Patent · US Expired

Cleaning apparatus

US5966765A · kind A · utility

54Cited by
7References
17Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventors

Key dates

Filing dateOct 21, 1997
Grant dateOct 19, 1999
Priority date
Expiry dateOct 21, 2017

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
  • CPC primaryH01L21/67046
  • WIPO fieldSemiconductors
  • WIPO sectorElectrical engineering

Abstract

A cleaning apparatus is used for cleaning a thin disk-shaped workpiece such as a semiconductor wafer, a liquid crystal display or the like. The cleaning apparatus comprises a support mechanism for supporting a workpiece and rotating the workpiece about its own axis, and a cleaning member for being in sliding contact with at least one of opposite surfaces of the workpiece. The support mechanism comprises a plurality of spindles, and a plurality of rotatable holding portions provided on upper ends of the spindles and having respective circumferential edges engageable with a circumferential edge of the workpiece. The plurality of spindles are clustered into groups around the workpiece, and two adjacent groups of the spindles are positioned to form a wide spacing between two adjacent groups of the spindles, and a path along which the workpiece is supplied to and removed from the support mechanism is positioned in the wide spacing.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.