TECHNICAL FIELD

The present application relates to method for processing integrated circuits in general, and, in particular, to a method for attaching and detaching substrates during integrated circuit manufacturing.

BACKGROUND

Three-dimensional (3D) chip technologies have been gaining popularity in the microelectronics industry because of their advantages such as shorter circuit paths, higher performance, less power consumption and faster heat dissipation. With 3D chip technologies, multiple heterogeneous silicon wafers can be stacked vertically to form a 3D integrated circuit. The silicon wafers are relatively thin (50-100 μm) such that they can be interconnected by utilizing through-silicon vias (TSVs).

The present disclosure provides a method for attaching and detaching substrates during the manufacturing of 3D integrated circuits.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In accordance with one embodiment, a broadband light-absorbing material is combined with an adhesive material to form a broadband light-absorbing adhesive. A layer of the broadband light-absorbing adhesive is then applied on one side of a transparent carrier. A substrate is placed on the broadband light-absorbing adhesive and the transparent carrier to form a bonded stack. The substrate can be a wafer or a polymeric film. At this point, processing steps can be performed on the substrate. For example, the thickness of a wafer can be reduced via a thinning step, or electronic components can be built on a polymeric film. After the processing steps have been completed, a light pulse from a flashlamp is utilized to heat up the broadband light-absorbing adhesive in order to loosen the substrate from the bonded stack such that the substrate can be easily detached from the bonded stack. The substrate is subsequently transported to another station for further processing.

All features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent in the following detailed written description.

