Abstract: A semiconductor wafer has a pair of opposed major faces separated by a peripheral edge face. The peripheral edge face of the wafer is etched by one or more etching rollers which are brought into pressure contact with the wafer edge face under suitable contact pressure. The etching rollers and the wafer are rotated while in pressure contact, and an etching liquid is supplied to the rollers and transferred to the wafer during the rotation to effect etching of the edge face of the wafer. A washing roller applies a washing liquid, such as pure water, onto the wafer edge face to wash the same. Harmful gas vapors evolved during etching are prevented from contacting the wafer surfaces by blowing a pressurized gas, such as nitrogen gas, along the wafer surfaces toward the wafer periphery.

Abstract: A wafer mounting device transfers a wafer coated with an adhesive and pastes the wafer on a mount plate while maintaining the thickness of the adhesive uniform. A chuck plate is carried by a rotatable transfer arm and holds the adhesive-coated wafer by suction so that the wafer can be moved in a direction of rotation of the arm. The chuck plate is heated by a heater to substantially the same temperature as the wafer. A flexible pressing pad is disposed between the chuck plate and the transfer arm for biasing the chuck plate in a direction away from the arm, and a flexible pressure-adjusting pad is provided for biasing the chuck plate in a direction toward the arm. The pressing pad and the pressure-adjusting pad have hollow sections filled with pressurized fluid, and the pressure of the fluid within each pad is regulated to thereby control the pressing force of the chuck plate so that the wafer is placed softly on the mount plate.

Abstract: A method and apparatus are provided for applying a wafer to a mount plate. A wafer having a lower surface coated with an adhesive layer is held by a vacuum chuck through suction. A vacuum-tight sealing enclosure is placed over the wafer and a mount plate to define a sealed space. The sealed space is then evacuated at a degree of vacuum higher than the degree of vacuum of the vacuum chuck to effect release of the wafer from the vacuum chuck and dropping of the wafer onto the mount plate. The wafer is applied to the mount plate without the occlusion of air bubbles between the wafer and the mount plate.

Abstract: A cleaning device for cleaning adhesive particles and other foreign matter from a disk-shaped wafer mount plate used in semiconductor fabrication comprises a plurality of support rollers supporting the wafer mount plate horizontally for rotation about its own axis. One or more driving rollers are brought into frictional contact with the peripheral side surface of the wafer mount plate to rotationally drive the same. An upper surface washing brush, a lower surface washing brush and a side surface washing brush are movable into brushing contact with the upper, lower and peripheral side surfaces, respectively, of the wafer mount plate for simultaneously brushing all the surfaces thereof while a washing liquid is sprayed thereon. Then rinsing liquid is sprayed on the wafer mount plate, which is thereafter dried by blowing drying gas thereon.

Abstract: A mount plate has a disc-shaped body having a wafer-mounting surface on which semiconductor wafers are to be mounted for polishing. The mount plate is carried by a rotary support which is rotatably indexed to different angular positions which correspond to angularly spaced locations on the wafer-mounting surface where the wafers are to be mounted. An indicator is embedded in the mount plate, preferably at the peripheral side edge thereof, and coacts with a sensor for indicating when the mount plate is indexed to a predetermined initial start position, thereby enabling automatic mounting of the wafers at the same locations on the wafer-mounting surface during each use of the mount plate. The indicator is preferably inserted in a recessed portion of the mount plate body and is covered by a transparent material so that the indicator is visible through the transparent material.