Patent ID: 8685270

Claim:
A method for producing a semiconductor wafer sliced from a single crystal and having an edge and two sides, the method comprising: (a) rounding the edge using a grinding disk containing abrasives with an average grain size of 20.0-60.0 Î¼m; (b) performing a coarse PPG process for simultaneous double-side material removal wherein the semiconductor wafers are whole-area processed between two rotating ring-shaped working disks, each rotating ring-shaped working disk having a working layer containing abrasives having an average grain size of 5.0-20.0 Î¼m and a Mohs hardness of â‰§6, wherein the semiconductor wafer is placed in a cutout in one of a plurality of carriers rotatable by a rolling apparatus such that the semiconductor wafer lies in a freely movable manner in the carrier and the semiconductor wafer is movable on a cycloidal trajectory; (c) performing a fine PPG process for simultaneous double-side material removal that includes whole area processing of the semiconductor wafers between two rotating ring-shaped working disks, each rotating ring-shaped working disk having a working layer containing abrasives having an average grain size of 0.5-15.0 Î¼m and less than the average grain size used in step (b); (d) further rounding the edge of the semiconductor wafer using a grinding disk containing abrasives having an average grain size of 1.0 -20.0 Î¼m, wherein the average grain size used is less than the average grain size used in the rounding in step (a); (e) treating the two sides with an etching medium together with a further material removal of not more than 1 Î¼m per side; (f) polishing at least one of the two sides using a polishing pad containing abrasives with an average grain size of 0.1-1.0 Î¼m; (g) polishing the edge of the semiconductor wafer; and (h) chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) of at least a front side of the two sides.