Method and apparatus for wafer edge cleaning

Abstract

A wafer edge cleaning system that includes a wafer dry etching chamber and one or more irradiation sources preferably positioned inside the wafer dry etching chamber. The irradiation source such as laser generates a beam aimed at the periphery of the wafer to melt any defects, in particular, black silicon at the edge of the wafer. Preferably, the wafer is mounted on a rotating platform. The invention further provides a method for removing black silicon at the edge of a semiconductor wafer that includes the steps of: patterning the wafer with a trench mask layer; etching the wafer to form a trench thereon; exposing the edge of the wafer to a laser beam to melt the black silicon thereon; stripping the mask and cleaning the wafer.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.