As a continuation to the WaveEtch™ 456G2 project, the client presented Vertex with a new challenge.
They wanted us to develop a unique and innovative way of handling a wafer with a new chuck design. The objectives were to design a chuck to hold the wafer from the top without it touching the top side of the wafer.
The only way to do that was to come from the top, while actually holding the wafer from the bottom. Our next challenge was to make sure that during operation, the holding mechanism of the wafer moves out of the way when exactly timed to avoid collision with the processing module. While this is happening, the chuck has to be able to spin and travel along the Z axis.
Our solution, of creating a pneumatic mechanism with multiple fingers to hold the wafer from the bottom, was a success.
We were able to design a system to track the after spin chuck position while keeping track of the leading edge of the chuck approaching the process module to individually control each pneumatic finger causing it to move out of the way to avoid a collision.
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