Direct electrostatic levitation and propulsion of silicon wafer

Author

Jin, Ju ; Yih, Tachung C. ; Higuchi, Toshiro ; Jeon, Jong Up

Author_Institution

ADE Corp., Charlotte, NC, USA

Volume

34

Issue

5

fYear

1998

Firstpage

975

Lastpage

984

Abstract

A new type of contactless wafer manipulator, featuring “direct electrostatic levitation and propulsion of silicon wafer (DELP-SW)”, has been successfully developed. The novel aspect of this manipulator is that a silicon wafer can be directly levitated and driven via electrostatic forces. In this paper, a brief review of basic principles is presented. This is followed by a description of the structure of a prototype DELP-SW mechanism, including electrode design, position feedback control method, driving principle, and the operational procedure. Experimental results, which demonstrate completely contactless transportation of an 8-in silicon wafer, are also presented

Keywords

electrodes; electrostatic devices; feedback; materials handling; position control; propulsion; semiconductor device manufacture; 8 in; contactless wafer manipulator; direct electrostatic levitation; direct electrostatic propulsion; driving principle; electrode design; electrostatic forces; operational procedure; position feedback control method; silicon wafer; Electrodes; Electrostatic levitation; Glass; Industry Applications Society; Magnetic levitation; Propulsion; Semiconductor materials; Silicon; Transportation; Voltage;

fLanguage

English

Journal_Title

Industry Applications, IEEE Transactions on

Publisher

ieee

ISSN

0093-9994

Type

jour

DOI

10.1109/28.720437

Filename

720437