Abstract: A method produces wafers from a cylindrical ingot of semiconductor material having an axis and an indexing notch in an outer surface of the cylindrical ingot and parallel to the axis. The method includes, in the order specified: (a) simultaneous removal of a multiplicity of sliced wafers from the cylindrical ingot by multi-wire slicing in the presence of a cutting agent; (b) etching of the sliced wafers with an alkaline etchant in an etching bath at a temperature of 20° C. to 50° C. and for a residence time, such that the material removed from each of the sliced wafers is less than 5/1000 of an initial wafer thickness; and (c) grinding of the etched wafers by simultaneous double-disk grinding using an annular abrasive covering.

Abstract: A method produces wafers from a cylindrical ingot of semiconductor material having an axis and an indexing notch in an outer surface of the cylindrical ingot and parallel to the axis. The method includes, in the order specified: (a) simultaneous removal of a multiplicity of sliced wafers from the cylindrical ingot by multi-wire slicing in the presence of a cutting agent; (b) etching of the sliced wafers with an alkaline etchant in an etching bath at a temperature of 20° C. to 50° C. and for a residence time, such that the material removed from each of the sliced wafers is less than 5/1000 of an initial wafer thickness; and (c) grinding of the etched wafers by simultaneous double-disk grinding using an annular abrasive covering.

Abstract: A multiplicity of wafers are simultaneously cut from an ingot using a structured sawing wire having indentations and protrusions along its length, wherein the structured sawing wire is guided through grooves of two wire guide rolls, and a bottom of each groove, on which the structured wire bears, has a curved groove bottom with a radius of curvature which, for each groove, is equal to or up to 1.5 times as large as the radius of the envelope of the structured wire which the structured wire has in the respective groove.

Abstract: A multiplicity of slices are simultaneously sliced from a workpiece during a slicing operation using a wire saw. A non-linear pitch function dTAR(WP) is selected dependent on a target thickness value function TTAR(WP), a pitch function dINI(WP) and a thickness value function TINI(WP), dTAR(WP) and adjacent grooves in the wire guide rollers are assigned a pitch at a position WP during the slicing operation, TINI(WP) slices which are obtained during a plurality of preceding slicing operations by means of the wire saw at the position WP are assigned a thickness value, dINI(WP), adjacent grooves in the wire guide rollers at the position WP are assigned a pitch during the preceding slicing operations, TTAR(WP) slices which are sliced off during the slicing operation at the position WP are assigned a target thickness value, WP denoting the axial position of the adjacent grooves with respect to the axes of the wire guide rollers.

Abstract: Wafers are sliced from a workpiece using a wire saw during slicing operations. The wire saw has a wire web of sawing wire and a setting device. The wire web is stretched in a plane between wire guide rollers that are mounted between fixed and moveable bearings. During each of the slicing operations, the setting device feeds the workpiece through the wire web along a feed direction perpendicular to a workpiece axis and perpendicular to the plane of the wire web. During each of the slicing operations, the movable bearings move oscillatingly axialy. The feeding of the workpiece through the wire web includes a simultaneous displacement of the workpiece along the workpiece axis using the setting element in accordance with a correction profile, which includes an oscillating component that is opposite to the effect which the axial moving of the movable bearings has on the shape of the sliced-off wafers.

Abstract: Wafer shape parameters from prior runs of simultaneously slicing a plurality of wafers from a workpiece in a wire saw having a sawing wire tensioned between wire guide rolls are used to alter the temperature profile of fixed and a moveable bearings at the ends of at least one wire guide roll, resulting in wafers with low waviness.

Abstract: A multiplicity of wafers are simultaneously cut from an ingot by means of a structured sawing wire, wherein the structured sawing wire is guided through grooves of two wire guide rolls, and a bottom of each groove, on which the structured wire hears, has a curved groove bottom with a radius of curvature which, for each groove, is equal to or up to 1.5 times as large as the radius of the envelope of the structured wire which the structured wire has in the respective groove.

Abstract: A method for simultaneously cutting a multiplicity of slices from a cylindrical workpiece, along strictly convex cutting faces, by supplying a suspension of hard substances in a carrier liquid, as cutting medium, to wire portions, while the wire portions, having a longitudinal tension, define a relative motion to the workpiece as a result of wire guide roller rotation with continual alternation between a first direction of rotation and a second direction of rotation, which is opposite to the first direction of rotation, wherein, during the rotation in the first direction, the wire is moved a first length, and during the rotation in the second direction, the wire is moved a second length, and the second length is shorter than the first, and at the cutting operation start a first longitudinal wire tension is greater than a second longitudinal tension at the end.

Abstract: Carriers suitable for receiving one or more semiconductor wafers for the machining thereof in lapping, grinding or polishing machines, comprise a core of a first material which has a high stiffness, the core being completely or partly coated with a second material, and also at least one cutout for receiving a semiconductor wafer, wherein the second material is a thermoset polyurethane elastomer having a Shore A hardness of 20-90. The carriers are preferably coated with the second material after chemical surface activation and application of adhesion promoter, and may be used for simultaneous double-side material-removing machining of a plurality of semiconductor wafers.

Abstract: A method and apparatus are used to simultaneously slice a multiplicity of slices from a workpiece. The workpiece is held with a feed device so as to position an axis of the workpiece parallel to axes of wire guide rolls of a wire saw and is moved from above through a web of the wire saw. A slurry is supplied as abrasive to wire sections of the web while the wire sections are moved relative to the workpiece. The relative movement guides the wire sections from an entry side to an exit side through the workpiece. A coolant is sprayed from the side and below through nozzles into slicing gaps in the workpiece. The nozzles are arranged below the web parallel to the axes of the wire guide rolls. The coolant is sprayed into the slicing gaps through a nozzle situated opposite the entry side of the respective wire section.

Abstract: A method for simultaneously cutting a multiplicity of wafers from a cylindrical workpiece having an axis and a notch applied parallel to the axis in a lateral surface of the workpiece includes applying a cut-in beam on the workpiece where the cut-in beam has a head end and a foot end. The head end is inserted into the notch of the workpiece. The workpiece is held with a feed device so as to position an axis of the work piece parallel to the axes of cylindrical wire guide rollers of a wire saw. The cut-in beam is moved through a planar wire web, where the planar wire web has sections of wire arranged parallel to one another and perpendicular to the axes of the wire guide roller. The wire sections are moved the longitudinal wire direction in the presence of abrasives.

Abstract: A multiplicity of wafer-type workpieces are buffer stored in a device having, a frame, at least two transport elements which each circulate in a vertical direction around an upper and a lower deflection device connected to the frame and are provided, at uniform intervals, with a multiplicity of bearing areas for the horizontal mounting of workpieces, wherein at least one of the deflection devices of each transport element is driven and a free space is situated between the transport elements, a loading position between the upper deflection devices at which a workpiece can be placed onto corresponding bearing areas, and a stationary removal device below the loading position, comprising a horizontal transport device, the first end of which lies within the free space between the transport elements. The invention also relates to a method for buffer-storing a multiplicity of wafer-type workpieces using the abovementioned device.

Abstract: A method for simultaneously cutting a multiplicity of slices from a cylindrical workpiece, along strictly convex cutting faces, by supplying a suspension of hard substances in a carrier liquid, as cutting medium, to wire portions, while the wire portions, having a longitudinal tension, define a relative motion to the workpiece as a result of wire guide roller rotation with continual alternation between a first direction of rotation and a second direction of rotation, which is opposite to the first direction of rotation, wherein, during the rotation in the first direction, the wire is moved a first length, and during the rotation in the second direction, the wire is moved a second length, and the second length is shorter than the first, and at the cutting operation start a first longitudinal wire tension is greater than a second longitudinal tension at the end.

Abstract: A trimming apparatus for trimming two working layers, including bonded abrasive applied on mutually facing sides of an upper and a lower working disk of a grinding apparatus configured for simultaneous double-side processing of flat workpieces includes a trimming disk, a plurality of trimming bodies and an outer toothing, where the trimming bodies are configured to release abrasive substances upon contract with the working layers so as to effect material removal from the working layers. At least 80% of the area of the trimming bodies configured to come into contact with the working layers is arranged within a ring-shaped region on the trimming disk. The width of the ring-shaped region is between 1-25% of the diameter of the trimming disk and the area of the trimming bodies which comes into contact with the working layers occupies 20-90% of the total area of the ring-shaped region.

Abstract: A method for simultaneously cutting a multiplicity of wafers from a cylindrical workpiece having an axis and a notch applied parallel to the axis in a lateral surface of the workpiece includes applying a cut-in beam on the workpiece where the cut-in beam has a head end and a foot end. The head end is inserted into the notch of the workpiece. The workpiece is held with a feed device so as to position an axis of the work piece parallel to the axes of cylindrical wire guide rollers of a wire saw. The cut-in beam is moved through a planar wire web, where the planar wire web has sections of wire arranged parallel to one another and perpendicular to the axes of the wire guide roller. The wire sections are moved the longitudinal wire direction in the presence of abrasives.

Abstract: A method for trimming two working layers including bonded abrasive applied on mutually facing sides of an upper and a lower working disk of a grinding apparatus configured for simultaneous double-side processing of flat workpiece includes providing at least one trimming apparatus including a trimming disk, a plurality of trimming bodies and an outer toothing. The upper and lower working disks are rotated. The trimming apparatus is moved between the rotating working disks using a rolling apparatus and the outer toothing on cycloidal paths relative to working layers of the working disks. The working layers and the trimming body are brought into contact so as to release abrasive substances from the trimming bodies and so as to effect material removal from the working layers. The direction of the drives of the grinding apparatus is changed at least twice during trimming.

Abstract: An insert carrier is configured to receive at least one semiconductor wafer for double-side processing of the wafer between two working disks of a lapping, grinding or polishing process. The insert carrier includes a core of a first material that has a first surface and a second surface, and at least one opening configured to receive a semiconductor wafer. A coating at least partially covers the first and second surfaces of the core. The coating includes a surface remote from the core that includes a structuring including elevations and depressions. A correlation length of the elevations and depressions is in a range of 0.5 mm to 25 mm and an aspect ratio of the structuring is in a range of 0.0004 to 0.4.

Abstract: A method for trimming two working layers including bonded abrasive applied on mutually facing sides of an upper and a lower working disk of a grinding apparatus configured for simultaneous double-side processing of flat workpiece includes providing the grinding apparatus including the upper and lower working disks and providing at least one carrier including an outer toothing. The upper and lower working disks are rotated. The carrier is moved between the rotating working disks using a rolling apparatus and the outer toothing on cycloidal paths relative to working layers of the working disks. Loose abrasives are added to a working gap formed between the working layers. A carrier, without workpieces inserted therein, is moved in the working gap so as to effect material removal from the working layers.

Abstract: A method for simultaneous double-side material-removing processing of at least three workpieces includes disposing the workpieces in a working gap between rotating upper and lower working disks of a double-side processing apparatus. The workpieces lie in freely movable fashion in respective openings in a guide cage and are moved under pressure in the working gap using the guide cage. Upon attaining a preselected target thickness of the workpieces, a deceleration process is initiated that includes reducing an angular velocity ?i(t) of a respective drive i of each of the upper working disk, lower working disk and guide cage to a standstill. The reducing is carried out such that ratios of the angular velocities ?i(t) with respect to one another as a function of time t deviate by no more than 10% from initial ratios of the angular velocities ?i(t) corresponding to when the preselected target thickness was attained.

Abstract: A method for the simultaneous material-removing processing of both sides of at least three semiconductor wafers includes providing a double-side processing apparatus including two rotating ring-shaped working disks and a rolling apparatus. The carriers are arranged in the double-side processing apparatus and the openings are disposed in the carriers so as to satisfy the inequality: R/e·sin(?/N*)?r/e?1?1.2 where N* denotes a ratio of the round angle and an angle at which adjacent carriers are inserted into the rolling apparatus with the greatest distance with respect to one another, r denotes a radius of each opening for receiving a respective semiconductor wafer, e denotes a radius of a pitch circle around a midpoint of the carrier on which the opening is arranged, and R denotes a radius of the pitch circle on which the carriers move between the working disks by means of the rolling apparatus.