Semiconductor wafer chuck assembly for a semiconductor processing device
AssigneeLSI Logic Corporation
InventorMasakazu Okuda
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A wafer chuck assembly for a semiconductor wafer processing device has axially movable wafer support pins associated with a wafer chuck body of the wafer chuck assembly. The wafer support pins are biased to contact and support the backside of a semiconductor wafer when the semiconductor wafer is placed and/or maintained (typically via air suction) on the wafer chuck assembly. Each support pin axially moves independent of one another such that any area of contamination on the backside of the semiconductor wafer that registers with a support pin, moves the affected support pin axially downwardly.
Claims6
In a semiconductor wafer processing device, a method of retaining a semiconductor wafer for processing, comprising:
- placing a semiconductor wafer onto a wafer chuck having height adjustable wafer support pins and a shield ring;
- applying a biasing force to each wafer support pin while maintaining the semiconductor wafer on the chuck;
- and
- applying suction to a backside of the semiconductor wafer while maintaining the semiconductor wafer on the chuck.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.