Wafer cleaning apparatus and method

1. An apparatus for wafer cleaning, comprising:

an enclosure comprising a noncombustible material;

a wafer holder, in the enclosure, configured to hold and heat a wafer;

a cleaning nozzle, in the enclosure, configured to supply a flow of a cleaning fluid onto the wafer, wherein at least a part of an outer surface of the cleaning nozzle is coated with a conducting material;

a magnetic grounding clamp coupled to the cleaning nozzle and a grounding line directly connected to the cleaning nozzle, wherein each of the magnetic grounding clamp and the grounding line is configured to ground the cleaning nozzle;

at least one infrared sensor, in the enclosure, configured to monitor at least one thermal condition associated with the wafer; and

an exhaust unit coupled to the enclosure and configured to expel a vapor generated by the cleaning fluid, wherein the exhaust unit comprises an exhaust duct disposed through the enclosure to form a passageway for the vapor and a rinse nozzle in the exhaust duct generating a mist and configured to rinse the vapor passing through the exhaust unit with the mist.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising:

a fan filter unit coupled to the enclosure and configured to supply a flow of a mixture of air and an inert gas to the enclosure.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the exhaust unit further comprises:

another sensor configured to detect a concentration of the vapor after being rinsed with the mist by the rinse nozzle.

4. The apparatus of claim 3 , further comprising:

an emergency unit configured to stop an operation of the apparatus based on the concentration of the vapor.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the noncombustible material comprises Ethylene ChloroTriFluoroEthylene (ECTFE).

6. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the conducting material comprises carbon nanotubes.

7. The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising:

an ionizer, in the enclosure, configured to supply corona discharges to the cleaning nozzle.

8. The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising:

an image sensor configured to capture images of the surface of the wafer;

a thereto-sensor configured to generate a thermo-profile at the surface of the wafer; or

a combination thereof.

9. The apparatus of claim 1 ; wherein the rinse nozzle is configured to generate the mist by mixing a flow of a fluid and a flow of an inert gas.

10. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the exhaust unit further comprises:

an adsorption material coated on at least a part of an inner surface of the exhaust duct for adsorbing the vapor passing through the exhaust duct.

11. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the wafer holder comprises:

a plurality of jaws evenly distributed around a peripheral edge of the wafer;

a plurality of support pins on top of the plurality of jaws and forming a first circle enclosing the peripheral edge of the wafer;

a plurality of clamp pins on top of a portion of the plurality of jaws enclosing the peripheral edge and forming a second circle adjacent to the peripheral edge of the wafer for holding the wafer; and

a diameter of the first circle is larger than a diameter of the second circle.

12. The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising:

an inner flow unit coupled to the wafer holder and configured to supply an inert gas to another surface of the wafer.

13. The apparatus of claim 12 , wherein the inner flow unit comprises:

a flow meter configured to detect a flow rate of the inert gas flowing from the wafer.

14. An apparatus for wafer cleaning, comprising:

a wafer holder configured to hold and heat a wafer, wherein the wafer holder comprises at least six support pins and three clamp pins for holding the wafer;

a cleaning nozzle configured to supply a flow of a cleaning fluid onto a surface of the wafer, wherein at least a part of an outer surface of the cleaning nozzle comprises a conducting material;

a magnetic grounding clamp coupled to the cleaning nozzle and a grounding line directly connected to the cleaning nozzle, wherein each of the magnetic grounding clamp and the grounding line is configured to ground the cleaning nozzle;

a fan filter unit configured to supply a flow of a mixture of air and an inert gas;

at least one sensor configured to detect one or more attributes associated with the wafer; and

an exhaust unit disposed at an opposite side of the wafer with regard to the fan filter unit and configured to expel a vapor generated by the cleaning fluid, wherein the exhaust unit comprises an exhaust duct forming a passageway for the vapor and a rinse nozzle in the exhaust duct generating a mist and configured to rinse the vapor passing through the exhaust unit with the mist and an adsorption material coated on at least a part of an inner surface of the exhaust duct for adsorbing the vapor passing through the exhaust duct.

15. The apparatus of claim 14 , wherein:

the at least six support pins are evenly distributed on top of six jaws to enclose a peripheral edge of the wafer;

the three clamp pins are evenly distributed on top of three of the six jaws to enclose the peripheral edge of the wafer; and

a height of each of the at least six support pins is greater than a height of each of the three clamp pins.

16. The apparatus of claim 14 , wherein a diameter of a first circle formed by each of the at least six support pins to enclose a peripheral edge of the wafer is greater than a diameter of a second circle formed by each of the three clamp pins to enclose the peripheral edge of the wafer.

17. An apparatus for wafer cleaning, comprising:

an enclosure comprising a noncombustible material;

a wafer holder in the enclosure configured to hold and heat a wafer, wherein the wafer holder comprises at least six support pins and three clamp pins for holding the wafer;

a cleaning nozzle in the enclosure configured to supply a flow of a cleaning fluid onto a surface of the wafer, wherein the cleaning nozzle comprises a first non-conductive portion, a second non-conductive portion, and a conducting material on an outer surface of the second non-conductive portion;

a magnetic grounding clamp coupled to the cleaning nozzle and a grounding line directly connected to the cleaning nozzle, wherein each of the magnetic grounding clamp and the grounding line is configured to ground the cleaning nozzle;

a fan filter unit coupled to the enclosure and configured to supply a flow of a mixture of air and an inert gas;

at least one infrared sensor in the enclosure and connected to a fault detection and classification (FDC) system, configured to monitor at least one thermal condition associated with the wafer; and

an exhaust unit coupled to the enclosure and configured to expel a vapor generated by the cleaning fluid, wherein the exhaust unit comprises an exhaust duct disposed through the enclosure to form a passageway for the vapor and a rinse nozzle in the exhaust duct generating a mist and configured to rinse the vapor passing through the exhaust unit with the mist.

18. The apparatus of claim 17 , wherein the cleaning fluid comprises isopropyl alcohol and the cleaning fluid on the surface of the wafer is heated to a temperature from about 190° C. to about 195° C. to vaporize the cleaning fluid.

19. The apparatus of claim 17 , wherein:

the at least six support pins are evenly distributed on top of six jaws to enclose a peripheral edge of the wafer;

the three clamp pins are evenly distributed on top of three of the six jaws to enclose the peripheral edge of the wafer;

a diameter of a first circle formed by each of the at least six support pins to enclose the peripheral edge of the wafer is greater than a diameter of a second circle formed by each of the three clamp pins to enclose the peripheral edge of the wafer; and

a height of each of the support pins is greater than a height of each of the three clamp pins.