To make an improvement in the shape accuracy of a wafer shaped in the grinding operation after pretreatment and make an improvement in the efficiency of grinding operation of a wafer. A grinding apparatus includes at least one plasma generator configured to irradiate, before an outer circumferential edge of a wafer is ground, at least part of the outer circumferential edge with plasma.

A polishing apparatus capable of removing a chipping is disclosed. The polishing apparatus includes a first polishing head and a second polishing head. The first polishing head is configured to press a first polishing tool against a peripheral portion of a substrate to form a recess in the peripheral portion. The second polishing head is configured to press a second polishing tool against a polishing boundary of the recess.

Disclosed are a wafer edge polishing drum and wafer edge polishing equipment including the same. The wafer edge polishing drum includes a body part having a disc shape and a polishing part extending from a peripheral portion of a first surface of the body part while being inclined with respect to the first surface of the body part. The polishing part includes an inner surface surrounding a polishing area adjacent to the first surface of the body part. The inner surface of the polishing part includes a first surface extending from the first surface of the body part and a second surface formed so as to be brought into contact with an edge area of a wafer. The second surface of the polishing part has a second angle with respect to the first surface of the body part, and the second angle is variable.

A polishing apparatus for an outer peripheral portion of a wafer includes: a stage for horizontally holding a disc-shaped wafer; a rotation drive unit for rotating the stage around its center axis as a rotation axis; polishing heads having an inner circumferential surface mounted with polishing pads; and a polishing-head drive mechanism for bringing the polishing pads into contact with the outer peripheral portion of the wafer and sliding the polishing heads in a direction slanted relative to a center axis of the wafer or a vertical direction thereof under application of a predetermined polishing pressure to the outer peripheral portion of the wafer. The inner circumferential surface of each of the polishing heads is mounted with two or more types of the polishing pads having different physical property values in the vertical direction.

A method for processing semiconductor wafers includes obtaining measurement data of an edge profile of a semiconductor wafer processed by a front-end process tool. The method includes determining an edge profile center point based on the measurement data, generating a raw height profile, and generating an ideal edge profile. The method further includes generating a Gapi edge profile of the semiconductor wafer based on the raw height profile and the ideal edge profile and calculating a Gapi edge value of the semiconductor wafer based on the Gapi edge profile. The generated Gapi edge profile and/or the calculated Gapi edge value may be used to tune the front-end process tool and/or sort the semiconductor wafer for polishing. Systems include at least a front-end process tool, a flatness measurement tool, and a computing device.

An edge polishing drum for wafers is disclosed. The edge polishing drum includes a body part having a disc shape, and a polishing part extending inclinedly from an edge of the body part toward a first face of the body part. The polishing part includes an inner surface surrounding a polishing area adjacent to the first face of the body part. The inner surface of the polishing part includes a first surface extending from the first face of the body part, and a second surface configured to contact an edge area of a wafer to be polished. The second surface includes a first area having a 2-1th angle with respect to the first face of the body part, and a second area having a 2-2th angle with respect to the first face of the body part. The first area is disposed between the first face of the body part and the second area.

An edge grinding tool is disclosed for dressing the edge of a workpiece using a hand grinder. The tool includes an elongated fence plate with a centrally aligned raised fence that has symmetrical, downward-diverging side surfaces. A grinder holder, attachable to various grinder heads via an optional adapter plate, features a guide plate with wheels that engage the fence's diverging surfaces, enabling smooth, controlled longitudinal movement. A second embodiment features a dual-guide plate system with spring-loaded engagement and a lever mechanism, enabling secure, hands-free operation by locking the grinder holder onto the fence. The tool supports different grinder configurations and includes optional wear and friction strips for added stability. The symmetrical fence design enables the fence plate to be rotated and reused on opposing workpiece edges, resulting in seamless joints. This invention improves precision, repeatability, and ease of use in edge dressing applications, especially for stone or concrete countertops.

An edge grinding tool is disclosed for dressing the edge of a workpiece using a hand grinder. The tool includes an elongated fence plate with a centrally aligned raised fence that has symmetrical, downward-diverging side surfaces. A grinder holder, attachable to various grinder heads via an optional adapter plate, features a guide plate with wheels that engage the fence's diverging surfaces, enabling smooth, controlled longitudinal movement. A second embodiment features a dual-guide plate system with spring-loaded engagement and a lever mechanism, enabling secure, hands-free operation by locking the grinder holder onto the fence. The tool supports different grinder configurations and includes optional wear and friction strips for added stability. The symmetrical fence design enables the fence plate to be rotated and reused on opposing workpiece edges, resulting in seamless joints. This invention improves precision, repeatability, and ease of use in edge dressing applications, especially for stone or concrete countertops.

A method for processing semiconductor wafers includes providing a first semiconductor wafer processed by a front-end process tool and obtaining measurement data along a surface of the first semiconductor wafer. The method also includes calculating a Gapi value of the first semiconductor wafer based on based on the measurement data, where the Gapi value is a global metric representing a difference between a raw shape of the first semiconductor wafer and an ideal shape of the semiconductor wafer. The method also includes determining whether the Gapi value of the first semiconductor wafer is within a predetermined threshold and either tuning the front-end process tool and processing a second semiconductor wafer with the tuned front-end process tool when the Gapi value is determined to be outside of the predetermined threshold, or sorting the first semiconductor wafer for polishing when the Gapi value is determined to be within the predetermined threshold.

The cutting-off and grinding integrated machine includes a machine body, a feeding component, a blanking component, a cutting-off component, a grinding component, and a transfer component. The cutting-off component, the feeding component, the grinding component and the blanking component are juxtaposed in the machine body in a width direction of the machine body; the grinding component includes plane grinding components and chamfer grinding components, the chamfer grinding components and the plane grinding components are integrally disposed, and the feeding component and the blanking component are both movable in a length direction of the machine body; and the transfer component includes a manipulator movable in the width and height directions of the machine body, and a blanking position of the feeding component, a feeding position of the blanking component and machining positions of the cutting-off component and the grinding component are all located on a moving path of the manipulator.