Fig. 2. Apparatus for chipping-free dicing. Fig. 3. Principle of ID cut-off grinding. vf, feed speed; vs, grinding
wheel speed; Ff, feed force; FfN, feed perpendicular force; Fp, back
force.
high-speed air spindle, and the blade cover forms the cathode.
A groove is formed on the blade cover through which colloidal 4. Grinding/Slicing
silica solution passes continuously. When an electric field is
applied, a continuous layer of silica is deposited on the blade. Grinding/slicing is a further development of the ID cut-off
Using this technique, chipping-free dicing of silicon wafers grinding. During ID cut-off grinding, axial deflection of the
can be achieved with optically smooth surfaces. blade is an unavoidable phenomenon, which results in a warped
wafer. This warp will also be visible on the front end of the
silicon rod. Figure 4 shows the technology of the process. With
3. ID Cut-Off Grinding this process, the front of the silicon rod is ground plane before
the next cutting-off begins [1]. The plane ground on the wafers
ID cut-off grinding is the most commonly employed technology
for the cutting of silicon rods into wafers with a thickness of
less than 1 mm [1,7–9]. The slicing is carried out using an
unconventional tool made of high strength chromium nickel
steel. The internal diameter of the blade is electroplated with
an abrasive layer. The metallic bonded diamonds act as the
cutting edge. During the cutting-off process, the rotating tool
plunges into the silicon ingot using its active grinding profile
at a certain feed and speed (Fig. 3). The blade should be as
thin as possible to reduce the kerf width but thick enough to
retain stiffness and stability during the operation. The in-feed
of the blade into the silicon rod can cause median cracks.
There is also the possibility of chipping of the material from
either side of the blade owing to lateral cracks due to plastic
deformation underneath the abrasive because of the hydrostatic
pressure. Hence, further polishing of the wafer may be required,
incurring additional expenses. Fig. 4. Technology of the grinding/slicing process.
Recent Advances in Machining of Silicon Wafers 159
hard tool and a coarse abrasive will give a matt finish. Simi-
larly, for the finishing of sapphire, a hard backing plate and a
fine abrasive have to be used, whereas for die materials, a soft
backing plate and a coarse abrasive produces a mirror finish.
Figure 7 shows the various material removal mechanisms
and all the various polishing methods [17]. It can be seen that
the main material removal mechanisms are chemical, mechan-
ical, or a combination of both chemical and mechanical actions.
The mechanical action can be two or three body abrasion with
or without sliding or erosion involving plastic deformation or
fracture. Tribo chemical action may also produce material Fig. 8. The principle of electrolytic in-process dressing (ELID). (a)
removal owing to the generation of frictional heat. The System construction. (b) Electrode detail.
chemical action can result in the dissolution of the material.
Generally, the material removal will be a combination of both
chemical and mechanical action depending on the polishing be maintained during the grinding operation. A smooth surface
conditions, as well as on the abrasive work material environ- of 2.8 nm in Ra and 18 nm in Rmax was obtained using a
ment. #40000 wheel, when grinding a silicon wafer. The depths of
cracks in the subsurface were found to be around 0.4 m. The
6.1 Electrolytic In-Process Dressing (ELID) depth of the damaged layer using a #40 000 wheel was found
to be less than 1 m.
Electrolytic in-process dressing (ELID) of silicon wafers to
obtain a mirror finish was developed by Ohmori and Nakagawa
[18,19]. The mechanism of ELID grinding is shown in Fig. 8. 6.2 Fixed/Loose Polishing of Semiconductor
The system is composed of elements, which generate typical Wafers
electrolysing phenomena using a metallic bonded grinding
wheel, a power supply, a fluid, and an electrode. The wheel The different polishing methods used in lapping of semi-
becomes the positive pole by a brush smoothly contacting its conductors can be classified as in [20], i.e.
surface. The electrode fixed below the wheel surface is the
negative pole. In the clearance of around 0.1 mm between the 1. Close contact lapping.
two poles, electrolysis occurs by the supply of an electrically 2. Semi-contact polishing.
conductive fluid. This process enables the protruding grains to 3. Non-contact polishing.
0.4 mm min−1 and a speed of 400 m min−1 when turning Si 16. F. B. Kaufmann, “Chemical mechanical polishing for ULSI device
using a tool of zero rake angle and 0.75 mm nose radius. fabrication”, Watson Research Centre, Yorktown, New York
USA, 1995.
17. T. Kasai, K. Horio, T. Karaki-Doi and A. Kobayashi, “Improve-
ment of conventional polishing conditions for obtaining super
8. Conclusions smooth surfaces of glass and metal works”, Annals CIRP, 39(1),
pp. 321–324, 1990.
18. H. Ohmori and T. Nagakawa, “Mirror surface grinding of silicon
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increasingly demanded from the machining/finishing processes. 19. H. Ohmori and T. Nagakawa, “Analysis of mirror surface gener-
With the realisation of a 300 mm wafer in sight, new techno- ation of hard and brittle materials by ELID grinding with superfine
grained metallic bonded wheels”, Annals CIRP, 44(1), pp. 286–
logies are becoming more important. The objective of the 290, 1994.
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