An expansion sheet is adapted to be held and expanded by an expanding apparatus when a platelike workpiece is attached to the expansion sheet. The expansion sheet has a peripheral area around the workpiece where the expansion sheet is adapted to be held by first, second, third, and fourth holding units that are moveable away from each other. The expansion sheet includes a base sheet and an adhesive layer formed on the base sheet, the adhesive layer having adhesion adapted to be reduced by applying ultraviolet light. The adhesion of the adhesive layer in the peripheral area of the expansion sheet is lower than that in the other area of the expansion sheet.

[Object] Provided are a stamp tool whose transport head can be easily shared, a transport device capable of allowing the stamp tool to easily pick up an transport object element disposed on a surface of a substrate from the substrate and transporting the element without being left on the substrate side, and an element array manufacturing method using the same.

[Solution] A stamp tool 10 includes a stamp layer 12 allowing an element 32r as an transport object element to detachably adhere thereto, a support plate 14 to which the stamp layer 12 is fixed, and an adapter plate 16 having a mounting surface 16a, the support plate 14 being replaceably attached thereto, and a transport head 22 being allowed to be detachably attached thereon.

A substrate-bonding device includes a carrier, three first aligning units, three second aligning units, a pressing plate, and two flat-edge aligners. A carrying surface of the carrier is provided with a placement area for placing a first substrate provided with a flat edge thereon. The first aligning units, the second aligning units and the flat edge aligners are disposed around the placement area. The first aligning units are configured to align the first substrate and to support a second substrate provided with a second flat edge. The second aligning units are configured to align the second substrate. The flat edge aligners are configured to contact the first and the second flat edges, to position and align the first and the second substrates. The pressing plate is disposed to face the placement area for pressing the first and second substrates. The flat edge aligners move along with the pressing plate.

A protective sheeting for use in processing a semiconductor-sized wafer includes a protective film and a cushioning layer attached to a back surface of the protective film. At least in a central area of the protective sheeting, no adhesive is applied to a front surface and a back surface of the protective sheeting, the central area having an outer diameter which is equal to or larger than an outer diameter of the semiconductor-sized wafer. Further, a protective sheeting for use in processing a wafer has a protective film and a cushioning layer attached to a back surface of the protective film, wherein, on an entire front surface and an entire back surface of the protective sheeting, no adhesive is applied. A handling system for a semiconductor-sized wafer and to a combination of a wafer and the protective sheeting are also described.

A manufacturing method includes the step of forming a diced semiconductor wafer (10) including semiconductor chips (11) from a semiconductor wafer (W) typically on a dicing tape (T1). The diced semiconductor wafer (10) on the dicing tape (T1) is laminated with a sinter-bonding sheet (20). The semiconductor chips (11) each with a sinter-bonding material layer (21) derived from the sinter-bonding sheet (20) are picked up typically from the dicing tape (T1). The semiconductor chips (11) each with the sinter-bonding material layer are temporarily secured through the sinter-bonding material layer (21) to a substrate. Through a heating process, sintered layers are formed from the sinter-bonding material layers (21) lying between the temporarily secured semiconductor chips (11) and the substrate, to bond the semiconductor chips (11) to the substrate. The semiconductor device manufacturing method is suitable for efficiently supplying a sinter-bonding material to individual semiconductor chips while reducing loss of the sinter-bonding material.

A method and system for connecting electronic assemblies and/or for manufacturing workpieces, having a plurality of modules for connecting the electronic assemblies, includes at least one module configured as a loading station and/or unloading station. At least one further module is configured as a manufacturing station. A manufacturing workpiece carrier is provided for accommodating the electronic assemblies and/or the workpieces, and is movable in automated manner by way of a conveying unit from the loading station via the manufacturing station to the unloading station. The system is configured in particular for assembly line production. In a secondary aspect, a foil/film transfer unit is proposed which provides automated application of foils/films as a process cover in the loading station.

A method of processing a semiconductor substrate is provided. The method may include forming a film over a first side of a semiconductor substrate, forming at least one separation region in the semiconductor substrate between a first region and a second region of the semiconductor substrate, arranging the semiconductor substrate on a breaking device, wherein the breaking device comprises a breaking edge, and wherein the semiconductor substrate is arranged with the film facing the breaking device and in at least one alignment position with the at least one separation region aligned with the breaking edge, and forcing the semiconductor substrate to bend the first region with respect to the second region over the breaking edge until the film separates between the breaking edge and the at least one separation region.

An operation method of a semiconductor removing apparatus includes moving a semiconductor structure to a stage, wherein the semiconductor structure includes a lower substrate, a cap, and a micro electro mechanical system (MEMS) structure between the lower substrate and the cap, and the cap has a diced portion; pulling, by a clamp assembly, a tape of a tape roll from a first side of the stage to a second side of the stage opposite to the first side, such that the tape is attached to the cap of the semiconductor structure; and pulling, by the clamp assembly, the tape of the tape roll from the second side of the stage back to the first side of the stage, such that the diced portion of the cap separates from the semiconductor structure.

A wafer production method includes forming, in an ingot, a separating layer that includes modified portions and cracks, by relatively moving the ingot and a focal point of a laser beam, with the focal point positioned at a depth corresponding to a thickness of the wafer, separating the wafer from the ingot by using the separating layer as a separation starting interface, bonding an adhesive tape to at least one of a separated surface of the wafer and a resulting fresh end surface of the ingot, removing separation debris stuck on the at least one surface, by separating the adhesive tape from the at least one surface, and grinding the at least one surface from which the separation debris has been removed. A wafer production machine is also disclosed.

A chip peeling apparatus may include a peeling device. The peeling device may include a plurality of vacuum adsorption holes and a plurality of first air blow holes arranged around the plurality of vacuum adsorption holes. The peeling device may be configured to peel a chip off a tape when the peeling device is arranged below a region of the tape on which the chip is attached, vacuum pressure is applied through the plurality of vacuum adsorption holes to adsorb the peeling device to the region of the tape, and a first air blow is directed through the plurality of first air blow holes to the region of the tape.