An apparatus for processing a substrate is disclosed. The apparatus includes a polishing section configured to polish a substrate, a transfer mechanism configured to transfer the substrate, and a cleaning section configured to clean and dry the polished substrate. The cleaning section has plural cleaning lines for cleaning plural substrates. The plural cleaning lines have plural cleaning modules and plural transfer robots for transferring the substrates.

A wafer holder is provided for use in a polishing machine. The wafer holder has a frame composed of a thermoset material and/or a thermoplastic material. The frame has at least one cavity for receiving and supporting a wafer to be polished in the polishing machine. A polymer film pad is permanently affixed in the at least one cavity.

A method includes: polishing a semiconductor wafer by a polishing device; measuring a form of the semiconductor wafer by a measuring device before a polished surface of the semiconductor wafer becomes hydrophilic; and setting polishing conditions for the polishing based on a measurement result of the form of the semiconductor wafer by a polishing condition setting unit.

A polishing-pad laminated structure which allows for easy alignment of a through-hole of a polishing pad with a sensor head installed in a polishing table is disclosed. The polishing-pad laminated structure includes a polishing pad and a release sheet. The polishing pad has a through-hole located at a position corresponding to a position of a sensor head disposed in the polishing table. The release sheet covers an adhesive surface of the polishing pad. The release sheet is divided into at least a first release sheet and a second release sheet. The first release sheet has a surface area smaller than a surface area of the second release sheet.

A polishing apparatus which is an index system polishing apparatus which includes a polishing head for holding a wafer, a plurality of turn tables to which polishing pads for polishing the wafer are attached, and a loading/unloading stage for loading the wafer to the polishing head or unloading the wafer from the polishing head, and which polishes the wafer while switching the turn tables to be used for polishing the wafer held at the polishing head by causing the polishing head to perform rotation movement, the polishing apparatus including a turn table upward and downward movement mechanism which allows the turn table to move upward and downward. With this polishing apparatus, it is possible to reduce an amount of displacement caused when moment load is applied on the polishing head during polishing.

A cleaning section transfer robot includes a base, a rotary table, a first motor, a first substrate transfer mechanism including a second motor having a common rotation axis with the first motor, a first arm, a third motor, a second arm, a fourth motor, and a first hand, and a second substrate transfer mechanism including a fifth motor having a common rotation axis with the first motor, a third arm, a sixth motor, a fourth arm, a seventh motor, and a second hand. Each of the first arm, the second arm, the third arm, the fourth arm, the first hand, and the second hand extends in a direction perpendicular to the rotation axis of the first motor, and each of the third motor, the fourth motor, the sixth motor, and the seventh motor has a rotation axis parallel to the rotation axis of the first motor.

Disclosed are a CMP wafer cleaning apparatus, and a wafer transfer manipulator and a wafer overturn method for same. The wafer transfer manipulator includes: a transverse transfer shaft, with same only being located at a side of a cleaning unit; a transverse transfer carriage provided on the transverse transfer shaft, and capable of transversely moving along the transverse transfer shaft; a first vertical lifting shaft provided on the transverse transfer carriage, and capable of vertically moving on the transverse transfer carriage; a rotary table provided on the first vertical lifting shaft; and a first claw clamping arm connected to the rotary table, and driven by the rotary table to move in a rotational manner. The CMP wafer cleaning apparatus is provided, and when the CMP wafer cleaning apparatus fails, safe storage of a polished wafer can be realized.

An apparatus for processing a substrate is disclosed. The apparatus includes a polishing section configured to polish a substrate, a transfer mechanism configured to transfer the substrate, and a cleaning section configured to clean and dry the polished substrate. The cleaning section has plural cleaning lines for cleaning plural substrates. The plural cleaning lines have plural cleaning modules and plural transfer robots for transferring the substrates.

A mechanism that conveys a substrate is cleaned in a cleaning unit. A substrate processing apparatus that includes a substrate polishing device and a substrate cleaning unit is disclosed. The substrate cleaning unit includes a cleaning module and a cleaning unit conveyance mechanism. The cleaning unit conveyance mechanism includes a hand and a hand open/close mechanism. The substrate processing apparatus further includes a hand cleaning unit. The hand cleaning unit includes a hand cleaning tank and a cleaning liquid injection mechanism.

A polishing method is used for polishing a surface of a substrate such as a semiconductor wafer. The polishing method includes a polishing process for polishing a surface of the substrate in accordance with a preset polishing recipe, a pad cleaning process for removing foreign matters on the polishing pad by ejecting a cleaning fluid onto the polishing pad, and a substrate transferring process in which the polished substrate is removed from the top ring at a substrate transferring position, a subsequent substrate to be polished is loaded onto the top ring, and then the top ring holding the subsequent substrate to be polished is returned to the polishing table. The pad cleaning process is started after the completion of the polishing recipe is detected, and the pad cleaning process is terminated by detecting a position of the subsequent substrate to be polished which is undergoing the substrate transferring process.