Disclosed herein is a wafer processing method including a stacked member removing step of applying a laser beam having an absorption wavelength to a stacked member through a protective film along each division line formed on the front side of a wafer, thereby performing ablation to remove the stacked member present on each division line, a dividing step of applying an external force to the wafer to divide the wafer into individual device chips along each division line where a modified layer is previously formed, and a plasma etching step of supplying an etching gas in a plasma state to the wafer from the front side thereof after performing the stacked member removing step or after performing the dividing step, thereby removing damage due to the ablation in the stacked member removing step.

Methods of dicing semiconductor wafers, each wafer having a plurality of integrated circuits, are described. In an example, a method of dicing a semiconductor wafer including a plurality of integrated circuits includes forming a water soluble mask above the semiconductor wafer, the water soluble mask covering and protecting the integrated circuits. The method also includes baking the water soluble mask to increase the etch resistance of the water soluble mask. The method also includes, subsequent to baking the water soluble mask, patterning the water soluble mask with a laser scribing process to provide a water soluble patterned mask with gaps, exposing regions of the semiconductor wafer between the integrated circuits. The method also includes plasma etching the semiconductor wafer through the gaps in the water soluble patterned mask to singulate the integrated circuits.

An etching fault is suppressed by use of an etching gas containing iodine heptafluoride. Provided is an attached substance removing method of removing an attached substance containing an iodine oxide attached to a component included in a chamber or a surface of a pipe connected with the chamber by use of a cleaning gas containing a fluorine-containing gas. Also provided is a dry etching method, including the steps of supplying an etching gas containing an iodine-containing gas into a chamber to perform etching on a surface of a substrate; and after the etching is performed on the surface of the substrate, removing an attached substance containing an iodine oxide attached to a component included in the chamber or a surface of a pipe connected with the chamber by use of a cleaning gas containing a fluorine-containing gas.

The present invention provides a method of unit level liquid crystal display device assembly process for liquid crystal on silicon. It starts with sawing silicon wafer and ITO glass substrate. Then good silicon dies and ITO glass dies will be picked and transferred to separate carriers. Alignment layers will respectively be coated on each silicon die and ITO glass die after cleaning. Then there are two options for the following steps. In method one, silicon die and ITO glass die lamination comes after coating frame adhesive. Then frame adhesive is cured. The liquid crystal will fill the cell and then seal the fill port. Die mounting, wire bonding and encapsulation will come along with external ITO connection to call it an end. In method two, frame adhesive precedes internal connection and LC one drop fill. Then silicon die and ITO glass die are laminated before frame adhesive cure. Afterwards die mount, wire bonding and encapsulation come last.

A semiconductor device has a semiconductor wafer. The semiconductor wafer includes a plurality of semiconductor die. An insulating layer is formed over an active surface of the semiconductor die. A trench is formed in a non-active area of the semiconductor wafer between the semiconductor die. The trench extends partially through the semiconductor wafer. A carrier with adhesive layer is provided. The semiconductor die are disposed over the adhesive layer and carrier simultaneously as a single unit. A backgrinding operation is performed to remove a portion of the semiconductor wafer and expose the trench. The adhesive layer holds the semiconductor die in place during the backgrinding operation. An encapsulant is deposited over the semiconductor die and into the trench. The carrier and adhesive layer are removed. The encapsulated semiconductor die are cleaned and singulated into individual semiconductor devices. The electrical performance and functionality of the semiconductor devices are tested.

A wafer in which a modified layer is internally formed along planned dividing lines is placed on a placement table and a water tank allows the wafer placed on the placement table to be submerged in cleaning water. An ultrasonic supply unit supplies ultrasonic waves to the wafer submerged in the cleaning water. By the ultrasonic waves supplied by the ultrasonic supply unit, the wafer is divided along the planned dividing lines and is turned into small pieces to generate plural chips and the generated chips are cleaned.

Disclosed herein is a wafer processing method including a stacked member removing step of applying a laser beam having an absorption wavelength to a stacked member through a protective film along each division line formed on the front side of a wafer, thereby performing ablation to remove the stacked member present on each division line, a dividing step of applying an external force to the wafer to divide the wafer into individual device chips along each division line where a modified layer is previously formed, and a plasma etching step of supplying an etching gas in a plasma state to the wafer from the front side thereof after performing the stacked member removing step or after performing the dividing step, thereby removing damage due to the ablation in the stacked member removing step.

A method of cleaning an object that includes a plurality of chips divided individually, starting from modified layers, and integral with a holding member, includes the steps of placing the object in a cleaning tank filled with a cleaning liquid which contains a surface active agent, and cleaning away modified layer debris on side faces of the chips with ultrasonic waves generated by ultrasonic oscillating means.

A wafer cleaning apparatus of the present invention includes a vacuum chuck unit on which a wafer is mounted, a ring cover unit facing a retainer ring portion of the wafer, an expander module installed to move the ring cover unit and configured to press the retainer ring portion toward the vacuum chuck unit such that a gap between dies of the wafer widens, and a chucking module installed in the vacuum chuck unit to restrain the ring cover unit pressed by the expander module to the vacuum chuck unit.

Implementations of methods of forming a plurality of semiconductor die may include forming a damage layer beneath a surface of a die street in a semiconductor substrate, singulating the semiconductor substrate along the die street into a plurality of semiconductor die, and removing one or more particulates in the die street after singulating through applying sonic energy to the plurality of semiconductor die.