A Brief Introduction About The Semiconductor Wafer Front End Process & Its Top-Notch Strategies

Kensington Laboratories
3 min readMay 12, 2020

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The wafer front end robotics is known for several years, but in the past, manual strategies are used to increase the performance of the semiconductors. Due to the high level of technologies and the latest innovations, the leading manufacturer Kensington Labs has shown considerable interest in providing the customized services of automated and unique products such as pre-aligners, SCARA Robots, precision control motion stages, ADOs. If we talk about the most demanding robot of the company, that is the semiconductor front end wafer handling system. The wafer end-effector or semiconductor fabrication equipment is widely used in the broad spectrum from Etch Systems, Metrology Systems, Thermal Processing. It is also lucrative to boost the operational capability of reticle processes.

The semiconductor front end system comes with the 300mm edge grips and the beam technology to eliminate the contamination, dust particles from the machine. In other words, it is also defined as the single integrated circuits that take care of the robot’s wrist installation and also manage the wafer placement. Apart from that, these wafer front end semiconductors proffer world-class compatibility for high-temperature applications. Moreover, when it comes to handling the transparent substrate through beams, the semiconductor wafer front end-effectors help a lot in achieving all sorts of needs. In the market, the semiconductor wafer sells in two standard sizes that one can choose according to the requirement. Whether you choose a 300mm size of robotics or purchase a very small 50mm configured device, it will always bring high-quality performance and lasts for a long time.

Furthermore, wafer front-end effectors feature an elegant Crown/ Taiko design that is the wafer back grinding process, which utilizes the best class of grinding methods while developing with the DISCO. In comparison to other equipment, the approach of this Taiko-style semiconductor wafer front end effector is unique because while grinding, the Taiko leaves an edge on the outermost circumference of the wafer to save the inner portions from being thin.

Advantages of Using Taiko-style Wafer Front End-Effector/Robots

● The Taiko process boosts the strength of the machine due to the present hole formation and distribution of bumps.

● It is equipped with a complete integrated structure and also contains a very simple shape to reduce the inside particles.

● There is no edge chipping ensured by the Taiko-made semiconductor front end systems.

Step-by-Step Fabrication Techniques of Wafer Front End Robotics

● There are many types of robotics available from the manufacturer, like Multi-Link SCARA wafer robots and single wafer robots. First of all, it is necessary to select the robotic type because work processes vary as per their sizing and the kind of systems that you decide to increase the performance.

● In the next step, the selected wafer front end is combined with the chemical and mechanical forces to clear the dust elements from the machine.

● It is vital to pick the quality-made robot end-effectors as some products possess the severe risks of electric current leakage. If it is not purchased accurately, you will be unable to get the desirable services. The wafer front-end-of-line, which is capable of performing the box isolation technique, is considered as one of the stunning applications.

● To maintain the flow of current, the drain and gate modules are used to complete the first portion of IC fabrication.

The Final Summary

Choosing a wafer front end manufacturing unit is a little bit tricky because there is an extensive range of robotics that are present online that look different in appearance but offer similar functionalities. If you are a person who does not have any knowledge about the wafer handlers and their work process, you can discover Kensington Laboratories that have acquired many years of experience in this niche and can help you to make the right choice for your system.

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Kensington Laboratories

Kensington Laboratories is a leading supplier of wafer handling robots, precision motion control, integrated stages, linear stages and rotary stages since 1976.