Water jet guided laser versus saw dicing

Natalia M. Dushkina; Frank Ruediger Wagner; Christophe Boillat; Jean-Marie Buchilly; Bernold Richerzhagen

doi:10.1117/12.479414

17 October 2003 Water jet guided laser versus saw dicing

Natalia M. Dushkina, Frank Ruediger Wagner, Christophe Boillat, Jean-Marie Buchilly, Bernold Richerzhagen

Proceedings Volume 4977, Photon Processing in Microelectronics and Photonics II; (2003) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.479414
Event: High-Power Lasers and Applications, 2003, San Jose, CA, United States

Abstract

The incessantly growing demands for higher speed of the wireless telecommunications and more compact devices require using of thin compound semiconductor wafers. The dicing is the very last process of the wafer manufacturing. At this stage the IC pattern is completely built up and the wafer has the highest value. Therefore, the goal of the singulation process is to provide the highest possible throughput. The conventional saw techniques "struggle" at their speed limits, while the conventional laser is not an appropriate dicing tool due to the strong thermal effect and big heat affected zones. The water-jet guided laser technology provides cool laser dicing since the laser is coupled in a fine stable water-jet and conducted to the work piece by means of total internal reflection like through an optical fiber, as the relatively low water pressure (10 - 30 MPa) of the tiny jet with diameter 40 - 100 μm results in a negligible force on the sample. This technology provides higher cutting speeds and burr-free kerf quality. By means of the Laser MicroJet, wafers as thin as 25 μm could be diced in streets of 50 μm width, with almost 100% wafer throughput. Here we compare the water-jet guided laser cutting with conventional techniques for dicing of thin semiconductor wafers. The results for Silicon and GaAs/Ge wafers are discussed in terms of speed, kerf quality and die fracture strength.

Citation Download Citation

Natalia M. Dushkina, Frank Ruediger Wagner, Christophe Boillat, Jean-Marie Buchilly, and Bernold Richerzhagen "Water jet guided laser versus saw dicing", Proc. SPIE 4977, Photon Processing in Microelectronics and Photonics II, (17 October 2003); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.479414

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