Patents by Inventor Yasuhiko Sakaki

Yasuhiko Sakaki has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 7108776
    Abstract: In the invention, there is provided a plating treatment technique which permits uniform plating treatment and easy replacement of articles to be plated without the effect of bubbles in a plating solution by improving wet plating apparatuses of the contact type to thereby solve problems such as the removal of bubbles in a plating solution and the removal of an adhering plating solution. Provided is a plating apparatus having a plating tank, which comprises: an opening which has a solution seal to prevent a plating solution from leaking when an article to be plated is placed on the opening; a solution-supply portion which supplies the plating solution; a solution-discharge portion which discharges the plating solution; and an anode which is opposed to the article to be plated that is placed, wherein the plating tank has rotational means for rotating the plating tank itself.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 8, 2002
    Date of Patent: September 19, 2006
    Assignee: Electroplating Engineers of Japan Limited
    Inventor: Yasuhiko Sakaki
  • Patent number: 6991711
    Abstract: A cup type plating apparatus in which plating is carried out by supplying plating solution to a wafer placed on an opening at a top of a plating tank while an anode and the wafer connected to a cathode provided in the plating tank are electrically connected, and the anode and the cathode are separated by diaphragm provided in the plating tank, provided with a division wall between the anode and the wafer formed in a shape capable of separating the anode and the wafer from each other and having a plurality of openings covered with diaphragm. The concentration of the plating solution supplied to the plating tank separated by the division wall is made to be appropriately controllable. Further, a unit for stirring is provided capable of forcibly altering the flow of plating solution at the target surface of plating.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 5, 2002
    Date of Patent: January 31, 2006
    Assignee: Electroplating Engineers of Japan Limited
    Inventor: Yasuhiko Sakaki
  • Patent number: 6875333
    Abstract: A plating apparatus is provided to allow the whole area of a target plating surface of a wafer to be subjected to more uniform plating treatment and moreover enables a target plating surface of a wider area to be subjected to positive and uniform plating treatment. In the plating apparatus which has a stirring bar within a plating tank and which performs plating treatment of a target plating surface of the wafer while stirring a plating solution near the target plating surface of the wafer by moving the stirring bar, the stirring bar is rotated while being oscillated in a motion plane substantially parallel to the target plating surface of the wafer. By this operation, the occurrence of an eddy flow of the plating solution is suppressed during stirring and it becomes possible to positively carry out more uniform plating treatment of a wider region.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 13, 2003
    Date of Patent: April 5, 2005
    Assignee: Electroplating Engineers of Japan Limited
    Inventor: Yasuhiko Sakaki
  • Patent number: 6610182
    Abstract: The present cup-type plating apparatus improves a conventional cup-type plating apparatus and prevents the surface of a wafer due to a mist of the plating solutions from being contaminated. A plating solution is supplied to a wafer which is placed on a wafer support provided along an opening at the top of a plating tank from a solution-supply port provided at the bottom of the plating tank by an upward-moving stream; the plating solution is made to flow out of a solution-outlet port provided for the plating tank; and plating is performed while the plating solution is brought into contact with a surface of the placed wafer, which is to be plated, wherein the solution-outlet port has a solution-outlet path in which the discharged plating solution is isolated from the outer space.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 18, 2001
    Date of Patent: August 26, 2003
    Assignee: Electroplating Engineers of Japan, Limited
    Inventor: Yasuhiko Sakaki
  • Publication number: 20030153185
    Abstract: A plating apparatus is provided to allow the whole area of a target plating surface of a wafer to be subjected to more uniform plating treatment and moreover enables a target plating surface of a wider area to be subjected to positive and uniform plating treatment. In the plating apparatus which has a stirring bar within a plating tank and which performs plating treatment of a target plating surface of the wafer while stirring a plating solution near the target plating surface of the wafer by moving the stirring bar, the stirring bar is rotated while being oscillated in a motion plane substantially parallel to the target plating surface of the wafer. By this operation, the occurrence of an eddy flow of the plating solution is suppressed during stirring and it becomes possible to positively carry out more uniform plating treatment of a wider region.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 13, 2003
    Publication date: August 14, 2003
    Inventor: Yasuhiko Sakaki
  • Publication number: 20030070932
    Abstract: In the invention, there is provided a plating treatment technique which permits uniform plating treatment and easy replacement of articles to be plated without the effect of bubbles in a plating solution by improving wet plating apparatuses of the contact type to thereby solve problems such as the removal of bubbles in a plating solution and the removal of an adhering plating solution. Provided is a plating apparatus having a plating tank, which comprises: an opening which has a solution seal to prevent a plating solution from leaking when an article to be plated is placed on the opening; a solution-supply portion which supplies the plating solution; a solution-discharge portion which discharges the plating solution; and an anode which is opposed to the article to be plated that is placed, wherein the plating tank has rotational means for rotating the plating tank itself.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 8, 2002
    Publication date: April 17, 2003
    Inventor: Yasuhiko Sakaki
  • Patent number: 6482300
    Abstract: This invention provides a technique capable of solving a problem of an ununiform plating on an annular edge portion of a surface to be plated of a wafer, which ununiform plating is usually caused due to an ununiform flow of a plating apparatus, thereby ensuring a uniform plating treatment on the entire surface to be plated of a wafer. The present invention is directed to a cup-shaped plating apparatus comprising a wafer support section provided along an upper opening of a plating tank, a plurality of solution-outlet passages provided below the wafer support section and extending from the inside of and to the outside of the plating tank and at least one solution-supply pipe provided through the bottom of the plating tank.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 9, 2001
    Date of Patent: November 19, 2002
    Assignee: Electroplating Engineers of Japan Limited
    Inventor: Yasuhiko Sakaki
  • Patent number: 6454918
    Abstract: A cup type plating apparatus in which plating is carried out by supplying plating solution to a wafer placed on an opening at a top of a plating tank while an anode and the wafer connected to a cathode provided in the plating tank are electrically connected, and the anode and the cathode are separated by a diaphragm provided in the plating tank, provided with a division wall between the anode and the wafer formed in a shape capable of separating the anode and the wafer from each other and having a plurality of openings covered with a diaphragm. The concentration of the plating solution supplied to the plating tank separated by the division wall is made to be appropriately controllable. Further, a unit for stirring is provided capable of forcibly altering the flow of plating solution at the target surface of plating.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 1, 2000
    Date of Patent: September 24, 2002
    Assignee: Electroplating Engineers of Japan Limited
    Inventor: Yasuhiko Sakaki
  • Publication number: 20020108850
    Abstract: This invention provides a technique capable of solving a problem of an ununiform plating on an annular edge portion of a surface to be plated of a wafer, which ununiform plating is usually caused due to an ununiform flow of a plating solution in a conventional cup-type plating apparatus, thereby ensuring a uniform plating treatment on an entire surface to be plated of a wafer. In detail, the present invention is directed to a cup-type plating apparatus comprising a wafer support section 2 provided along an upper opening of a plating tank 1, a plurality of solution-outlet passages 7 provided below the wafer support section 2 and extending from the inside of and to the outside of the plating tank 1, at least one solution-supply pipe 6 provided through the bottom of the plating tank 1.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 9, 2001
    Publication date: August 15, 2002
    Applicant: Electroplating Engineers of Japan Limited
    Inventor: Yasuhiko Sakaki
  • Publication number: 20020088708
    Abstract: A cup type plating apparatus in which plating is carried out by supplying plating solution to a wafer placed on an opening at a top of a plating tank while an anode and the wafer connected to a cathode provided in the plating tank are electrically connected, and the anode and the cathode are separated by diaphragm provided in the plating tank, provided with a division wall between the anode and the wafer formed in a shape capable of separating the anode and the wafer from each other and having a plurality of openings covered with diaphragm. The concentration of the plating solution supplied to the plating tank separated by the division wall is made to be appropriately controllable. Further, a unit for stirring is provided capable of forcibly altering the flow of plating solution at the target surface of plating.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 5, 2002
    Publication date: July 11, 2002
    Applicant: Electroplating Engineers of Japan Limited
    Inventor: Yasuhiko Sakaki
  • Publication number: 20020066665
    Abstract: The present cup-type plating apparatus improves a conventional cup-type plating apparatus and prevents the surface of a wafer due to a mist of the plating solutions from being contaminated. A plating solution is supplied to a wafer which is placed on a wafer support provided along an opening at the top of a plating tank from a solution-supply port provided at the bottom of the plating tank by an upward-moving stream; the plating solution is made to flow out of a solution-outlet port provided for the plating tank; and plating is performed while the plating solution is brought into contact with a surface of the placed wafer, which is to be plated, wherein the solution-outlet port has a solution-outlet path in which the discharged plating solution is isolated from the outer space.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 18, 2001
    Publication date: June 6, 2002
    Inventor: Yasuhiko Sakaki
  • Patent number: 6332963
    Abstract: A cup-type plating apparatus includes a plating tank having a support section provided on an upper end thereof for holding a wafer; a solution feed section provided at the center of a bottom portion of the plating tank; an anode disposed within the plating tank; and a diaphragm for separating the anode from the wafer. The diaphragm is slanted upward from the solution feed section toward the periphery of the plating tank. A gas release port is provided in the plating tank at such a position as to release bubbles collected under an upper end portion of the diaphragm.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 24, 1999
    Date of Patent: December 25, 2001
    Assignee: Electroplating Engineers of Japan Limited
    Inventors: Yasuhiko Sakaki, Mika Kurihara