Apparatus for cleaning semiconductor wafers

An apparatus for holding a plurality of semiconductor wafers during cleaning, said apparatus including:

• a frame with a bottom and an open top and having a longitudinal axis, said frame including a pair of first carrier rods secured to and extending between opposite ends of the frame, said first carrier rods being in spaced apart relation and positioned on opposite sides of the longitudinal axis of the frame and between the longitudinal axis and the frame bottom, each said first carrier rod having a plurality of transverse grooves in spaced apart relation along the length of the first carrier rod and opening into the interior of the frame, each groove in one first carrier rod being substantially transversely aligned with a respective groove in the other said first carrier rod and adapted to receive a semiconductor wafer therein for support in a generally vertical orientation, the grooves having an open top, a bottom surface and generally opposite side surfaces each facing a respective opposite side of a wafer and retaining the wafer in the generally vertical orientation, said first carrier rods being transversely spaced a distance less than the diameter of the wafer, the groove side surfaces being spaced apart a distance greater than the thickness of the wafer, each said groove side surface having a channel recessed therein opening into the groove and positioned between the bottom surface and the open top of the groove forming an enlarged flow passage for flow of liquid out of the grooves and away from the wafers.