within the first chamber, a surface of one of the discrete pads to form an etch layer on the surface; placing the surface in registration with a second chamber of the set; after the etch, pumping gas and vapor from the surface within the second chamber; placing the surface in registration with a third chamber of the set; and applying heating to the surface in the third chamber to smooth the surface. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A semiconductor manufacturing method to smooth surfaces of discrete electroconductive pads on a substrate, the method including: placing a surface of one of the discrete electroconductive pads in registration with a first chamber of a set of chambers of a smoothing tool, the set corresponding to a smoothing cycle of the smoothing tool; effecting an etch, using a reactive gas and within the first chamber, of a surface of one of the discrete electroconductive pads to form an etch layer on the surface; placing the surface in registration with a second chamber of the set; after the etch, pumping gas away from the surface and the second chamber; placing the surface in registration with a third chamber of the set; and vaporizing the etch layer by applying radiative heating to the surface in the third chamber to smooth the surface thereby generating vaporized etch layer material, vaporizing including reducing a root mean square roughness of the surface as compared with a root mean square roughness thereof in the first chamber. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the second chamber and the third chamber correspond to a single chamber, and wherein pumping and applying radiative heating occur in the single chamber, pumping further including pumping the vaporized etch layer material from the single chamber. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, further including receiving a purge gas in a fourth chamber of the smoothing tool to purge the surface of residual reactive gas and vaporized etch layer material after pumping in the second chamber, and pumping residual purge gas from a fifth chamber after purging in the fourth chamber, wherein the purge gas includes an inert gas. ### Claim 4 (depends on 3) The method of claim 3, wherein the reactive gas is a first reactive gas and the etch is a first etch, and wherein the method further includes receiving a second reactive gas in the third chamber to effect a second etch of the surface while applying heat to the surface after pumping in the second chamber. ### Claim 5 (depends on 4) The method of claim 4, wherein the method includes receiving the purge gas in the fourth chamber and pumping the residual purge gas in the fifth chamber after pumping gas in the second chamber and before receiving the second reactive gas and applying heat in the third chamber. ### Claim 6 (depends on 4) The method of claim 4, wherein the method further includes wet cleaning the surface after the etch in the first chamber using a wet clean reactant. ### Claim 7 (depends on 6) The method of claim 6, wherein: the first reactive gas comprises chlorine ions and the wet clean reactant is selected from the group consisting of HCl, NH4OH, MeOH, ether, alcohol, acetone, or water; the first reactive gas comprises oxygen ions and the wet clean reactant is selected from the group consisting of HCl, NH4OH, NH4Cl, KCN, NH4F or acid; the first reactive gas comprises fluorine ions and the wet clean reactant is selected from the group consisting of HCl, HF, H2 O or mineral acid; the first reactive gas comprises bromine ions and the wet clean reactant is selected from the group consisting of HCl, NH4OH, HBr, H2O, NH3, acetone, alcohol, or pyridine; or the first reactive gas comprises iodine ions and the wet clean reactant is selected from the group consisting of HCl, KI, KCN or NH3. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the method includes moving the surface into successive registration with successive ones of the first chamber, the second chamber and the third chamber of the set to take the surface through the smoothing cycle. ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the smoothing tool defines a plurality of sets of chambers identical to the set and corresponding to repetitions of the smoothing cycle, the method including at least one of successively exposing the surface to a plurality of the sets to smooth the surface or exposing at least some of the surfaces simultaneously to processes of corresponding ones of the chambers of the plurality of sets. ### Claim 10 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the discrete electroconductive pads are micro-light emitting diode (micro-LED) contact pads, and wherein the substrate is a display backplane of a display on which the micro-LED contact pads are disposed.