Polisher

Details Polisher Polisher

2000-05-15

2001-02-13

Banks, Derris H. (Department: 3723)

Abrading

Abrading process

With critical temperature modification or control of work or...

C451S285000, C451S449000

Reexamination Certificate

active

06186872

ABSTRACT:

TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates to a polisher, in particular, a polisher for polishing a semiconductor wafer, and more specifically to a system for cooling a turn table of such a polisher having a polishing surface for polishing a semiconductor wafer.
BACKGROUND ART
In the production of semiconductor devices, it is necessary to polish semiconductor wafers by means of a polisher to thereby flatten a surface thereof onto which semiconductor circuits are provided.
A typical polisher of this type includes a turn table provided with a polishing pad on an upper surface thereof, a drive shaft fixedly connected to the center of a lower surface of the turn table for drivingly rotating the turn table about its axis, a wafer carrier for holding a semiconductor wafer in contact with an upper polishing surface of the polishing pad to polish the wafer, and a slurry nozzle for supplying slurry onto the polishing surface to effect a polishing operation mechanically and chemically by a combination of the polishing pad and the supplied slurry. It is therefore desirable for a turn table of such a type of polisher to be positively cooled in order to deprive the polishing pad of heat generated in a polishing operation, although the polishing pad is cooled by the slurry to some extent. Consequently, it is conventional for such a polisher to be provided with a cooling system including a cooling fluid path extending inside of the turn table for flowing therethrough a cooling fluid received from an outside cooling fluid supply. However, since a fluid coupler provided in the cooling system to receive a cooling fluid from an outside cooling supply is conventionally located in a drive shaft which is connected to a drive mechanism for driving the shaft, the construction of a combination of the drive shaft and those devices associated with the shaft is complicated thereby causing problems of cost, maintenance and so on.
An object of the present invention is therefore to solve such problems as are involved in such a conventional polisher.
DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION
In accordance with the present invention, a polisher comprises a turn table having first and second end surfaces which are substantially normal to an axis of the turn table. The first end surface defines a polishing surface for polishing an article. A drive shaft is connected to the turn table in such a manner that the shaft extends along the axis of the turn table outwardly from the second end surface of the turn table. The polisher further includes a cooling system which comprises a cooling fluid path provided in the turn table for passing a cooling fluid therethrough to deprive the polishing surface of heat generated in a polishing operation and a fluid coupler provided at the center of the first end surface of the turn table for fluidly connecting the cooling fluid path with a cooling fluid supply outside of the turn table.
In a preferred embodiment, the turn table comprises a rotatable disc and a disc-like polishing member such as a synthetic resin polishing pad, a grindstone disc or the like axially aligned with the rotatable disc. The rotatable disc defines the above-noted second end surface of the turn table and the polishing member defies the polishing surface. The cooling system includes a cooling disc provided between the polishing member and the rotatable disc in which the above-stated cooling fluid path is formed. The cooling disc is removably connected to the rotatable disc. Alternatively, the cooling disc may be integrally formed with or integrally incorporated into the rotatable disc. The polishing member is provided with an opening at the center of the polishing member thereby exposing the center portion of the cooling disc, and the fluid coupler is mounted on the center portion of the cooling disc exposed by the opening. The fluid coupler may include a rotatable coupler body which is fixedly mounted on the center portion of the cooling disc and has a connection path fluidly connected to the cooling fluid path in the cooling disc and a stationary central member rotatably connected to the coupler body at the center of the coupler body thereby enabling the coupler body to rotate together with the cooling disc relative to the stationary central member. The stationary central member includes a fluid path having a first end port adapted to be fluidly connected to the cooling fluid supply and a second end port fluidly connected to the connecting path in the coupler body.


REFERENCES:
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patent: 5113622 (1992-05-01), Nishiguchi et al.
patent: 5716264 (1998-02-01), Kimura et al.
patent: 5775980 (1998-07-01), Sasaki et al.
patent: 5873769 (1999-02-01), Chiou et al.
patent: 58-74040 (1983-05-01), None
patent: 6-39704 (1994-02-01), None
patent: 7-35015 (1995-04-01), None

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