Wafer dividing method

A wafer dividing method for dividing a wafer, which has devices formed in a plurality of regions demarcated by a plurality of streets formed in a lattice pattern on a surface of the wafer, into the individual devices along the plurality of streets, comprising:

• a protective plate sticking step of sticking the face of the wafer to a face of a protective plate by a pressure sensitive adhesive material whose adhesive force is decreased by an external stimulus;
• a degeneration layer formation step of throwing a laser beam, which permeates the wafer, along the street to a back side of the wafer having the face stuck to the protective plate, thereby forming a degeneration layer of a thickness corresponding to at least a finished thickness of the device within the wafer, the degeneration layer starting at the face of the wafer;
• a back grinding step of grinding a back of the wafer subjected to the degeneration layer formation step, to form the wafer into the finished thickness of the device;
• a wafer support step of sticking the back of the wafer subjected to the back grinding step to a surface of a dicing tape mounted on an annular frame;
• an adhesive force decreasing step of imparting an external stimulus to the pressure sensitive adhesive material sticking the wafer, which was subjected to the wafer support step and has been stuck to the surface of the dicing tape, to the protective plate, thereby decreasing the adhesive force of the pressure sensitive adhesive material;
• a protective plate peeling step of peeling the protective plate from the face of the wafer after execution of the adhesive force decreasing step;
• and
• a wafer rupture step of imparting an external force to the wafer stuck to the dicing tape after execution of the protective plate peeling step, thereby rupturing the wafer along the street where the degeneration layer has been formed.